Vlxhr&rp xA Illiberal Arts M^gchttalogg xxt BULLETIN 379 SEPTEMBER, 1949 THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION Department of Agricultural and Biological Chemistry Inspection of Commercial Fertilizers Made for the STATE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE H. A. DAVIS, S. H. ROSEMAN and T. 0. SMITH THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE DURHAM, N. H. INSPECTION OF COMMERCIAL FERTILIZERS Made for the State Department of Agriculture The inspection of commercial fertilizers reported in this bulletin was made under the direction of the Honorable Perley I. Fitts, Commissioner of Agricul- ture. Mr. George H. Laramie, Fertilizer Control Supervisor, and Mr. Vincent P. Peterson, Inspector, collected samples of 91 brands of mixed fertilizer and fer- tilizer materials which were offered for sale by dealers or had been delivered to consumers during the year ending June, 1949. The general character of the brands sampled is shown by the following classification : Complete fertilizer 57 Phosphoric acid and potash 9 Superphosphate 8 Nitrate of soda 1 Ammonium nitrate 1 Muriate of potash 3 Ground bone 4 Milorganite 1 Natural manures 6 Urea 1 THE FERTILIZER LAW The purchaser of fertilizer should familiarize himself with the full text of the fertilizer law. He should not accept from the dealer any bag of fertilizer which is not tagged and guaranteed in compliance with the law. The law gov- erning these matters follows: "Every lot or parcel of commercial fertilizer or fertilizer material sold or offered or exposed for sale within this state shall be accompanied by a plainly printed statement, clearly and truly certifying the number of net pounds of fertilizer in the package; the name, brand or trademark under which the fer- tilizer is sold; the name and address of the manufacturer or importer; the location of the factory; and a chemical analysis stating the minimum percentage of nitrogen, of available prosphoric acid and of water-soluble potash expressed in whole numbers. "No fertilizer or fertilizer material containing the three essential fertilizing elements, nitrogen, phosphoric acid and potash may be sold or offered for sale if the total minimum plant food nutrients contained therein is less than four- teen per cent by weight, provided however that natural animal and bird manures shall be excepted from the provisions of this section." Copies of the full text of the law may be obtained from the Fertilizer Con- trol Supervisor, State House, Concord, N. H. Inquiries concerning the law and all matters relative to the registration of brands should be addressed to his office. The chief purpose of the official inspection required by the fertilizer law is to protect the consumer against the misbranded products which doubtless would soon appear on the market if the sale of fertilizer was not under state regulation. The value of a fertilizer depends mainly upon its content of avail- able plant food, particularly nitrogen, phosphoric acid, and potash. The presence of these constituents can be determined only by a chemical analysis. To insure that they are being furnished by manufacturers in the guaranteed amounts, it is considered necessary that each brand of fertilizer offered for sale be officially inspected and analyzed each year. When failure to meet the guarantee is proved by chemical analysis, the prosecution or seizure provisions of the law may be invoked. The purchaser's refusal to buy a fertilizer which does not conform to the law will not only assist in the enforcement of the law but will at the same time insure him the protection of the law. If the buyer fails to assure himself that the legal requirements have been met, he accepts the fer- tilizer at his own risk. USE OF COMMERCIAL FERTILIZERS It is not within the scope of this bulletin to make recommendations regard- ing the use of commercial fertilizers. The Department of Agronomy and the Department of Agricultural and Biological Chemistry of the University of New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station test soils and conduct experimental work with various fertilizer materials on hay and crop land. The Department of Horticulture investigates fertilizer treatments for fruits and vegetables. Much of this work has been published, and is available for free distribution to residents of New Hampshire. Address your request to Mail Service, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire. Fertilizer Experiments with Sweet Clover. 12 pp. Fertilizer Experiments with Hay Lands in the Connecticut Val- ley. 15 pp. Fertilizer Needs of Alfalfa on New Hampshire Soils. 12 pp. Effect of Soil Moisture and Fertilizer Placement on Vitality of the Potato Seed Piece. 11 pp. Sta. Cir. 61 Fertility Needs of Dairy Farm Crops in the Connecticut Val- ley. 12 pp. Fertilizers for Sweet Corn. 8 pp. The Response of Clover and Total Forage to Top-Dressing Fer- tilizers. 12 pp. Experiments with Grass Hay. 24 pp. Pasture Top-Dressing in New Hampshire. 24 pp. Experiment with Potatoes. 38 pp. Purchasing Fertilizers in New Hampshire. 31 pp. Asparagus Culture. 4 pp. Grape Growing in New Hampshire. 11 pp. Purchasing Lime and Fertilizer. 12 pp. Cabbage. 4 pp. Tomatoes for Good Health. 8 pp. Root Crops. 20 pp. The Home Vegetable Garden. 20 pp. Culture of Low-Bush Blueberries. 16 pp. Strawberry Culture. 4 pp. Forage Production and Grain Saving. 8 pp. Cane Fruit Culture. 8 pp. Potato Growing in New Hampshire. 32 pp. Home Fruit Growing in New Hampshire. 16 pp. Sta. Cir. 47 Sta. Cir. 50 Sta. Cir. 58 Sta. Cir. 59 Sta. Cir. 63 Sta. Cir. 74 Sta. Bull. 306 Sta. Bull. 320 Sta. Bull. 324 Sta. Bull. 362 Ext. Cir. 99 Ext. Cir. 173 Ext. Cir. 210 Ext. Cir. 212 Ext. Cir. 260 Ext. Cir. 266 Ext. Cir. 273 Ext. Cir. 275 Ext. Cir. 279 Ext. Cir. 287 Ext. Cir. 289 Ext. Bull. 45 Ext. Bull. 65 While the word fertilizer does not appear in all the above titles, no publica- tion is included which does not discuss the use of fertilizer. CONFORMITY TO GUARANTEE The chemical analyses were made by the methods of the Association of Official Agricultural Chemists. Number of brands analyzed 91 Equalling or exceeding all guarantees 47 Deficient in nitrogen only 14 Deficient in available phosphoric acid only 9 Deficient in potash only 10 Deficient in nitrogen and phosphoric acid 5 Deficient in nitrogen and potash 5 Deficient in phosphoric acid and potash 1 Six brands were guaranteed to contain magnesium oxide. None failed to meet the guarantee. In general, the overrun in plant food guarantees exceeds the deficiencies when all brands of a manufacturer are included. Fertilizers are largely mixtures of highly purified chemicals. Segregation of these materials in the bag may be expected. To obtain a truly representative sample of a fertilizer mixture requires careful work. The chemist can accurately determine the nitrogen, phosphoric acid and potash content of the sample sent to the laboratory. If this sample does not correctly represent the larger lot, the analytical work is of no use. The obligation of the fertilizer control pro- gram is to see that the manufacturer is supplying the guaranteed amount of plant food to the consumer. For this reason the sample must be drawn and analyzed very carefully so that injustice will not be done to either the con- sumer or manufacturer. In the tabulation of the analyses in the following pages deficiencies of one- half per cent or more are shown in red type. The names of the manufacturers are arranged alphabetically. 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