FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
79 
As has already been pointed out, the 
first line of plots received at the rate of 
2250 lbs. per acre, the second 3000, the 
third 3750 and the fourth 4500. 
Now by actual count there was, for the 
crop of 1903 an increase, in a number of 
the sections from the first to the third 
plot, though seldom were there materially 
more on the fourth than on the third, 
some times less. This seemed to point to 
the fact that with the third plot of the 
section, that is, the one that received its 
fertilizer at the rate of 3750 lbs. per acre, 
we had reached the limit of profitable fer¬ 
tilization. However, when we came to sum 
up the totals of these four lines, we found 
them to be so near the same that we 
would hardly have felt justified in draw¬ 
ing such a conclusion on this evidence 
alone 
But when we came to take into consid¬ 
eration the number of the different sizes, 
there was a marked difference. 
To take the 24’s for example it may 
l)e seen by reference to the table that there 
is a decided increase in the number from 
the first to the third plot of nearly all the 
sections, while from the third to the fourth 
there is seldom a very great increase and 
indeed sometimes a decrease. Reference 
to the totals emphasizes this fact. These 
are in the upper half for No. i, 45, No. 
2, T05; No. 3, 277 and No. 4, 277, and 
for the lower half. No. i, 124; No. 2, 
165; No. 3, 162 and No. 4, 269. a very 
decided increase from No. 2 to No. 3 but 
practicably no increase from No. 3 to No. 
4 and yet No. 4 received at the rate of 
750 lbs. per acre more fertilizer than No. 
3. Likewise there was an increase, though 
not so pronounced, in the 30’s and a some¬ 
what corresponding decrease in 36’s and 
42’s; but if by the addition of some¬ 
thing like T -2 to 3-4 of a ton of fertili¬ 
zer per acre up to a certain limit we can 
grow 24’s and 30’s where before we 
grew 36’s and 42’s I think the grow¬ 
ers will bear me out in the statement that 
we are still engaged in a fairly profitable 
business. 
Plot 19, the third in sec. E and which 
received its fertilizer at the rate of 3750 
lbs per acre, yielded in 1903 an increase 
over plot one, of this section, apparently 
due to thus increasing the fertilizers 
an amount equivalent to over $339 
per acre above the expense of the fertili¬ 
zers. Other plots showed an increase 
nearly as great. The plot which gave the 
largest total returns for that year was also 
the third plot in a section and received 
3750 lbs. per acre, plot 35 sec. I. This 
yielded at the rate of 537 1-2 crates per 
acre while plot 36, the fourth in the same 
section, and which received at the rate of 
750 lbs. per acre more fertilizer, yielded 
about one crate less. 
Putting together all these facts and 
some others which I cannot now take time 
to mention, I think we are safe in saying 
that for shedded pines and under present 
conditions, there is profit in applying as 
high as 3500 to 3750 lbs. per acre, of a fer¬ 
tilizer which will analyze 4 per cent, 
available phosphoric acid, 5 per cent, nit¬ 
rogen and 10 per cent, potash, beyond this 
is money lost. 
The profit comes chiefly in very 
materially increasing the number of the 
larger sizes. 
THE CROPS FOR I9O4 AND I905. 
No such decisive conclusions can be 
drawn from the crops for 1904 and 1905, 
but this is undoubtedly due to causes other 
than fertilizers. The crop from the ex¬ 
periment plot for both these years was 
less than one third of a total possibility 
