For garden crops there is no fertilizer that will compare with
good, well-rotted barnyard manure. In localities where a supply of
such manure can not be secured it will be necessary to depend upon
commercial fertilizers, but the results are rarely so satisfactory.
In selecting manure for the garden, care should be taken that it does
not contain any element that will be injurious to the soil. An excess
of sawdust or shavings used as bedding will have a tendency to produce
sourness in the soil. Chicken, pigeon, and sheep manures rank high as
fertilizers, their value being somewhat greater than ordinary barnyard
manures, and almost as great as some of the lower grades of commercial
fertilizers. The manure from fowls is especially adapted for dropping
in the hills or rows of plants.