| May, 1900.] QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL, 337 
Agriculture. 
7 | WESTBROOK STATE FARM. 
EXPERIMENTS WITH POTATOES. 
| Site instructive experiments have been made at the Westbrook State arm, 
{ Ih 4 view to ascertaining the value of various manures as applied to potatoes. 
| - Conducting experiments of this nature it should be remembered that artificial 
| Fine manures will not invariably produce the same results on different 
| ane The rich black soils of the Darling Downs contain certain constituents 
im ich are wanting in Hania western or coast soils. In some there may be 
} ne a sufficiency of phosphoric acid; consequently an application of super- 
; | %phate might prove injurious. It is an acid manure, and, in the absence of 
| fe to neutralise it, it may, as stated, prove injurious. Again, the bones of 
| “mals are formed solelyfrom phosphate of lime contained in forage plants, 
| abe are all rich in phosphoric acid ; hence a continual impoverishment of the 
} “in phosphoric acid must result from their culture. Where cultivation 
) pounds are deficient, as most of them are, in phosphoric acid, it becomes 
'? “essary, in order to obtain a better crop, to secure support if the form of an 
q tsily soluble phosphoric acid. Bonedust is a phosphoric acid manure which 
| 4's this result. But superphosphates produce better and quicker results. 
| ,." Potatoes, a fertiliser rich in potash is essential. For general purposes a 
800d mixed fertiliser should consist of—Available phosphoric acid, 7 per cent. ; 
i Stash, 11 per cent. ; nitrogen, 3 per cent.; 700 lb. to the acre. Much larger 
| [iutities of the abovenamed fertiliser are often used with much profit, and 
a Mers have been known to use 2,000 lb. per acre, obtaining the best paying 
} “Sults, Sulphate of potash is mostly employed as a source of potash for 
i » Atoes. Some haye experienced that muriate produces a good quality and as 
| igh, if not a higher, yield than by using the sulphate. 
a3 Dried blood contains on an average 11 to 13 per cent. of nitrogen. It is, 
| ver, less soluble than sulphate of ammonia and nitrate of soda. Manures 
, ae sulphate of ammonia should not be mixed with lime, nor applied to 
M which has recently been limed. 
al Kainit is a mixture of the sulphate of potash and lime, together with 
ances of magnesium and sodium. Its main value lies in its potash, which it 
mis to the extent of 12 per cent. Kainit should be used in conjunction 
| in manures of a phosphatic nature. Itis the cheapest of the potash 
f a 
ls In this issue we print some analyses of soils of the State Experiment 
same and of the Agricultural College, which are the first published analyses 
He° Queensland soils. Mr. J. C. Briinnich, Chemist to the Department of 
Steulture, who carried out the analyses, prefaces the tables of results with a 
1 bly interesting and popular description of the methods adopted in his 
| Statory to arrive at the results here published. 
1 % The experiments at Westbrook, carried out by the manager, Mr. H. C. 
| ty Odling, were made on small areas of Brownell’s Beauty potatoes. Unfor- 
tied the results were somewhat affected by the dry weather. The manures 
ere :— 
~ cee ia 
Superphosphate at the rate of 4 cwt. per acre. 
Bonedust 4) ” 4, ” ” 
Blood. ” ” 4, ” ” 
Kainit ” ”? A ” ” 
