site logo

Steamed Bone

Categories: COMMERCIAL SOURCES OF PLANT-FOOD

When animal bone is boiled or steamed under pressure for

removal of the fat and the cartilage, the content of nitrogen is

reduced, and the percentage of phosphoric acid is increased by this

removal of fat and nitrogenous substance. The nitrogen in steamed bone

may run as low as 1 per cent, and the phosphoric acid may go up to 30

per cent. The composition of steamed bone is so widely variable that

the name means little, and purchase should be made only on guaranteed

analysis. Some grades run very low both in nitrogen and phosphoric

acid, due probably to adulteration.



The boiling or steaming of bone makes fine grinding possible, and the

fineness and absence of fat permit quick decay in the soil. Steamed

bone is an excellent source of phosphoric acid. The availability is

less immediate than that of acid phosphate, but much greater than that

of raw bone.



More

;