Manuring of Pastures. 



better with the natural line of demarcation ; in such cases 

 the soil is taken to this depth, and the next three inches 

 separately dealt with. If the three boxes from a held present 

 a similar appearance, as is generally the case, a mixture 

 of fine earth from each sample is made, and is taken to repre- 

 sent the fine earth to the given depth of nine or six inches. 

 The stones and gravel — i.e., such as do not pass through an 

 eighth-of-an-inch sieve — are separated, and the remaining 

 fine earth is taken for analysis. 



The actual number of analyses reported on is 26 — viz., 22 

 from Dorset, and four soils from lands where experiments 

 are being carried out under the direction of the Reading 

 College, in the counties of Oxford, Berks, and Hants. 



The amounts of nitrogen found in these 26 soils ranged 

 between 0*09 and 0*47 per cent, of the soil (including stony 

 matter) ; whereas, in the subsoil — the lower nine inches — the 

 percentage varied from 0*05 to 0*15. The phosphates, calcu- 

 lated as the percentage of phosphate of lime in the soil, 

 ranged from 1*07 to 0*2 7 per cent. Assuming that an acre of 

 soil nine inches deep weighs 1,100 tons, these results would 

 represent an equivalent of from three to twelve tons of phos- 

 phate of lime to the acre. These figures apply, however, to 

 the total phosphates, and of phosphates easily soluble the 

 range is between O'Oi and 0*07 per cent, only, equivalent to 

 about 2| to 1 5 cwts. per acre of phosphate of lime soluble in 

 dilute acid. Potash was found to range from 0*12 per cent, 

 (equivalent to less than two tons of potash per acre) to 0*49 

 per cent, (over 5 tons to the acre). 



Manuring of Pastures. 



During the past five years experiments on the manuring of 

 pasture have been made under the supervision of the Agri- 

 cultural Department, Reading College, at eighteen centres 

 in the counties of Berks, Dorset, Hants and Oxford. 



The results of these experiments have shown conclusively 

 that phosphatic manures are most generally useful for 

 improving pasture, both in bulk and (especially) in quality. 

 On the whole, basic slag proved to be the most economical 



