264 



Notes on Manitres for June. [June, 



NOTES ON MANURES FOR JUNE. 



E. J. KUSSELL, D.Sc, 

 Director, Rothamsted Experiinental Station. 



The Possible Use of Town Refuse as Manure. — The 



question has often been asked whether town refuse can safely 

 be used as manure, and if so, what price the farmer would 

 be justified in paying for it. Town refuse has the great 

 advantage that it is available at ail times and in considerable 

 quantity, and on heavy land it has proved effective in 

 lightening the soil and making it work more easily. It has, 

 however, the great disadvantage that it may contain the germs 

 of crop diseases, and this has become all the more serious 

 since the spread of Wart Disease throughout various counties. 

 Unfortunately no simple test is known to enable one to 

 ascertain w^hether a bulk of town refuse is or is not free from 

 the spores of wart disease. 



Apart from this risk, how^ever, there is a good deal to be 

 said for its use. Its composition varies • considerably as 

 between different towns, though in any given town the 

 variation may be less than might be expected. Thus, three 

 separate samples from Sheffield have given the following 

 results: — 



Percentage of 



Sample 1. 



Sample 2. 



Sample 



Moisture 



2-84 



2-89 



2-77 



Organic matter (loss on ignition) ... 



28-6 



34^2 



37-5 



Nitrogen (total) 



•7 



0-57 



0^67 



Equal to Ammonia 



•86 



0-70 



0-81 



Phosphoric Acid (as P2O5) 



•77 



0-49 



0-45 



Equal to Tri-basic Phosphate of Liine . 



V74 



109 



0-98 



Potash (as K.O) 



•33 



0-G4 



0-50 



Lhne (as Calcium Carbonate by calcimeter) 



4-93 



PG 



2-1 



There is a satisfactory amount of organic matter and of 

 nitrogen, and the lime, while not large in quantity, would help 

 in lightening a heavy soil. 



The Storage of Artificial Manures. — A correspondent has 

 raised the question as to how long various artificial manures 

 may be kept stored in a dry place without losing effectiveness. 

 With the exception of superphosphate most artificial manures 

 could be kept indefinitely^ if the conditions of storage were 

 sufficiently good. In practical circumstances, however, the 

 conditions are more or less defective, and trouble arises owing 

 to the absorption of moisture. 



