56 BULLETIN" 355, U. S. DEPARTMENT OP AGEICULTUEE. 



manure is worth from $2.50 to $2.75 per ton. After being exposed 

 in the open yard for a few months, 2 tons of fresh manure decomposes 

 to about 1 ton, with an analysis showing 10 pounds of nitrogen, 3 

 pounds of phosphorus, and 8 pounds of potassium, having a fertihzer 

 value of from $2.60 to $2.85 per ton. These estimates do not include 

 the value to the soil of the organic matter furnished by manure. 

 The comparative value of manures voided by different animals will 

 be found in the references. It is highly important in farm practice 

 to understand that the kind of feed given to farm animals has a very 

 close relation to the value of the manure voided. The richer the feed 

 in nitrogen content, the more valuable will be the excrement pro- 

 duced. Therefore, one who winters live stock largely on corn fodder 

 and straw will have much less valuable manure to return to the soil 

 than one who adds clover hay, alfalfa, or grain to the feeding ration. 



Losses from harnyard inanure. — The losses from manures on farms 

 of the United States is hundreds of milHons of dollars annually. This 

 is poor economy, considering the needs of the farms from which this 

 immense loss occurs and the fact that much of it could be avoided by 

 good management. The losses occur largely in two ways: (1) From 

 liquid manures not being saved, and (2) from storing and exposure. 



Loss of liquid manure. — The collection and return to the soil of 

 the liquid portion of the manure is evidently the most difficult prob- 

 lem. About one-half of the fertilizing value of barnyard manure is 

 contained in the liquid portion. Storage in cisterns is only partially 

 successful, especia,lly in the Northern States, where the freezing of 

 the liquid during the winter makes its distribution difficult or im- 

 possible. On the whole, the most satisfactory method for conserving 

 liquid manure on the farm is to absorb it in the bedding. As much 

 straw, cut or shredded cornstalks, or other refuse material should 

 be used as may be necessary entirely to absorb the liquid. (Ref. 

 No. 4, pp. 160, 161.) Peat or moss, when available, is a far more 

 effective absorbent than straw. The dust from this material, how- 

 ever, makes it objectionable for bedding dairy cattle. Finely ground 

 phosphate rock is often used upon the floors as an absorbent after 

 cleaning the stables. Such use also helps the phosphorus of this 

 material to become available to plants after the manure is applied 

 to the soil and decomposition begins. 



Losses from storing manures (Ref. No. 3, pp. 598-602; or No. 4, 

 pp. 175-181). — There are two ways in which fertility is lost from 

 the manure pile while stored. First, by leaching out of much of the 

 soluble and most valuable part, and second, by fermentation and 

 heating, which causes loss of nitrogen in the gaseous form. Leaching 

 should be prevented by having the manure pile either covered or 

 so completely built that no more water is absorbed by the manure 

 than is necessary to keep it in a moist condition. In the South and 



