Page 181 - Changing Living Spaces

Structural Changes in Fertilizer Circulation in Modern Japan

post, ammonium sulphate, herring meal, soybean meal, oil cake, and so
on. Phosphoric acid is found in superphosphate lime, bone meal, guano,
phosphorus ore, oil cake, rice bran, and so on. Potassium is found in straw
ash, wood ash, soybean meal, soybean meal, cottonseed meal and so on.
The text carefully introduces these formulations and fertilization meth-
ods for each crop: rice, wheat, vegetables and fruit trees.
In addition, a technical book on agriculture, Night Soil, was published by
a general publisher in 1914, containing the composition of human waste
and methods of decomposition, storage, use, odour control, and disinfec-
tion, and discussing the scientific basis for using human waste as fertiliz-
er. The use of night soil continued, but the addition of scientific evidence
and justification rather than the continuation of traditional practices was
a sign that the technology had reached a new stage (Tsubame 1914).

Fertilizer Consumption Structure in Aichi Prefecture
The Aichi Prefectural Agricultural Experiment Station emphasized the
need for organic matter and specifically explained the three elements of
fertilizers and their composition. Human waste was therefore considered
an indispensable ‘organic fertilizer’ for farmers.

ten million—kan
45
40

35
30 Purchased fertilizer

25
Self-sufficient fertilizer
20

15
10

5
0
1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921

Figure 2 Trends in Fertilizer Consumption in Aichi Prefecture (Weight)
Source Aichi Prefecture Industry Department (1923, 43–6).

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