92 PRACTICAL CORN CULTURE 
spreading, one that we have followed, is to fill the manure 
spreader about half full of manure, then spread on a layer 
of phosphate an inch or two in depth, then fill up the spreader 
with manure. It is very liable to blow away, and the manure 
on top prevents this. We have a drill that we have used to 
some extent, made especially for applying phosphate, but 
we prefer to apply with the manure spreader, provided we 
have the manure. 
RESULTS 
The results of experiments, covering a period of five years, 
on the King farm northeast of Springfield, show that phos- 
phate treated plots yielded an average of seventeen and six- 
tenths bushels more of corn per acre than untreated plots. 
The increase in the yield of oats and wheat was also pro- 
portionately greater. The Illinois Agricultural Experiment 
Station at Urbana has obtained equally good results. On 
the other hand, we want to be candid with our readers and 
state that our own results with phosphate have not been so 
favorable. We believe that one thousand pounds per acre 
applied on forty acres will eventually pay for itself in in- 
creased yields. In addition to increasing the yields some- 
what, phosphorus has caused the corn to mature earlier and 
has made it more sound than that grown on the untreated 
fields. These last results, rather than the small increase in 
yields, have convinced us that we have profited by the appli- 
cation of phosphate. We expect to use more in the future. 
LIMESTONE 
The object of applying limestone is to neutralize the 
acidity of the soil. Limestone is not a plant food. If soil 
is acid, bacteria storing legumes will not thrive. Without 
