13Q [Assembly, 



The general course of cultiv^ation pursued by me this season 

 was the same as that of previous years, with which you have on 

 a former occasion been made acquainted. On a portion of the 

 land, however, I this year used improved phosphate of lime, with 

 marked good result; and with the view of estimating the compa- 

 rative merits of specimens of this fertilizer from rival manufacto- 

 ries, I applied it respectively on alternate rows, and observed no 

 superiority of one above the other. The mode of cultivation re- 

 quired for many other plants would perhaps afford a better field 

 for testing their respective merits. That superphosphate of lime 

 is an excellent fertilizer for Indian corn, the results of the analy- 

 sis fully establishes, but whether it can be profitably employed I 

 am not at present prepared to say. 



In employing chemically prepared fertilizers, a strict view in 

 regard to the lasting effect they have upon the soil, should be 

 well considered, as well as in the effect upon the present crop. 

 Barn-yard manure possesses this great advantage of permanency 

 in a high degree, and can be safely used in the cultivation of any 

 crop 5 but the great difficulty is that few or no farms furnish it 

 in sufficient quantity, and when purchased at a distance, as It 

 usually is, and the expense ot cartage is added to the cost, it is 

 one of the most expensive manures used. Wood ashes also con- 

 tain properties entering freely into most vegetable products, and 

 are well known to be oUe^of the best fertilizers for corn, but can- 

 not always be obtained in sufficient quantity, or at a price tliat 

 will justify their free use. 



Of manures applied locally, guano mixed with charcoal, in the 

 proportion of one part of the former to four of the latter, is per- . 

 haps the best and cheapest. I have used it with good results in 

 various departments of the kitchen garden, and have observed its 

 active stimulating effects on corn, especially in the early stage of its 

 growth ; indeed, Peruvian guano may be considered a universal 

 fertilizer, and a most valuable auxiliary to agricultural and hor- 

 ticultural efforts. The large quantity now used in England, 

 where agriculture from necessity has been reduced to a science, 

 and the vital importance of renovating and keeping up the con- 

 dition of the soil is a subject of active discussion, with a rigid 



