i9io.] 



The Cultivation of Field Beans. 



631 



manures that the nitrogen they contain is of "animal origin " 

 or "derived from organic matter," and on that account pos- 

 sesses some superior value. Assertions are also frequently 

 made as to the "large proportion of ammonia" they contain, 

 though it is evident from the analysis given that the content 

 of ammonia is really very low. 



A complete explanation of the method of valuing artificial 

 manures so as to ascertain their true commercial value is 

 given in Leaflet 72, referred to above, and farmers should 

 consult this leaflet in order to see whether the price of the 

 manure, having regard to cost of carriage and terms of 

 payment, is approximately equal to the value of the fertilising 

 constituents which the manure is stated to contain. When 

 wide discrepancies are disclosed, no purchase should be 

 made; the chances are that the manure would be dear at 

 any price. 



Apart from lime, which may be purchased at from 10s. 

 to iSs. per ton in most localities, there are three constituents, 

 and only three, which should be taken into consideration in 

 arriving at the value of artificial manures, viz., nitrogen, 

 phosphates, and potash. These are the constituents which 

 an artificial manure is intended to supply to the crop, and any 

 statements as to its value in other directions should be ignored. 



Though this crop is as well known to the general public as 

 any farm crop, the acreage is, comparatively speaking, very 

 small. In 1910, the total for Great Britain was 270,000 acres, 

 a decrease on 1909 of nearly 44,000 acres, and in an average 

 year there are throughout England only 2'6 acres of bean 

 for every 100 acres of ploughed land. The relative extent 

 to which the crop is cultivated will be seen from the following 

 table relating to the acreage in 1909 : — 



THE CULTIVATION OF FIELD BEANS. 

 Edric Druce. 



Agricultural Institute, Ridgmont, Beds. 



County. 



Acres of Beans per 

 100 Acres Arable. 



County. 



Acres of Beans per 

 100 Acres Arable. 



Bedfordshire 



Huntingdonshire 



Suffolk 



Essex 



Northamptonshire 

 Cambridgeshire ... 

 Warwickshire 



8-6 

 7 '9 

 7 '4 

 6-6 

 6-4 

 57 

 57 



Buckinghamshire 



Oxfordshire 



Hertfordshire 



Middlesex ... . 



Rutland ... . 



Nottinghamshire 



Leicestershire 



5 3 

 37 

 37 

 2-5 

 2-4 



