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THE R.U RAU NEW-YORKER 
March 16, 
FIGURING A FER TILIZER. 
TV. A. C.j Rock mil, N. Y .—I am desirous 
of mixing my own fertilizer this year in 
experimenting. I have looked up several 
different formulas of mixing for soil similar 
to mine, but in order to prove out just what 
my soil needs I have decided on trying sev¬ 
eral test plots (seeded the same). I have 
my analysis for each plot decided and the 
amount of fertilizer to use on each, but 
when it comes to figuring up each ingredient 
for each plot I found myself all at sea. To 
illustrate my meaning, we will say I am 
to plant one-fourth acre to potatoes, using 
a fertilizer of 4-G-10, 500 pounds required. 
I take it that four means four per cent 
nitrogen, six means six per cent phosphoric 
acid and 10 equals 10 per cent potash. How 
many pounds of each do I require? How is 
It figured out? I have tried it two different 
ways, in each the nitrogen (I figured on 
nitrate of soda) ran too high, and in both 
instances I couldn’t get the required number 
of pounds for the complete fertilizer. Can 
you tell me how this is done? 
A ns. —You are right in supposing that 
4-6-10 means four per cent nitrogen, 
six of phosphoric acid and 10 pf potash. 
In your 500 pounds, therefore, you will 
need 20 pounds nitrate of soda, 30 of 
phosphoric acid and 50 of potash. Ni¬ 
trate of soda contains 16 per cent of 
nitrogen. To give the required 20 
.pounds you need 125 pounds of nitrate. 
Acid phosphate will go about 14 per 
cent phosphoric acid. To give the 
needed 30 pounds you must use 215 
pounds of the phosphate. Sulphate of 
potash contains 50 per cent of potash. 
To obtain your 50 pounds you need 100 
pounds of sulphate. Thus with 440 
pounds of these chemicals you have the 
desired analysis. By adding 60 pounds 
of land plaster or dry dirt you have your 
quarter of a ton. 
The Dealer: “Well, he’s 16 year* 
old, mum, I’ll admit that; but he ain’t 
wind-broke nor nothin’.” Mrs. Newcash 
(who has decided not to buy) : "We’re 
very sorry, but we would not care to 
buy a horse that was not thoroughly 
wind-broken.”—Judge. 
“FARMERS OF FORTY CENTURIES.” 
Tart III. 
Compost Stacks.—A s has been stated, 
the Chinese believe in “available” fertiliz¬ 
ers, and most of their manure is fermented 
before applying. They use stacks, pits or 
heaps for this purpose. In one case King 
saw a quantity of stable manure which had 
been brought from the city on the canal. 
As piled on the bank this was mixed, layer 
by layer, with thin mud, dipped by hand 
out of the canal. This was left to ferment 
as it would do without losing its nitrogen. 
When fully “active” it was used to start a 
“stack.” A large pit about three feet deep 
and with the sides piled up two feet above 
ground was filled with the fermenting 
manure and mud. 
Near by this pit was a field of clover in 
bloom. This green clover was cut and a 
layer of it put on top of the compost in 
the pit. Canal mud was put on this, then 
more clover, more mud and so on to a 
height of five to eight feet. It was then 
covered with mud and left. We may see 
what happened. The decaying manure 
started fermentation, which spread like fire 
from kindling wood, all through the pile. 
The clover fermented, but the layers of mud 
prevented the escape of nitrogen. The 
juices of the clover leached down into the 
manure in the pit and were held there. By 
the time they were ready to feed a new 
crop this “stack” would open up fine, and 
in condition to give up its plant food at 
once. Of course, in this country we arc 
taught that it is a waste not to feed this 
clover to live stock. Yet as shown in Part 
I of these articles the Chinese know that 
they can obtain more actual food from this 
practice. All this patient and laborious 
work is done by hand—pumping, cutting 
and carrying. With the high cost of human 
labor in this country such work would not 
be possible except in a small way. We must 
make the soil a great “stack” by plowing 
the clover under and using lime to start 
the fermentation. 
Compost Pits. —During the past few 
years there has arisen in this country a 
great demand for information about man¬ 
ure pits. Science has taught us that the 
liquid parts of the manure contain the 
most valuable part and also the most 
easily lost. Thus concrete floors have been 
built in stables with drains carrying the 
liquids to concrete lined pits or holes. Iu 
many cases carriers run from the stable 
conveying the solid manure where it can 
be dumped into the pit. This makes a much 
higher quality of manure, and some farm¬ 
ers even go farther than this. Having 
learned that ordinary stable manure is pro¬ 
portionately richer in nitrogen than in pot¬ 
ash and phosphoric acid, they add acid 
phosphate and muriate of potash as the 
manure is thrown in. This is called a 
part of modern science, yet it appears that 
the Chinese have for centuries understood 
the principle of this work. On every farm 
or near every household is a concrete lined 
pit into which liquid and solid wastes are 
put. In many cases when wheat is har¬ 
vested the entire plant is pulled up by the 
roots. The grain is thrashed out, the straw 
saved for use and the roots cut off with a 
hatchet and thrown into the pit to ferment 
and soften. Nothing is lost. The Chinese 
have learned that ashes add plant food and 
also start fermentation. It all results In 
available plant food. Even the floors yield 
nitrogen. Most of the house floors are of 
earth and they absorb and hold nitrate of 
lime. This absorbs moisture and makes 
such floors wet and sticky. There are men 
in China who make a business of buying 
the earth of such floors. They will scrape 
up this earth to the depth of about four 
inches, leach it and run the leachings 
through wood ashes and thus obtain nitrate 
of potash, which is sold for making gun¬ 
powder and fireworks. There are men in 
the Southern States who will read this and 
remember how they made much the same 
thing out of manure piles. Underneath 
many of our old barns where holes were 
bored to get rid of the liquids are regular 
mines of nitrates. 
Compost Heaps. —The usual plan of 
fermenting organic matter in this country 
is to mix it with manure in a pile of dry 
material like swamp muck or old sods. The 
manure will start the fermentation—so will 
lime. The Chinese have practiced this for 
thousands of years. Piles of earth are 
brought in from the fields and wastes of all 
sorts mixed with them. In the towns— 
the farmers usually live in villages and go 
to and fro to their farms—are piles of this 
soil ready to mix into composts. King 
states that in 1908 the Japanese farmers 
made and applied to their fields 22,812,787 
tons of compost. On the average it con¬ 
tained in one ton 15.0 pounds of nitrogen, 
eight of potash and five of phosphoric acid. 
Thus it had more nitrogen and a little less 
of the other elements than average stable 
manure. The Japanese recognize the great 
need pf humus in their soils, and every pre¬ 
caution is taken to prevent its waste. King 
says that in one province the use of slaked 
lime is prohibited except under direction of 
the station authorities, or where the soil is 
very sour! The idea is that these old-time 
farmers of China and Japan recognize the 
great need of organic matter in the soil, 
and also know that their plant food must 
be made available. Thus they have de- 
velped the compost in its various forms, 
and to this may be largely attributed their 
success. If on our own farms wastes and 
organic matter could be saved in this way 
our soils would be made far more produc¬ 
tive. _ h. w. c. 
Sulphate of Potash in Orchard. 
I am considering the question whether 
it will be a paying venture to apply a 
top-dressing of sulphate of potash to my 
orchard at or immediately after blossoming 
time the coming Spring. It is in sod, and 
has been so for a few years past. It has 
been necessary to keep it in sod to restrain 
its growth of wood, and it is just beginning 
to bear well. If the potash was applied 
at blossoming time would I probably get a 
full return from it the same year? 
Iowa. W.H.L. 
We think it would pay to try the experi¬ 
ment but we should not use potash alone. 
Most western soils are likely to be lacking 
in phosphoric acid also. This element Is 
needed with the potash to harden or re 
strain wood growth. But why wait until 
the trees are in bloom? Better use a mix 
ture of three parts fine bone and one of 
potash as early In Spring as possible. 
Burned Fertilizer. 
A local fertilizer dealer had the misfor¬ 
tune to have his storehouse burn down. In 
the fire there were several tons of fertilizer; 
I do not know the grades of the goods. 
What is the value of the fertilizer after 
being burned in a hot fire? Some of It 
was piled in a large heap and some was 
scattered about. w. T. D. 
Pennsylvania. 
It depends upon how complete and hot the 
fire was and how large the heap. The ele¬ 
ment most likely to be lost is nitrogen. If 
the heap is large it may not have been 
heated all through. Our guess (and that 
is all anyone can give without an analysis) 
would be that the loss is about 30 per cent. 
Too Much Nitroeen. 
My garden, deep soil, was liberally fertil¬ 
ized with hen manure last season. Vines 
grew to enormous size, but fruiting was 
not good. c. 
Connecticut. 
Such growth indicates too much nitro¬ 
gen, and we know that hen manure is very 
rich in that element. You must use some 
fertilizer rich in potash and phosphoric acid. 
Wood ashes or a mixture of acid phosphate 
and muriate of potash will answer. 
THE MAPES COMPLETE AND SPECIAL CROP MANURES 
THE STANDARD FOR GENERATIONS 
* 
‘With judicious use of the Mapes Manure, worn-out lands can be restored to 
fertility quicker and with less expense than in any other way .”—American Agriculturist 
New book, 1912, entitled “A FULL REVIEW OF CHEMICALS AND CLOVER” 
By Herbert W. Collingwood, Editor of The Rural New-Yorker 
We will send a copy to any one interested, together with our descriptive pamphlet 
The Mapes Formula & Peruvian Cuano Co. 
143 LIBERTY STREET, NEW YORK 
From the American Cultivator , Boston, Mass. 
These pamphlets are a revelation in the successful and profitable fertilization of even the thinnest, lightest 
and poor soils, from the state of abandonment up to the continuous profit of successful farming for 
years, with the constant improvement of the soil, showing that with the Mapes Manures good crops may 
be assured from the start, also with the land growing more fertile and more valuable year by year. 
