Manures 



(52) 



Manures 



in 1 cwt. of good nitrate of soda than there is in 

 1J tons of the best farmyard manure. Yard dung 

 is often deficient in nitrogen, owing to the common, 

 but careless, practice of allowing large bodies of it 

 to ferment in the open air for considerable lengths 

 of time. Still, it is of great value, and when 

 backed up by applications of chemical fertilisers 

 (inorganic manures) the best results may be 

 obtained. In addition to its chemical properties, 

 it acts mechanically in adding depth and stamina 

 to poor and hungry soils, and lightening heavy 

 ones ; moreover, it acts like a sponge, in storing 

 large quantities of water, which may be drawn 

 upon by crops during periods of drought. 



Guano. There are many different brands of 

 guano upon the market. The true Peruvian Guano 

 is composed of the excrement of seabirds, collected 

 from their haunts in islands off the coast of South 

 America. These layers of guano are sometimes 

 of considerable depth, as they may represent the 

 accumulations of centuries. Guano is a strong and 

 forcing nitrogenous manure, that may be usefully 

 employed in all cases where a quick top growth is 

 required. For pot plants it is better dissolved in 

 water than applied in the powder form. For crops 

 out of doors it may be drilled in or scattered by 

 hand. 



Fowl Manure. The manure from domestic fowls 

 is of similar nature, and may be used in the same 

 way. It should be stored in a dry shed with 

 an equal bulk of dry soil, and twelve months' 

 storage before use is an advantage, as the ranker, 

 noxious vapours are thus got rid of. 



Blood. Dried blood from slaughter houses is a 

 strong nitrogenous manure, although it varies con- 

 siderably according to the animals which furnish 

 it, and their condition when killed. Apply in small 

 doses, mixed with dry soil, and in the growing 

 season only, not in autumn or winter. 



Bones. The composition of bone meal is similar 

 to that of superphosphate of lime, and the two may 

 be used in similar cases. Bone meal is quicker in 

 its effects than crushed bones, which give up their 

 goodness slowly in proportion to their size. Crushed 

 bones may be used for Vine borders where lasting 

 properties are required. Bone meal forms an 

 admirable dressing at the rate of 3 oz. to 4 oz. per 

 square yard, for all fruit trees. Fork it in and 

 follow up with a good watering. 



Fish. Decaying fish is frequently employed as 

 manure. It is also worked up into a guano which 

 is excellent for all green crops out of doors, and 

 many pot plants, but it needs to be covered with 

 soil to get rid of the odour. 



Horn Showings. These contain some manurial 

 properties, and may be usefully employed for fruit 

 trees. 



Leaves. These not only contain a good deal of 

 available plant food but they improve the soil 

 mechanically. (For further details, see LEAF 

 MOULD.) 



Miscellaneous Garden Refuse. The remains of 

 garden herbaceous plants may be stacked in 

 alternate layers with lime, and covered with soil, 

 when they form a useful manure. If woody, 

 destruction by fire is necessary, and the resulting 

 wood ashes constitute a valuable supply of potash. 



Night Soil. Human excrement is a strong and 

 forcing manure which must be employed with great 

 care. It should be mixed with four or five times 

 its bulk of soil, and this will, in a measure, correct 



the rank smell which is its chief fault. Quicklime 

 has been recommended as a deodoriser, but its 

 addition means the loss of so much ammonia, the 

 most important manurial agent, that it is not to 

 be entertained by the practical student of the 

 problem of manure giving. Fruit trees, par- 

 ticularly Vines, that are carrying heavy crops will 

 benefit from a dressing of night soil, and in some 

 parts of the country growers ef large Onions are 

 very partial to it. Small doses only should be 

 given to the Onions, or the bulbs will tend to 

 become thick necked. 



Cow Dung and Horse Droppings. Cow dung is 

 a mild but effective manure, one of its chief 

 advantages being the great quantity of water it 

 contains. It may be freely used for almost all 

 vegetables, and is especially suitable for Celery, 

 Peas, Beans, and Greens of all sorts. Stacked in 

 alternate layers of loam, and allowed to remain 

 thus for a year, it makes a valuable potting 

 medium, and may then be safely employed foi 

 many kinds of pot plants, notably Ferns and 

 Palms. It suits such aquatics as Nymphseas 

 exceedingly well, although where these are grown 

 in tanks under glass the cow dung should not be 

 fresh from the byre. (For its employment in liquid 

 form, see LIQUID MANURE.) 



Horse droppings are the driest of all animal 

 ordure, and may therefore be usefully employed to 

 lighten heavy land. For making up Mushroom 

 beds the value of horse droppings is well known, 

 and after they have served for growing Mush- 

 rooms they are still available for putting upon the 

 land, either as a dressing to be dug in or as 

 mulchings ; also they may be advantageously 

 mixed with soil for potting, in proportions varying 

 from one-fourth to one-sixth of the whole bulk. 

 Carnations, Coleuses, Fuchsias, and Geraniums 

 take very kindly to old Mushroom bed manure in 

 the soil. 



Soot. This familiar article is not only valuable 

 because, as a rule, it can be easily obtained, but 

 also because it is a nitrogenous fertiliser. Used 

 for Chrysanthemums it imparts a wondrous depth 

 of green and vigour to the foliage, and it is one of 

 the finest lawn dressings available. In the latter 

 case it should only be applied in showery weather 

 or the grass will " burn." Use enough to coat the 

 grass with a black covering. (For the employment 

 of soot in the liquid form, see LIQUID MANURE.) As 

 an insectifuge and slug deterrent soot has claims 

 upon the gardener, but a certain greasiness th.it it 

 possesses renders it imperative that it should be 

 washed off as soon as possible, or it will choke the 

 breathing pores of the leaves, and hinder their 

 proper working. Do not mix soot and lime, or loss 

 of ammonia results. 



Charcoal is chiefly of service as a deodoriser, 

 and it will be well to include a little of it in the 

 soil of all plants that need a great deal of water, 

 and that are to stay in the same pots for a pro- 

 tracted period. Home burnt charcoal may be 

 obtained by building a pyre of wood, surrounding 

 it completely, save a hole in the top, with thick 

 turves, and allowing it to smoulder away gradually. 

 After the fire has burnt through to the top the 

 orifice should be closed and the fire left to go 

 gradually out. Charcoal dust has been recom- 

 mended as a specific for Onion fly. 



Malt Dvst. If kept dry, and used while it is yet 

 fresh, this has gentle manurial properties. It is of 

 service as a top-dressing for fruit trees. 



