FARM EXPERIMENTS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXX, Issue 8547, 3 October 1907, Page 3

FARM EXPERIMENTS.

In order to determine with any de.gree of certainty what particular constituents are lacking in the soil, the farmer must conduct some experiments for himself. This can be •done by carefully marking off certain portions of "the field and using ■on • these different fertilising materials. Oh one purtion use nitrogenous materials; on another phosphoric acid compounds; and on another potash compounds. Have another series on which two of these materials are combined, as nitrogen and phosphoric acid; nitrogen and potash; potash and phosphoric acid. On still another portion of the so'l to be treated use all three of these compounds. For comparison, certain portions of the field should be left without any fertilisers being put upon them. Careful notes should be made during the growing period, and at the end of the season, when the crop is harvested, comparisons made as to the yields obtained. In this way information will be obtained as to whether the soil is lacking in one or two, or all three of the constituents of plant food in available forms. In carrying out field tests such as these it should be borne in mind that the result of one year's work is not perfectly reliable, since different seasons may produce very different xesults. Thus, a dry season may give very different results from what would have been obtained had the season been wet. It will be well, therefore, to continue the work for several years, in order to eliminate any difference due to difference of season. The farmer should utilise, as far as possible, all the farm-produce materials before resorting to the use of commercial forms of plant food. When, however, it has been clearly shown that in addition to these homemade fertilising materials, the soil needs more plant food in order to produce profitable crops, it will be well to purchase some of these materials.