JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER  December  l,  1898. 
.  412 
.  r 
,  cf  these  manures,  especi  illy  of  phosphates  and  potash,  almost  if  not 
absolutely  inoperative  as  plant  foods,  while  sulphate  of  ammonia  and 
nitrate  of  scda  were  less  useful  as  fertilisers  through  the  exceeding 
drought  than  was  common  salt.  In  very  wet  seasons  these  manures 
soon  wash  out  of  the  soil,  and  much  waste  ensues.  It  is  in  the 
average  season  that  the  truest  results  arc  obtained. 
Certainly  when  nrtiScinl  manures  are  applied  in  a  dry  state,  without 
moisture  they  are  useless,  with  too  much  moisture  they  are  wasted, 
and  with  moderate  moisture  they  are  slowly  dissolved,  and  thus 
capable  of  effective  utilisation.  It  naturally  becomes  a  question  of 
importance  as  to  the  best  conditions  generally  for  the  application 
of  these  manures.  Ordinarily  it  is  advised  that  the  potash  and  the 
phosphate  be  applied  in  the  spring,  at  the  time  of  sowing  br  planting 
crops,  the  nitrates  being  applied  after  growth  has  commenced;  but  if 
phosphates  and  potash  are  long  in  dissolving  may  it  not  be  better  to 
apply  them  to  the  soil  much  earlier,  so  as  to  enable  solution  to  be 
complete  ? 
It  is  almost  always  found  that  tlieir  use  in  conjunction  with  animal 
manures  produces  the  best  results.  That  fact  leads  to  the  belief  which 
some  put  into  practice,  of  cm iching  their  animal  manures  with 
chemicals,  by  mixing  them  a  few  weeks  before  adding  the  heaps  of 
manure  to  the  soil ;  but  here  again  we  have  to  consider,  the  condition 
of  the  animal  manure  in  question.  There  can  be  no  doubt  but  that,  in 
fields  generally,  and  not  infrequently  in  gardens,  animal  manures  have 
wasted  of  their  plant  food  fully  50  per  cent,  before  employed,  hence 
there  is  throughout  the  kingdom  enormous  loss  in  consequence. 
It  is  small  matter  for  wonder  that  a  field  crop  is  relatively  poor 
when  the  manure  dressing  from  the  farmyard  is  thus  weakened.  There 
can  be  no  doubt  but  that  the  enormous  difference  seen  between  garden 
crops  and  field  crops  is  duo,  more  than  anything  eLe,  to  the  deep 
culture  in  the  one  case,  and  the  shallow  culture  seen  in  the  other. 
Practically  the  farmer  has  in  his  hard  impervious  subsoil  that  hardly 
ever  gets  broken  up,  and  even  if  so,  but  a  few  inches,  an  immense 
reservi  of  plant  food,  of  root  area  to  furnish  the  same,  and  of  greater 
moisture  which  is  left  unutilised. 
In  any  trials  or  experiments  with  manures,  conducted  in  relation 
to  garden  crops,  no  test  would  be  of  value  that  was  not  associated 
with  soil  worked  fully  2  feet  hi  depth.  It  may  well  be  asked,  how 
far  in  producing  the  change  of  manures  which  takes  place  in  the  soil 
bacteria  plays  a  part.  It  really  seems  needful  ere  any  true  scientific 
deductions  can  be  obtained  through  manure  trials  that  the  operations 
of  bacteria  should  be  clearly  elucidated.  We  should  want  to  know  in 
such  case  the  relative  bacterial  proportion  found  in  each  of  the  soils  of 
the  experimental  stations  in  the  first  place;  then  we  should  want  to 
know  whether  animal  or  natural  manures,  green  or  vegetable  matter 
■especially,  were  capable  of  more  ready  transfusion  into  plant  food  by 
bacterial  agency,  than  artificial  manures  or  otherwise.  Of  course 
many  observers  would  be  satisfied  with  noting  the  crop  products  of 
the  dressings,  but  then  such  results  would  be  apparent  to  any 
unlearned  observer,  yet  have  little  scientific  value. 
It  is  when  scientific  men  like  Mr.  Hall,  Mr.  Cousins,  Mr.  Hcnslow, 
and  ethers  enter  into  discussion  of  these  most  interesting  subjects 
that  we  look  for  exact  scientific  data  to  be  furnished.  For  my 
part  I  should  immensely  like  to  see  something  done  as  Mr.  Hall  has 
suggested,  but  on  practical  lines.  In  carrying  out  systematic  experi¬ 
ments,  however,  the  boomer  of  artificial  manures  of  any  description 
must  be  kept  at  arm's  length.  We  want  scientific  and  practical  facts, 
and  not  quackery.  Such  a  series  of  trials  would  be  following  the  line 
suggested  recently  by  Mr.  G.  Gordon  in  his  advocacy  of  experimental 
horticulture. — A.  Dean. 
[b  nquestionably  this  is  a  subject  of  very  great  importance, 
because  in  the  absence  of  exact  knowledge  on  the  effects  of  different 
manures  on  different  crops  in  varying  soils,  nothing  is  more  easy  than 
to  waste  money  in  the  purchase  of  “  artificials,”  as  we  happen  to  know 
horn  experiments  with  many  of  them  over  a  period  of  thirty  years. 
M  e  were  not  able  to  attend  Mr.  A.  P.  Hall’s  lecture  before  the 
b  illows  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society  last  week,  but  we  know 
wry  well  that  the  subject  would  be  treated  on  t  ho  rough’ y  sound 
lines,  because  while  the  Principal  of  the  South-Eastern  Agricultural 
College  at  Wye  is  an  admittedly  high  scientific  authority,  he  is  also 
endowed  with  a  practical  mind. 
Mr.  Hall  stands  on  a  much  higher  plane  than  do  the  per  patetic 
lecturers  who  traverse  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  land  “  free  gratis 
for  nothing,”  in  extolling  the  virtues  of  jroducts  which,  for  the 
benefit  of  the  community,  including  merchants,  it  is  felt  by  the 
eloquent  advocates  should  have  a  large  sale.  As  the  result  of  his 
own  researches  and  experiments,  Mr.  Hall  is  convinced  that  the 
intelligent  use  of  chemical  manures,  both  as  regards  kinds,  quantities, 
and  times  of  application,  would  materially  increase  the  productiveness 
of  the  soil ;  but  he  also  knows  that  no  particular  combination  can  bo 
regarded  as  the  best  for  all  crops,  soils,  and  seasons,  and  hence  his 
advocacy  of  experimental  stations  in  various  parts  of  the  country.  We 
kn  ow,  becarse  we  have  secD,  that  magnificent  Hops  have  been  grown 
at  Wye,  and  also  that  young  fruit  trees  and  various  garden  crops 
there  are  as  satisfactory  as  such  trees  and  crops  could  be  desired  by  the 
most  exacting  of  cultivators;  they  are  a  credit  alike  to  the  college 
staff  and  to  Mr.  Deadman,  the  gardener,  who  carries  out  instructions 
so  carefully  and  well,  rejoicing  in  the  opportunity. 
That  chemical  manures  have  played  a  part  in  the  results  attained 
is  beyond  dispute,  but  their  influence  could  not  have  been  exerted  to 
the  fullest  extent,  and  perhaps  only  to  a  small  extent,  ifl  the  absence 
of  deep  culture  and  systematic  surface  tillage.  We  do  not  know 
whether  Mr.  Hall  went  beyond  the  manures,  as  such,  in  his  lecture, 
and  it  is  rarely  safe  to  rely  on  scrappy  summaries  as  indicating  what 
was  said,  and  especially  what  was  meant  by  either  the  Principal,  or 
others  who  took  part  in  the  discussion.  Of  one  thing,  however,  we 
are  fully  aware,  and  have  the  most  conclusive  evidence  on  the  point, 
that  the  mere  casting  of  the  best  possible  “  artificials”  on  the  land,  or 
working  them  in  it,  cannot,  in  the  absence  of  proper  manipulative 
work,  give  a  return  in  any  sense  proportionate  to  the  cost  of  the 
products  applied. 
We  should  like  to  impress  on  all  lecturers  the  fundamental 
importance  of  pointing  out  methods  that  will  give  artificial  manures 
a  chance  to  display  their  power  in  increasing  the  value  of  crops.  At 
present  it  seems  to  he  taken  for  granted  by  far  too  many  persons  who 
have  land  to  till,  not  excepting  a  large  proportion  of  farmers,  fhat  it 
is  only  necessary  to  give  the  stereotyped  amounts  of  nitrogenous) 
phosphalic,  and  potassic  ingredients,  leaving  the  rest  to  Nature,  to 
produce  maximum  crops.  It  i3  a  complete  fallacy,  and  one  of  the 
greatest  requirements  of  the  times  is  to  impress  the  multitude  of 
so-called  cultivators  with  the  truth  of  that  vitally  important  fact. 
Long  before  the  admirable  little  Primer  of  one  of  the  Wye  pro¬ 
fessors®  was  published  we  had  over  and  over  again  demonstrated  the 
truth  of  the  dictum  therein  contained,  that  “  thorough  tilling  of  the 
soil  is  in  itself  a  valuable  means  of  providing  plant  food,  and  is  the  fin  t 
and  most  important  method  of  increasing  the  fertility  of  the  soil.’’ 
And,  again,  the  author  says  : — “  Consult  the  winner  of  the  first  prize 
basket  of  vegetables  at  your  local  show,  and  you  will  find  his  success 
is  not  either  due  to  choice  seed  or  liberal  manuring  alone  (although 
no  exhibitor  would  care  to  dispense  with  such  valuable  aids),  but  is 
mainly  the  outcome  of  deep  cultivation  and  untiring  toil  with  fork 
and  hoe.” 
Those  sentences  ought  to  be  learned  “  by  heart  ”  by  every  boy  in 
village  schools,  and  have  a  prominent  place,  in  large  type,  in  every 
garden  shed,  farmer’s  “  den,”  and  agricultural  college  in  the  kingdom, 
for  they  are  true.  Tiue,  but  often  overlooked  by  platform  spetkem, 
of  a  different  type  to  Mr.  Hall,  who  appear  to  live  for  The  exploitation 
of  artificial  manures.  Given  the  tillage  advised  in  its  integrity,  then, 
by  the  additfon  of  natural  manures,  wisely  supplemented  by  artificials 
of  guaranteed  quality,  wonders  may  be  wrought  in  the  productiveness 
of  the  land. 
We  have  records  as  precise  as  could  reasonably  be  desired  of  the 
value  of  crops,  not  a  few,  grown  under  thorough  tillage  and  no  artificials, 
that  proved  far  superior  to  exactly  the  same  kinds  grown  by  their  side, 
to  which  well  balanced  proportions  of  the  best  artificials  had  been 
*  Cousins’  “  Chemistry  of  the  Garden.”  Macmillan  &  Co. 
