1944 Vegetable 
FERTILIZERS 
by E. h. Walrath 
THis ARTICLE is limited to the dis- 
cussion of three problems confronting 
the vegetable grower. 
I. FERTILIZERS AUTHORIZED BY 
WAR FOOD ADMINISTRATION 
AND GRADES’ EASTERN 
STATES WILL DISTRIBUTE 
Only certain mixed fertilizers of 
the following ratios and minimum 
grades (or multiples) may be manu- 
factured or distributed for spring 
1944. These and the grades selected by 
Eastern States are given in Tables 1 
and 2. 
TABLE 1— NEW ENGLAND 
W.F.A. 
E. S. Grades Minimum 
Spring 1944 Ratio Grades 
a OFIeI 0-14-14 
~ 1-4-2 3-12-6 
5-10-5* 
oe 1-2-1 5-10-5 
5-10-10 
pene 1-2-2 5-10-10 
8-8-8 el Tal 
oO x= 0 4-16-0 
= Seri] 5 GR // 
8-12-16** 1-114-2 5~ 7-10 
8—12-20** 1-1144-2% 6- 9-15 
* Victory Garden Fertilizer for Food Produc- 
tion only. 
** Maine only for potatoes. All other grades 
distributed in all states. 
All other grades can be used in all states. 
Js 

TABLE 2— MIDDLE ATLANTIC 
W.F.A. 
E. S. Grades Minimum 
Spring 1944 Ratio Grades 
== 0-1-1 0-12-12 
0-24-12 0-2-1 0-14-7 
5-17-0 1-X-0 4-16-0 
8-8-8 al 7- 7=1* 
5-10-5 1-2-1 5-10-5* 
8-16-16 1-2-2 5-10-10 
— 1-2-3 4- 8-12 
6-18-6 I-3-1 4-12-4 
— Nes 4-12-8 
5-15-20 34. 3= 9-12 
5-20-10 1-4) 3-]2-6 
—_ 1-6-3 2-12-6 
— 5-4-3 10- 6-4 
“— 3-4-3 6- 8-6* 
—_ 1-6-6 2-12-12* 
*5-10-5 is Victory Garden fertilizer — for 
food production. 7-7-7 can be used in all three 
states but only for topdressing in Delaware and 
Maryland. 6-8-6 is for Maryland and Delaware 
only and 2-12-12 is for Maryland only. All 
other grades can be used in all states. 
The 5-10-5 is the Victory Garden 
fertilizer for non-farmer patrons. 
Farmet-members may use it, too, for 
their home garden or any grades used 
in their farming operations. 
All customary fertilizer materials 
ate authorized for distribution for 
direct use and for home mixing. 
Only these fertilizer materials will 
be listed by the Exchange: Nitrate of 
Mr. Walrath, writer of this article, handles 
Eastern States studies of soils and fertilizer 
recommendations. The picture at left 
shows what happened to a few rows of corn 
that didn’t get their ‘‘Eastern States”’ on 
the farm of D. N. Cairns of Ligonier, 
Pennsylvania 
Soda, Cyanamid, Ammonium Nitrate 
Superphosphate 20% and Muriate of 
Potash. 
II. CROPS WHICH HAVE PRIORITY 
FOR FERTILIZER AND HOW 
MUCH CAN BE USED 
Certain vegetables considered most 
important to the war effort have first 
call on fertilizer supplies. They are 
beans, cabbage, carrots, onions, peas, 
potatoes, sweet corn for processing, 
tomatoes and vegetables for seed pro- 
duction. Other crops must take what 
fertilizers are left. To use the supply 
of fertilizer most effectively, the War 
Food Administration Order provides 
that of the grades authorized, the — 
grower may use the amounts custom- 
arily used on the farm or in the com- 
munity or those recommended by the 
state agricultural experiment sta- 
tions, provided, however, that the 
amounts do not exceed maximum 
rates recommended by state experi- 
ment stations. 
Such state recommendations for fer- 
tilizers have been received from all 
but one station and copies can be 
secured from county extension sety- 
ices. There are a few minor variations 
in recommendations between the sev- 
eral stations but there is a much bet- 
ter correlation between states than 
previously. Tables 3 and 4 are con- 
densed lists of the amounts and grades 
of Eastern States fertilizers that meet 
or approximate the official lists. Most 
of the state recommendations give a 
second choice but for brevity and to 
give the grade that Eastern States is 
most likely to have for the purpose, 
only one grade is given in this general 
list of suggested usages. 
