The Camilla enterprise. (Camilla, Ga.) 1902-current, October 21, 1904, Image 12

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John H. McCandlesa Regarding Fertilizer*. HE GIVES FULL EXPLANATION Of the Analysis of Fertlllxsr* Contain* •d In Hie Last Letter and Aleo Ole* cueeee the 8ubject of "Flllere." In the analysis of the complete fer¬ tilizer, the mono-calcic or superphos* hate of lime given at 9.52 ter cent., contains 5.79 per cent, of water-soluble phosphoric acid. That is to say ia one hundred pounds of the fertilizer, there are nine and fifty-two fiunfiredtns pounds of superphosphate of lima, which dissolves readily in water, and of this amount five and seventy-eight hundredths pounds are pure phospho¬ ric acid. In like manner the fertil¬ izer contains in one hundred pounds 3.02 pounds of reverted phosphate ct lime, and of this amount one and fif¬ ty-eight hundredths pounds are pure phosphoric acid, and readily soluble in water, but which does dissolve •lowly In the soli and soil-water. Thi« is also sometimes called “citrate-solu¬ ble” phosphoric acid, because it dis¬ solves in a solutfon of cltrat. eof am¬ monia made to imitate the action of soil water. The water-soluble phos¬ phoric acid or 5.78 pounds, and the re¬ verted phosphoric acid, or 1.58 pounds, are added together, making 7.36 pounds, and their sum is called the available phosphoric acid, being con¬ sidered as available for the use of the plant. Under the “reverted" phosphate of lime you will see In the analysts there are 1.99 pounds of tri-calcic phosphate, or, as it is usually called, “Bone-Phos. pbatg" of lime. Of this amount t0.9l) ninety-one hundredths of a pound S» pure phosphoric acid, but It is in the form of tri-calcic phosphate, and will not dissolve in pure water or in the soil-water, and it is, therefore, called the “Insoluble” phosphoric acid. It is sometimes also called the “Acid” soluble phosphoric acid because, when the chemtet analyzes St, he uses phos¬ phoric acid to dissolve It. The "Avail able” phosphoric acid and the “Insol¬ uble" phosphoric acid added together make what Is called the "Total" phos¬ phoric acid, or all the phosphoric acid there Is in the fertilizer, Valuable Qaulttlea of the Gypsum that Is Found In Fertilizers. Referring back to the analysis, un¬ der the item trl- or Bone-phosphate, you will find that the fertilizer also contalna twenty-four and six tenths pounds of sulphate of lime or gypsum or land plaster, which are all differ¬ ent names for one and the same thing. Gypsum Is a good fertilizer of itself, and has a special action of its own in the soli, breaking up the potash-yield¬ ing silicates In clay soils and bringing the potash Into soluble form as sul phate of potash. This gypsum, as has been remarked, was formed when the sulphuric acid was mixed with the powdered phosphate rock, and it is now held a prisoner by the lime in such a way that it has lost all of its former caustic and corrosive qualities, and can do no harm but only good In the soil. Under the Item of gypsum we find 8.19 pounds of sulphate of potash; this comes out of the kainit used in making the fertilizer, and it contains one and seven tenths pounds of aetual potash (K2 0). Under this item you find three-tenths of a pound of muriate of potash, which also came cut of the kainit, and this contains 0.19 of * pound of actual potash; under this Item again you find 0.56 of a pound of actual potash. This came out of the cotton seed meal. Adding thd three actual potash Item* together, they amount to two and forty-five hun¬ dredths per cent (2.45) or pounds per hundred. Lastly, look further down the line till you come to the item pro tein. You already know all tbout protein as 1 have written you so much about it in previous letters. This thirteen and two tenths pounds of protein contains two and eleven hun¬ dredths (2.11) pounds of nitrogen. Now, when the State Department of Agriculture analyzes a fertilizer, It doee not make such an analysts as this, because It would be too laborious, too costly, and would really do no prac¬ tical good; so they go at once Into the meat of It and analyze the fertilizer for Its available phospnorie acid, its nitrogen and potash, and calculate its value from these three ingredients. The analysis of such a fertilizer M we have been discussing would appear I® f&e annual Bulletin In this form: Available phosphoric acid ...,7.36 p.c. Insoluble phosphoric acid.... 0,91 p.c. Nitrogen .................... 2.11 p.c. Potash (K2 0) ............ 2.45 p.C. ‘ 12.83 p.c. As you see thU analysis only foots up twelve and eighty-three hundredth* pounds per hundred You need no long¬ er ask what constitutes the other eighty-seven and seventeen hundredths pounds. AH this extra 87.17 per cent Is * filler" put in by nature and not by man. All About “Flllere." In this connection w« may profitably •*7 a few words In regard to "filler*.’ a fertiliser, or «* Ming there naturally, which is not phosphoric acid, nitrogen or potash. Fillers are of two kinds, natural and artificial. f'have just given you an Instance of a natural “filler," in the complete analysis of the fertllzer made out of acid phosphate, cotton seed meal and kainit, and In this mixture only twelve and elghty-thiee hun¬ dredths pounds per hundred consisted of phosphoric acid, nitrogen and pot¬ ash; the rest was all filler, put there by nature In the original making of these materials. It is true, man did put In some sulphuric acid, but that was necessary to make phosphoric 'acid available or soluble, so It can scarcely be considered as an artificial filler. The artificial “filler" ia the filler put in by man for the purpose of reducing the total percentage of plant food in a fertilizer. Tfie materials used as artificial "fillers” are numerous; they may he sand, powdered cinders, graph¬ ite slate, shale, pyrites cinder, marl, gypsum, etc. All of them are prac¬ tically without any value as fertilizers; how is It, then, you inquire, that such substances can be put Into our fertil¬ izers, If we have an efficient inspec¬ tion by the Department of Agriculture. I will explain to you how that is. Suppose that a manufacturer, instead of having on hand only South Carolina Acid phosphate, cotton seed meal and kainit when you call on him for an 8-2-2 goods, has on hand some of the highest grade materials known to the trade. He has say, acid phosphate made from Tennessee or Florida rock, which contains 20 per cent, of available phos¬ phoric acid; also nitrate of soda with 16 per cent, of nitrogen, dried blood with fourteen per cent, nitrogen, sul¬ phate of ammonia with twenty per cnt. nitrogen, muriate of potash wi 50 per cent, of potash; with these ma¬ terials on hand he receives your order for a fertilizer, guaranteed to contain as small an amount of plant food as the law will permit, viz.; twelve per cent., made up of eight per cent avail¬ able phosphoric acid, two per cent, nitrogen, two per cent, potash. Con¬ sidering the materials he has on hand, he figures out this formula; 825 pounds of 20 p. c. acid phosphate 216 pounds 14 p. c. dried blood 76 pounds of 16 p. c. nitrate of soda $5 pounds 50 p. c. muriate of potash 1200 pounds Now In this 1,200 pounds of high grade materials he has all the plant food you called for, with a small mar¬ gin for safety. You called for eight per cent, of a ton In available phos¬ phoric acid or one hundred and sixty pounds, and In his 825 pounds of twen¬ ty per cent, acid phosphate he has given you on* hundred and sixty-five pounds of available phosphoric acid; you called for two per cent, of a ton, or forty pounds of nitrogen, and in his 215 pounds of dried blood, containing fourteen per cent, nitrogen and seven¬ ty-five pounds nitrate of soda with six¬ teen per cent of nitrogen, he has glv en you forty-two and one-tenth pounds of nitrogen. In like manner you called for forty pounds of potash, and in eighty-five pounds of fifty per cent, muriate of potash he fias given you forty-two and a half pounds of actual potash. Now the best thing both for you and the manufacturer, the cheapest thing for both of you, would be for him to send you that twelve hundred pounds put up in six sacks, .which, up¬ on inspection and analysis,- would •how: \ X Available Phosphoric Acid . .13.75 p. C Nitrogen................3.50 p. C\ Potash ...... 3.54 p.c. But no, you won’t have it that way, you must have a ton, ten sacks of 8-2-2, »o the manufacturer rather than enter upon a campaign of education with all of his customers, obligingly treights Into his factory eight hundred pound* of powdered slate mined some hundred miles away, utterly worthless as fer¬ tilizer, and mixes It in with the twelve hundred pounds of good fertilizer mak¬ ing one ton. This mixture on inspection and analysis shows : Available Phosphoric Acid... .8.25 p. c. Nitrogen................2.10 p. .o PotMh..................2.12 p.c. A Email Quantity of High Grade Fertll laer Better than a Large Quantity of a Lower Grade. Now suppose you had exercised a little common sense and bought the, aix sacks, analyzing 13.75, 3.50 and S.54, you would have been saved the cost of mining, pulverizing and freight! In* of the artificial “flller” to the fac¬ tory, and the freight on four sack* of it from the factory to your railroad •tation, and the wear and tear on your mules hauling that extra <ta# hundred pounds ten miles to the figrm. Wouldn’t It have been much bett*’ have bought the six sack*, *nd When ypu got home, if you wanted it i, n th * proportion of 8-2-2, which Is *> good proportion, to have mixed up tpe six sacks yourself with wood’s eayth, or compost, or even sand, before/distr utlng? I think 1 hear you s*y, well that’s true, but why don’t yovi fix the law and raise the grade so (these fel¬ can’t put In all thl* 1 artificial lows "filler.’’ friend, there / aever yet My dear was. and there never will be, a law tiona ef a great social and tudnitria! problem, or which wiii compensat^ intel¬ for the failure to exercise iu» own ligence on the part of the individual citizen. Think for a moment, sup¬ pose we should pass a law making It Impossible to use any artificial "filt¬ ers" In the manufacture of commercial fertilizers, by raising the grade io a very high point. Do you not see that by so doing we should at once paralyze this great Industry, and cut short the cotton crop of the State, since we would at once bar the use of South Carolina acid phosphate, cotton shed meal and kainit and a number of other good material of similar grade, in thus at once raise the price of the high-grade materials to an unheard-of degree by greatly Increasing the de¬ mand for them? No, the conditions have been very thoroughly studied In every particular by fhe Commissioners of Agriculture of fhe various States, aided and ad¬ vised by those best qualified by experi¬ ence and training to understand the matter in all of Its details, and the re¬ sult of their deliberations is embodied in the new Georgia fertilizer law print¬ ed In Bulletin 39. This law raises the grade of commercial fertilizers from a total plant food of ten per cent, minimum under the old law to twelve per cent, minimum, and pro¬ tects the farmer In every way that a good and just law can protect him. i will give him the highest grade of fertilizers he has ever bought, it will protect him against fraud, it will guar¬ antee that he gets every pound of fer¬ tilizing value that he pays for; in fins. It is the best fertilizer law now on the statute books of any State, but even luch a law cannot prevent the use of "fillers." Only education on the pan of the farmer, and a demand on his cart for the higher grades of fertilizers will eliminate the use of “fillers.” When you and your brother farmers study the per centages of plant food 1 fertilizer, and prefer to buy five or six sacks of a high-grade goods to buying ten sacks of a goods csontaiinng only fhe same quantity of actual plant food, then there will be no more “filler” put Into high-grade fertilizer materials, but the capital of the manufacturer, and (he skill of the chemist will be exerted In the effort to take out of the present low-grade fertilizer materials as much as possible of Jhe "filler,’' which God and nature have put there. Yours truly, JNO. M McCANDLESS, State Chemist. COTTON ANTHRACNOSE. Recently the cotton planters in some parts of Laurens and Dodge counties, Georgia, have been considerably alarmed by the appearance of a rath¬ er serious trouble in their cotton fields. Specimens of the Injured plants and bolls which have been sent to the Georgia Department of Agriculture and and to the State Entomologist, show that the loss is being caused by the disease of cotton known as "antbrac nose.” The appearance of this disease is most characteristic and is most com¬ monly noticed as it affects the bollB, although It does occur to some ex¬ tent upon both the leaves and stems of the cotton plant. The first sympton of the disease up¬ on the bolls is the appearance of small red specks or dots. These rapidly enlarge In ize with the result that the part of the surface affected becomes sunken and soon attains a blackened color. These diseased areas are usually circular or oval in form, but as several spots frequently occur upon a single boll, these areas, sooner or later, unite so tha thalf, or even more. of the boll is affected. "Spores” are soon developed upon the blackened area. It may be well to explain here tljat these "fungus” diseases as they are termed, are caused by very low forms of plant life—In reality vege¬ table organisms of a very simple tofm. Like the higher type of flower ing plants with which we are all fa¬ miliar. there must be provided some moans by which the plant is propa¬ gated and spread. Flowering plant; produce seed;, and while it cannot be truthfully said that the “fungous’ plants produce seeds, yet they do produce spares which correspond In tk*lr function to the seeds of the eom Imon plants. These spores are distri' ted by winds, insects, and in other ways and ge-minate very much as do aeeda of grain or other plants, an ’ again start the disease in a new locality or upon another plant. Ar Hated above, the spores of the an thracnoae, formed upon the blackene' areas of the diseased bolls, are color leas, but they become so abundant upon these diseased areas that they give the latter a grayish appearanc It is by means of these spores thrt the disease Is spread from boll to be ’ and from plant to plant in the cotto> fields. The attack of the anthracnoee ton gus oftentimes results in the boU’s r maining closed, and the lint wlthli fails to mature. At other times th > tip of the diseased boll will open op slightly; but in this case also the 11 falls to mature and the boll events*’ ly dries up, asuming a dark brown oolor. Strangely enough, the attacks of th ! - dlseaae are often attributed to Insect', th eootton planter believing that the bolls have been “sti sees only the effect of their “poison¬ ing" Ag a of fact, insects are in no way responsible for this trouble, and have no connection with It whatever aside from the possibility that certain insects may carry the spores of the disease upon their feet or beaks as they travel from one plant to another. This is a case in whicl the remedy is hard to apply, partly because of the nature of the disease and also because the morphology and life-history of the fungus causing the disease have not been thoroughly worked out by scien¬ tists. An intimate knowledge of all stages of a disease or of the develop¬ ment of an insect in most cases gives a clew to how the disease or insect may be successfully dealt with. This very necessary Intimate knowledge of Insects and diseases can only be ob¬ tained by careful and thorough scien¬ tific study, by using the highest power microscopes and by observing the in¬ sect or disease In all stages of its de¬ velopment and existence, and noting its behavior upon different plants and under differing climatic or weather conditions. Hence it is that the sci¬ entific work proper along the«e line* ia indirectly of the greatest impor¬ tance to the farmer. At this serson of the year (July, Au¬ gust and September) we know of nothing the farmer can do to check the cotton anthracnose, except that possibly where the disease tu s not ob¬ tained much of a start, the diseased bolls could be carefully picked oil and burned up, thereby reducing the crop of spores that will later spread the destructive disease throughout the entire field or plantation. Even if this is practiced, however, the an¬ thracnose fungus is likely to have ob¬ tained a start upon the leaf-scars and Injured parts of the stems and It prob¬ ably could not be entirely eradlcst?, by this hand-picking method. In fact,, the practicability of this plan Is ques¬ tionable, but It Is the only plan that can be applied at this season of the year, that offers any promise whatever of success. Spraying the cotton fields with some fungicide like Bordeaux mixture for example. Is impracticable, as Che fungus obtains a hold deep in the tissues of the cotton plant, where It cannot be reached by an application of liquid or dust. Poison or an Kind: is ,of course, entirely useless against a trouble or this kind. In spite of all this, the planter can take some very sensible steps towards reducing the damage from this disease another season. It seems highly pret able that the fungus which causes this disease may continue to live in i soil for some time, and thus re-infect the following crop of cotton. In lo¬ calities where the anthracnose occurs, therefore, cotton should not be plant¬ ed next year upon land that has been in cotton this year. In other words, cotton should not be placed upon the same piece of land two years in sue sion. This Is only a part of the doc¬ trine of "rotation of crops." Were the farmer to always carry out a sys¬ tematic rotation of crops, year after year, in which the same crop never succeeds Itself upon the same piece of land, his losse sfrom insects and disease would b ©greatly reduced with¬ out any attending cost whatever, and In addition the fertility of his soil would be conserved to much greater advantage, thereby reducing his fertil¬ izer bill. The selection of the proper cotton seed for planting In a locality where anthracnose occurs, is of tire greatest importance. Two courses are open in the selection of seed. One is for the planter to secure, for next year’s planting, cotton seed from a locality where the anthracnose does not oc¬ cur, as It has been clearly shown that the spores of this disease are often¬ times retained in the lint upon the seal, and are hence ready to infect the young plant as soon as It breaks open the seed-coat. The other course would he for the planter to carefully select resistant seed from the diseased areas upon his own plantation. In almost every bad¬ ly diseased field a plant will be found here and there which shows no indica¬ tion of having been attacked by the anthracnose. This plainly indicates that there is something about that in¬ dividual plant, that enables it to resist the disease successfully. If seed bi selected from this resistant plant, th plants grown from this seed will, to a coniderable extent, show the same re¬ sistance. Selection of seed can be made from the most resistant of these plants the second season, and if this systematic seed selection is carried on successfully for a few years, the plant¬ er will have developed a strain of cotton resistant to anthracnose and will have solved the problem at very small expense. In case the planter for any reason does not carry out this plan of seed selection he had becst be sure to ob tal nhls cotton seed from some locali¬ ty where the anthracnose does not ex¬ ist. Such a locality may exist only a few miles away and during the sum¬ mer and early autumn ts the time the planter should be looking about for the source of his next year’s supply of seed, and he should now assure himself by a personal examination that the fields from which his seed ia to come are free from this disease. WILMON NEWELL, State Ectomol Lamar’s Lemon Laxative cures Constipation, Bil¬ Dothan, Ala., gMlfR I J-f BE iousness, indiges¬ April 16,’04. mm i » tion and Headache. I have vised Lax¬ La¬ -2te| fee and Acts powerfully promptly on mar’s Lemon ative in my family the bowels yet is and would not be gentle and pleas¬ without it. It is ant in action certainly a valua¬ does not gripe or ble medicine. sicken. It can’t J, A. Mat, hurt you-it can c h ltd gtHroiice. help you. On sale c.t alt good drag stores* SO doses for SO cents, OWNED AND MANUFACTURED BY LAMAR, TAYLOR & RILEY DRUG COMPANY. Macon, Ga. Radiant Beauty r Complexions of perfect purity are made by Hancock’s Liquid Sulphur. The value of sulphur in the toilet has been known for cen tunes, but much of its value was lost until the discovery of HANCOCK’S Hancock’s Liquid Sulphur not only does it produce a skin smooth and soft as silk, but its use as 4 hair bath will cure all scalp diseases, promote a new growth of healthy hair and strengthen the coloring matter in the hair so as to check and avoid premature gray hair. Buy Hancock’s liquid Sul¬ phur at any reliable drug store. Milan's {must Cinnitih. Hancock’s Liquid Sulphur Ointment ■ Prepared especially for Burns, Scalds, Open r; Sores, Chafed Parti, Raw Surfaces, Boils, », »c«*, itch, Piles, Roughness of face and Hands and ail „ H*rp*s, W*»p DSpbLkaH*. Catarrh. Fimpl**, Eor* Uaullt Prickly Skin Diseases. - book Sulphur ■ sad Threat. Granulated Eyelid*. Ul- Write for fm» 011 t»&?s of in •vsiad - CondlKorw. -tiidraff Cuts. sad Born. AU the toilet, toilet, and and as as a a cure cure fur...... ur all blood aod - skin diseases. t th* Seal (a WnCBBP WBLL CORK BP JET HANCOCK PRICE ♦ ♦ BO CKNTO. Htotock MSNUfKTVMe Uqul4 Stflpfcur •» C*. LIQUID SULPHUR CO. Baltimore. Md. A Plaasant Trip To THe WORLD’S FAIR Is via Atlanta, Chattanooga, Lookout Mountain, Nashville and the Illinois Central Hallway (DOUBLE TRACK) Two trains daily 8;35 a m and S;30p m with Pullman sleeping cars from Atlanta and Macon. Ten clay coach excursion tickets on sale each Tuesday and Thurs¬ day during October, with through coaches from Atlanta. For full information, rates and sleeping car reservation address, F. D. MILLER, Trav. Pass. Agf. I. C. R. R. No. 1. North Pryor St. .....Atlanta, Ga. Ask For Ticket Via ILLINOIS CENTRAL R. R. Notice! Jl ” Camilla ...the... Pressing Club, | ) FIRST-CLASS WORK ) ^_Your Paironage Solicited by A. W. WILLIAMS, Practical Repairer, leaning, Dyeing and Pressing Gent’s clothing kinds. CM ~ . Of all t any goods any color. Special ser- . ) < Radios’clothi-cr Ladies clotni..g a a specialty, snooialtv y\\J « tD Rl! c,inl,nerclal traTeler “- \ ? All Work done under Guarantee Rlint River & North-eastern Ry. Co Effective FeDruary 4tn 1004, lOsGO a. n i Ho. 3 No 1 Daily ¥iles STATIONS Miles No 2 Tally; 1 No i A. M. P It | 10 30 0 Lv Pelham Ar 25 4 10 10 40 1 ACL Junction 24 4 00 1105 6 Cotton 18 3 18 11 10 2 Riley 15 3 13 11 13 1 Hinson 13 3 10 11 23 u Floride U 8 00 11 35 2 h Akridge 9 2 50' 1150 2 Sale City 0 2 35 12 00 1 Jonesboro 1 2 25 12 10 2 Tuton Junction 0 2 15 12 20 3 Port Arthur 3 | 1 2 10 12 30 3 Ar TichnorLvl 0 200 Connections: Jf o. 1 Pelham GaAtlantic Coast Line • No 2 Tichnor Ga*, Georgia Northern Py.