ANALYSIS OF STRAW.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIV, Issue 92, 18 April 1913, Page 11

ANALYSIS OF STRAW.

Numerous analyses have been made by chemists of straw, from which it hae been ascertained that it may be reckoned to contain on an average aiboitt llltb of nitrogen in the .ton. There is a slight difference in the straw of the different cereals; oat straw is the richest in ■nitrogen, containing nearly 161b to frhe.fton, barley straw comes next with about 131b, and wheat straw ie the potfreet about 10£lb to the ton. The mineral constituents are alsovari- ;- able, as shown by the following table, taken from Ackmann's "Manures and' Manuring-":— i Eibs per ton. Potash..Phosphoric, time '< Acid. Wheat (winter) .. 15.61 5.05 Tie Wheat (summer).. 25.76 6.47 712 Barley 2 6.83 5.75 s^73 Oatß 26.22 4.17 0.12 It may be noted from the foregoing particulars that a ton of oat-straw re" turns to the soil about as much nitrogen as is contained in lcwt of nitrate" of soda, but, of course, not in the same quickly-acting condition.; The large quantity of potash taken by the straw from the soil should be observed, and, on the other hand, the small amount of phosphoric a.cid. Th,e explanation of the insignificant qukntity of Phosphoric acid in the straw is that this ingredienk-paeses -from the straw to the grain as the plant reaches maturity; thus the grain of a wheat crop (30 buehete) contains 161b .of phosphoric acid, and the straw of. the crop only 41b.