TREATMENT OF OUR SOILS

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 173, 14 August 1909, Page 6

TREATMENT OF OUR SOILS

THE BIGHT WAV. AND THE WRONG. SOME SUGGESTIONS FUOM A RELIABLE SOURCE. After years and years of persistent advocacy on th e part of experts and farmers of, tiie modern txriiooi, the manuring of pasture-lauds is now becoming general. Not only that, but the more udvaaeeil tillers of lhe soil are going further, and are asking l.henis.lves ; lhe (questions, "Am I going u> worn the right way if Am 1 using enough manure, the right manure, and am 1 getting a fair return for my money J" To put it briefly, farming is being treated as u business, in wtiielt ilie ultimate nrolit is dependenfnot only upon the seasons here- and the state of the butter market at Home, but upon the amount of capital used by the farmer and the manner of its investment.

A "Xewn" representative yesterday had an interesting chat with Mr. 11. \V. Lawrence, l'\C.S.(Loud.), the agricultural chemist retained oy Messrs. T. Boi-tliwiek and Sons in connection with their nirat freezing and mammal business. Mr. Lawrence has excellc.it credentials, having been tor seven an I a half years assistant chemist to tie Royal Agricultural Society in England, and for eleven years null iicssrs Lawes anil Gilbert on tlie ruinous Rotherhamstead experimental station, whose experiments and results are quoted tne world, over. He has thus had a thoroughly practical grounding in the special work in which he nan lo <lo in Taranalu for his principals, that of analysing soils for the farmer printout cost to him) and explaining' in what it is deficient for the purposes for which it is used. "1 can best explain my mission," h e said, "by quoting that old saying that 'the man is a public benefactor who makes two blades of grass grow where onlq one grew before.' ' That is possible in many parts of Tarai'.iki. In fact, I oeitcve that this country could be made to produce infinitely more by careful treatine-it. It is quite possible to raise and graze two cows where only one can live at present."

''As I told a meeting of farmers the other night, they are in business just as much as the furniture manufacturer or

any other master tradesman. The only difference is that the latter can see his itock-iu-tradc, and he knows when his timber or his glue, or his varnish, is getting low, and he gets more. The fanner's real stock-in-trade lies in the ingredients of the soil, and he is unable to tell'which ingredient has run short, although he. can see by his returns that sonic-thing is lacking. The tanner's business is to produce milk and be;f. Fertility of the soil is absolutely essential. The fertilising constituents of tile soil are nitrogen,.potash, and phosporie acid, and it is only by analysis that we are. able to say which of these is needed in any particular soil." "lint I suppose the soils in different parts of Taranaki are very similar?" asked the reporter. "Oh no, not by any means. Often the.soil at one end of a field is ver? different from that at the other end. | In different districts there are distinct changes. lor instance, out at Miro, near lnglewood, I found the soil verv peaty, and very sour. Around Waitarii the land is sour, due to decayed organic matter. Around Lepiierton the top-soil is sparse. Generally speaking, the soils .if Taranaki are soiir, and lack lime, which can easily, he supplied. The effect of lime, of course, is to sweeter, the. soil, enabling the bacteria to work and set up a much better state ot tilings. Lime sets free certara fertilising constituents, which would otherwise remain latent. Yes, I woulu strongly recommend tli.i use of lime on Taranaki soils before using artificial manures, say, at the rate of half a ton to the acre, or even a quarter of a ton to the acre every live years."

"And .why every live years'/" queried the reporter. "Does land go sour again'"

"Yes, unlcirtunately for Hie farmers land goes sour periodically, due to the decay of organic matter forming hiimie acid. 1 should add that lime also foster* the growth of the sweeter herbage, such as clovers and leguminous plants'. I am quite satisfied that the application of lime would work marvels on sume Taranaki laud, for, whilst it is not a fertiliser, in itself, it has the died „[ increasing the effectiveness of the manures."'

I The reporter suggested that Jlr. I Lawrence, might do the farmers a good I turn by slatiug what manures' he i would recommend for this district. ' ' Jlr. Lawrence remarked that it was i almost impossible to give such a general ) prescription, for diilerent soils, as he had previously explained, required different treatment. The manures usually sold were put up to standard roquirements, and n farmer in luiving rhoni might b c . purchasing the very uiii,., of winch his land already had a nUiti- ■ tul supply, whilst those con,tiu,enr s ot winch Inc soil was in real need of might be altogether lacking, or present ' m only small proportions. It was quite I impossible tu specify mtc manure to suit all soils, and farmers would find it a paying proposition to have their soils analysed and obtain manures specially suited to their requirements. , -Air. Lawrence had something iu say , concerning the present craze for basic slag. He was glad to see, he said, that farmers were going in for manures, and their winter feed and their grass lands were both going to benefit, lint basic slag was slow to act, and it would b't eight or nine years before its full value was returned. One farmer hnd informed urn Hint he had just spent £2l in basic slag for his oat field, which was a wholly mistaken course. He should have used a mixture of blood, bona, and potash, willi a little sulphate ■ o f ammonia. The cost of this would haw been less, and the result would be much bigger. The potash was needed to hasten ripening, phosphate for root, and nitrogen for luxuriance. There was mo nitrogen in basic slag. fflje, would like some farmer to make this comparison himself, and publish the results for the benefit of the community. —"Let him heat an acre at the rate of 2 cwt of basic slag to the acre, costnig approximately 10s for the- manur". On another acre, use lime, at the rate of a hundredweight to the acre (cost Is (Id), and a cwt of good mixed fertiliser, properly blended to meet the particular conditions existing, the manure containing phosphoric' acid, potash, and nitrogen (cost lis). The results should be convincing. As a matter of fact, the tesl was to H;»'| made at Lopprrton, hut il wh.j one that every individual fanner could .tarry out for his own satisfaction. Talking of tiio results of manuring, the following Rotherhamstcad expvrT inent was quoted: An unmamired paddock yielded at the rate of B'4 cwt to. the acre; the adjoining field, manured with a mineral manure of phosphate and potash produced H'/ 2 tons per acre; and the next, of similar soil, 1 vented with a full manure of potash, phosphoric acid, and nitrogen, gave 27 tons 11 cwt. Little things like that were 'nurd to get over, and there was no wonder that tlu'_ fanners of Taranaki were going in solidly for manuring.