1921.] 



Manures for February. 



1065 



The single dressing of sulphate of ammonia (100 lb. per acre) 

 would be regarded by many farmers as the utmost that could 

 safely be applied, and yet the double dressing (200 lb. per acre) 

 has proved distinctly more profitable. At its best the single 

 dressing gave an increase of less than B bushels of grain and 

 9 cwt. of straw per acre, and when applied at the usual time and 

 in the usual way it gave an increase just under 1 bushel of grain 

 and 7 cwt. of straw per acre. Even at present prices the financial 

 return is a good one. 



The field is being put into wheat again for the third time, and 

 the double dressing is being given over practically the whole 

 area. 



The experiment is further interesting as showing the influence 

 of the time of applying spring dressings. The single dressing 

 gave no increase of grain and only a small increase of straw 

 (*2J cwt.i when applied in February, a larger return when applied 

 in March (just under 1 bushel of grain and 7 cwt. of straw per 

 acre)., and a still larger return (2j bushels of grain and 9 h cwt. 

 of straw) when applied in May. This high return from the late 

 application was not expected and was probably associated with 

 the cold dry spring following on the wet spell in April. The 

 returns from the double dressed plot show that the late applica- 

 tion cannot be relied on to prove satisfactory ; the February 

 dressing gave an increase of 7 bushels of grain and 11 J cwt. 

 of straw, while the May dressing gave only an additional 3| 

 bushels of grain, though the increase in the straw was 12| cwt. 

 per acre. The appearance of the plots, however, showed the 

 danger of the late application : the leaves were dark green in 

 colour and looked very unhealthy. Had there been much rust 

 they would probably have suffered considerably, and in a season 

 more conducive to growth the crop would almost certainly have 

 lodged badly. Xo farmer liked the look of this plot and it was 

 saved onlv bv the special character of the season. The weight 

 per bushel of the grain shows a small and probably real falling 

 off as compared with the crop receiving the earlier applications : 

 but the proportion of offal grain to 100 of dressed grain shows a 

 substantial rise. Where the manures were applied early the 

 proportion was about 6.} per cent., and it was the same whether 

 the single or double dressing was used — further proof that the 

 double dressing is not excessive. When, however, the manures 

 were applied late the proportion rose to 15.7 per cent, in the 

 case of the double clressing. and only little less. viz.. 13.5 per 

 cent., in the case of the single dressing. 



