Kankakee Valley Post, Volume 9, Number 50, DeMotte, Jasper County, 2 November 1939 — HEAVY PLANT FOOD LOSS CAUSED BY HARVESTED CROPS [ARTICLE]

HEAVY PLANT FOOD LOSS CAUSED BY HARVESTED CROPS

CHICAGO.—More than 8,500,000 tons of nitrogen, phosphorus and potash—the three major plant foods —are removed from the soil of American farms every year by growing crops of all kinds, according to a bulletin made public here by the Middle West Soil Improvement Committee. The bulletin listed the fertility losses from harvested crops as follows: 4,600,000 tons of nitrogen, 700,000 tons of phosphorus and 3,200,000 tons of potash. “The fertility of the nation’s soil is further depleted by erosion, leaching, livestock and livestock marketing, the oxidation of soil organic matter and fire, to the extent of 11,400,000 tons of nitrogen, 1,800,000 tons of phosphorus and 33,000,000 tons of potash. These factors plus the drain from harvested result in a total annual loss from the soil of 16,000,000 tons of nitrogen, 2,500,000 tons of phosphorus and 36,200,000 tons of potash. “How pressing is the need of soil conservation in this country may be understood from the fact that at the present rate of application on American farms, chemical fertilizers and manures restore only about 2,900,000 tons of nitrogen, 1,100,000 tons of phosphorus and 2,300,000 tons of potash. Restorations from other sources reduce the annual net loss to 2,700,000 tons of nitrogen, approximately 1,200,000 tons of phosphorus and over 30,000,000 tons of potash. “The surest means of combatting the depletion of our soils lies in an intelligent program of fertility restoration by the adequate use of commercial fertilizer.”