Fertilizers for Cereals and Grasses 221 



A crop of 50 bushels of shelled corn to the acre, with 

 the accompanying stalks, will remove, on the average, 

 80 pounds of nitrogen, 29 of phosphoric acid and 55 of 

 potash. It is an exhaustive crop. A fertilizer, therefore, 

 that would furnish 30 pounds of phosphoric acid and 40 of 

 potash would be regarded as a fair dressing for land of 

 medium quality, provided a liberal application of manure 

 had been made to the land. A part of the phosphoric 

 acid, at least, should be in a soluble form, in order to supply 

 the early needs of the crop. The remainder may consist 

 of ground bone or tankage, if the phosphoric acid in these 

 can be obtained more cheaply, since they will decay 

 rapidly enough to supply the demands for the later growth. 

 The potash may be either muriate of potash or kainit, 

 though the former is preferable if it is applied in the drill, 

 which is, if used in these amounts, a perfectly safe practice 

 so far as injury to the plant is concerned ; though ferti- 

 lizers containing large amounts of potash salts are prefer- 

 ably applied broadcast on raw ground of a clayey nature, 

 and well worked into the soil, thus insuring a good distri- 

 bution. The cost of an application of this sort will be 

 relatively small, and the minerals added will be more 

 than sufficient to provide for a considerable increase in 

 crop. 



This recommendation is general and applies more par- 

 ticularly to soils of high natural fertility. The soil, crop- 

 ping system and method of manuring have much to do 

 with the fertilization of corn. If the land is light and 

 sandy, nitrogen should be added, even though it has re- 

 ceived a good dressing of yard manure, as these lands are 

 usually deficient in this element, and organic forms are 

 usually quite as useful as the soluble nitrate or ammonia, 

 since the seasonal conditions during the period of growth 



