POTASH FOR LUCERNE.

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXX, Issue 4811, 20 February 1936, Page 3

POTASH FOR LUCERNE.

Fortunately the advice widely circulated by a New Zealand lucerne expert that lucerne did not require the aid of fertiliser, but drew upon some mysterious plant food substances in the bowels of the earth, has been proved in practice to be as foolish as it obviously was at first sight. A plant that throws remarkable feed and this year after year must obviously make a great demand on the plant food of the soil, and must be treated generously by artificial fertilisers if it is to retain its vigour and continue to provide a food properly charged with the essential mineral matter. Canadian experience goes to show that it pays handsomely to apply potash as well as superphosphate to lucerne.. The application of the combined fertiliser (rather more potash than super) was at the rate of 3751 b. per acre. The proportions of the two fertilising agents were: 12 per cent, of super and 15 per cent, of potash. The value of this fertiliser dressing was proved by experiments carried out in all parts of Ontario. On light soils on 22 farms the phosphate-potash fertiliser gave an average gain of 4,1511 b. of green lucerne, while on heavy soils the same application (3751 b. to the acre) made an average gain of 5,3471 b. of green lucerne at an approximate cost of 30s. During the past few years the Ontario Agricultural College has co-operated with some thousand farmers in fertiliser trials and nearly 4000 plots have been used in carrying out fertility tests.