Early Experiments on Wheat at HolWiam. 9 



which are stated the dressings of manure per acre on each 

 plot, and the yields of dressed corn, offal corn, and straw in 

 each of the four seasons, 1851-2-3-4. 



In every case a larger produce, by 14 to 20 bushels, or 

 even more, was obtained by the same manure in the first 

 year than in the average of the following years. This result 

 speaks well for the previous " condition " of the land, and it 

 is also very instructive as showing how useless, for the 

 purposes of any general conclusions, are experiments with 

 manures conducted over a single season only. It is in fact 

 not until some of the elements of fertility, the due proportion 

 of which to the others is indicated in the term " condition," 

 have been removed from the soil by the crop, that any safe 

 deductions can be formed from the results of experiments 

 with manures. 



Plot 1, unman ured, gave 39| bushels per acre of dressed 

 corn the first year, 15J the second, 21^ the third, and 16| 

 the fourth, the average of the lour years being 23J bushels, 

 and that of the last three years nearly 18 bushels, which 

 latter amount is nearly 22 bushels less than was obtained 

 on the same plot in the first year. 



Plot 2, manured with salts of potash, soda, and magnesia, 

 and superphosphate of lime, gave in the four years respec- 

 tively 34J, 19, 19|, and 18^ bushels of dressed corn per 

 acre, the average of the last three years being about 15 

 bushels less than the yield of the first year. A comparison 

 of the results on plots 1 and 2 shows that there was actually 

 rather more corn obtained without manure than with the 

 minerals, the tendency of the latter being to increase the 

 growth of straw, of which, taking the last three years 

 together, there was about half a ton more obtained by 

 means of the minerals. 



Plot 3 received in the autumn, and plot 4 in the spring, 

 2001b. sulphate of ammonia, and 2001b. muriate of ammonia 

 per acre. Taking the four years together, there is a 

 difference of less than 2 bushels between the produce of 



