Scientific Agriculture. 



82 



[J ax. 1908. 



TABLE OF QUANTITIES OP SALT WHICH MAY BE APPLIED TO AVERAGE LIGHT, 



MEDIUM AND HEAVY SOILS. 



Crops. 



Wheat 

 Oats 

 Barley 

 Rye 



Peas and Beans 

 Hops 



Flax 

 Potatoes 



Turnips 



Mangolds and Beets .. 

 Carrots and Cabbages 

 Grasses and Pastures 



Fallows 



Cwts. per Statute Acre. 



Light 



Medium 



Heavy 



Soil. 



Soil. 



Soil. 



O tO D 



4 



to 5 



o CO 1 



A 7 



5 



6 



A £ 

 t 



A 7 



5 



6 



1 O 



7 8 



6 



7 



5 6 



8 9 



7 



8 



6 7 



6 7 



5 



6 



4 5 



3 4 



2 



3 



1 2 



7 8 



6 



7 



5 6 



9 10 



7 



8 



4 5 



10 12 



8 



10 



6 8 



7 8 



5 



6 



3 4 



10 12 



8 



10 



6 8 



12 14 



10 



12 



8 10 



Suitable Time and Mode of 

 Application. 



Autumn or Soring before seed- 

 time. Top-dressing in Spring. 



Soon after sowing. 



November or December. Mix 



with other manure. 

 Month before seed-time. 

 Broadcast, two or three weeks 



before planting. 

 Month before sowing- Top- 

 dressings recommended. 

 Early in Spring. 

 Autumn and Top-dressings in 



May and June. 

 Just before ploughing. 



GENERAL OBSERVATIONS. 



1. Salt should not, as a rule, be applied with the seed. A little salt is some- 

 times mixed with carrot seed, an exception to the above rule. 



2. It is not advisable to apply salt to very cold, wet clay land. Salt never- 

 theless assists in the disintegration of clays, if applied before ploughing. 



3. One of the principal reasons given by scientific authorities for the appli- 

 cation of salt more or less to all soils is based upon the fact that Chloride of Sodium, 

 like other soluble sale is constautly being carried off the land into the rivers 

 and seas. If the soil is to be kept fertile, this unavoidable loss must be replaced. 

 Bearing in mind the above-mentioned fact, it will be seen that those who think the 

 land near sea coasts does not require salt are in error, as the small amount of salt 

 carried a short distance by sea breezes bears no comparison with the quantity 

 carried away. 



4. As a guide to those who wish to make experiments, we may say that a 

 fair average quantity is two ounces of salt per square yard. A rough calculation is 

 one handful to each square yard. 



5. Salt h t3 for along titns been a stock ingredient of many high priced 

 fertilisers, and in this way farmers have paid double and treble the market price 

 for it. Salt undoubtedly assists other manures, and some of them cannot act 



without it ; but as a matter of economy it is best to buy the salt separately, at 



market price, and mix it afterwards, if desired. 



6. Two cwts. of salt to 1 cwt. of nitrate of soda, 1 cwt. salt to 2 cwts. lima, 

 equal quantities of salt with basic slag, guano, and superphosphates, are usual 

 proportions. Kainit generally contains about one-third common salt, and in a report 

 of recent experiments at Reading it is stated that "An equivalent amount of salt 

 to that contained in the Kainit dressing has been equally effective." 



7. Salt encourages the growth of mushrooms, and is largely used in some 

 districts for that purpose. The liberal use of salt in old pastures where horses are 

 kept produces so large a crop of mushrooms that a new and most profitable agricul- 

 tural industry is opened up. 



