FARM MANURES 607 



conditions so essential to economic and favorable fer- 

 mentation. 



Placing fresh manure in small heaps in the field to be 

 spread later, is, in the first place, poor economy of labor. 

 Moreover, it encourages loss by fermentation, while at 

 the same time the soluble portions of the pile escape into 

 the soil immediately underneath. There is thus a poor 

 distribution of the essential elements of the dung, and 

 when the manure is finally spread, an overfeeding of 

 plants at one point and an underfeeding at another results. 

 A low efficiency of the manure is thus realized. This 

 method of handling manure is not to be recommended. 



512. Distribution of manure in the field. — In the 

 actual application of manure to the land, certain general 

 principles should always be kept in mind. In the first 

 place, evenness of distribution is to be desired, since it 

 tends to raise the efficiency of the manure by encouraging 

 a more uniform plant growth. This evenness of spread- 

 ing is much aided by fineness of division. Moreover, it 

 is generally better, especially in diversified farming on 

 medium to heavy soils, to decrease the amounts at each 

 spreading and apply oftener. Thus, instead of adding 

 20 tons to the acre, 10 tons would be applied and twice 

 as much area covered. The applications would then 

 be made oftener. A larger and quicker return in net 

 crop yield per ton of manure applied would be realized. 

 This has been strikingly shown by the Ohio experiments 1 

 over a test for eighteen years in a three-years rotation of 

 wheat, clover, and potatoes, the manure being placed on 

 the wheat and affecting the clover and the potatoes as a 



1 Thorne, C. E., and others. Plans and Summary Tables 

 of the Experiments at the Central Farm. Ohio Agr. Hxp. 

 Sta., Circ. 120, p. 108. 1912. 



