160 ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION 



hauling water. They pump the tank full and pour it out. Most 

 of the time they moisten the land with liquid manure. When it 

 is quite showery they scatter the manure. 



Mr. Van Pelt : I realize that one of the greatest advances 

 of dairying is the conservation of soil fertility. I have a plan 

 in operation and there has been wonderment in my mind just 

 how much fertility is being lost under this system. One hundred 

 and fifty feet from the barn we have a cement pit that holds six 

 months' manure. It is lOO feet by 12, and the walls are up four 

 feet high. Over this is just a common roof. Under is a manure 

 cistern into which all liquid manure drains from the barns. We 

 have a motor and pump going into this liquid manure cistern. 

 We start the motor for a few moments and pump out of the 

 cistern. Over the manure are two troughs, perforated, through 

 which the liquid drops over the manure and seeps into the cis- 

 tern. It turns the manure into compost form. There is a ques- 

 tion in my mind whether we are losing any fertility, and is a 

 cistern advisable from any standpoint, except sanitation? 



Mr. Truitt : I know of no investigation recent enough to 

 handle your question. It would take a special investigation to 

 show whether the fertility that you would conserve in doing that 

 would pay the expense. 



Mr. Van Pelt : There is no expense in handling it. The 

 only expense is the little power in operating that pump every 

 day. That expense is overcome by there being a less number of | 

 loads of rough, worthless manure being hauled to the field. I 

 think, as far as expense is concerned, it would be the most eco- \ 

 nomical way of handHng manure. ; 



Mr. Truitt : Do you find that the manure takes up prac- ! 

 tically all the liquid part? ' 



Mr. Van Pelt: Yes. When the manure goes to the field 

 it is absolute compost and is concentrated. I could not tell yon ; 

 how concentrated. The question is whether or not it is a good i 



