Tyranny of Steel

929 Synthetic Fertilizers

Throughout the past decade, crop yields within Austria, and later the German Empire, had risen to an unimaginable degree. So much so that there was no such thing as a hungry German Family whether they live in the fatherland, or the many colonies that had popped up across the globe.

With an extensive welfare state which prioritized reintroducing workers back into employment and a robust economy founded on the gold standard. The people within the reich had almost completely neutralized homelessness and starvation from their society.

There was such a food surplus that currently Germany was giving out massive food aid to its tributary states, who were suffering from a lack of young men to toil in the fields. This was, of course, the result of their own stupidity, forcing a war with the Reich which saw a million men from across Europe perish.

However, as advanced as German agriculture may be, it was still not on par with the world Berengar came from, if not for one very specific reason. They had still yet to invent modern synthetic fertilizer. Why was this the case? Until recently, Berengar did not feel that it was such an important aspect of his technological development. After all, they had a massive food surplus already.

However, with the rapid increase in the German population over the past decade and the continued population growth that was projected, there was an ever-increasing demand for food. Meanwhile, the colonies in Lindeheim, and Adelheim, were not expanding fast enough to compete with the baby boom. As a result, the Kaiser had tasked a small team of chemists to come up with a solution to the synthetic fertilizer problem.

Miraculously, they needed roughly three to complete a finished product and another three months to show the results, which Aldo von Passau was quick to introduce to Berengar. The two men were currently standing in one of the many chemical laboratories that existed across the Reich. Where the synthetic compound was demonstrated in its use of growing potatoes.

Standing before Berengar was a small plot of land which was divided in half. One half used the new synthetic fertilizer, while the other made use of the traditional fertilizer that had made use of slag from the Bessemer converters to help increase the phosphate content.

Aldo had a proud look on his face as he demonstrated the massive difference in crop yields between the two. There were practically five times as much potatoes grown on the same sized plot of land as there was from the traditional fertilizer. With a haughty tone in his voice, the aging chemist informed the Kaiser of his discoveries.

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"As always, your preliminary instructions were right on the money, your highness. After a brief amount of experimentation, we were able to create a synthetic fertilizer that is rich in potassium, nitrogen, and phosphorus, which all aid greatly in the growth of plant life!

For the nitrogen content, we made use of ammonia, which was synthetically created by a combination of natural gas and air. We made the phosphorus content using a combination of sulfur, coal, and phosphate rock. While we made the potassium content from potassium chloride,

We also added secondary nutrients such as calcium and magnesium. The calcium was obtained from limestone, which contains the chemicals of calcium carbonate, calcium sulphate, and calcium magnesium carbonate. While we derived the magnesium source from dolomite.

As for additional nutrients, we included sulfur, copper, molybdenum from molybdenum oxide, and lastly Iron which is obtained from ferrous sulfate. It's all a bit technical, but the end result is this amazing new fertilizer which we can produce vast quantities of, that achieves a growth rate in potatoes which is nearly five times our current crop yields!

As you know, the potato has become the staple crop of our diet, and because of this, our population has grown not only in numbers, but in stature as well. I can't believe that the youth of today is already on average tens of centimeters taller than those who were born in my day... It is truly a miracle what you have accomplished in thirteen short years!"

Berengar as well and truly astonishment at how quickly his chemists came up with a solution to this problem. However, when he thought about it, this was an obvious conclusion. These men were introduced to an undergraduate understanding of science thirteen years ago and had advanced the field by themselves to the point where they could now manufacture vaccines for serious illnesses.

His number of chemists also grew with every year, as more and more young men and women graduated from university with majors in the field. Expanding his ever-increasing network of scientists and engineers. Thus, something as simple as modern fertilizer, when compared to those scientists who just recently begun understanding the principles of nuclear physics, was a relatively tame achievement.

It was no exaggeration to say that by providing a basic foundation of all modern sciences to his population, as well as a heavy emphasis on education, the sharing of knowledge, and hard work, that by the time Berengar passed away in this life, he might very well leave behind a civilization that was on par, or greater than those that existed within his past life. Either way, Berengar was proud of his chemist's achievement, and was quick to hand out the due rewards with a fat grin on his face.

"And here I thought I would have to worry about rationing food in twenty years. Aldo, when you get the chance, send me a list of names of the men and women who worked on this project. I'll reward them each with an Imperial Order of Science and Art!"

A wide smile formed on Aldo's lips as he heard these words. It appeared with each passing year, more and more scientists and artists received this prestigious award. Berengar knew that only a handful of men and woman worked on this project, and thus he was willing to give out what was essentially the Nobel prize to these talented chemists.

After all, though the introduction of modern synthetic fertilizers may not seem like a big deal to the ignorant, it would allow the Reich to feed the exponential growth of future generations without ever having to worry about running out of food. Especially since Berengar's Germany had a culture of not wasting food.

With this said, Aldo was swift in his response, though as always he was over the top of his performance. He took a deep bow and placed a hand on his heart as he swore an oath that was utterly meaningless.

"Your magnificence. I swear on my life, I will have this list of names on your desk before the workday ends!"

Berengar could only sigh and smile in response to this. He had known Aldo long enough to no longer get irritated by the man's stunning ability to kiss ass. As a result, he nodded his head silently in acceptance before declaring his departure.

"Well, if that is all Aldo, then I will let you and your talented team get back to what you do best. I look forward to seeing the crop yields next year!"

After saying this, Berengar returned to his palace with a pep in his step. His society would not only be able to produce large quantities of food, but unlike the United States of America of his past life, there would be strict laws in place that ensured all food was of the highest quality. For example, all animals would be free range, and were fed with natural diets.

To Berengar, the health of his people was more important than the quantity of food. Thus, everything in German society, even deserts such as pastries and cookies, would be produced with the most healthy and natural ingredients. There would be no high fructose corn syrup, trans fats, or corn fed beef like was ever present in the American diet of his past life.

In fact, the moment he got home, Berengar decided to contact the Loyalist party, and have them draft a bill that prioritized food health and safety over quantity, to ensure that future generations had the benefit of healthy meals and weren't being fed a bunch of junk food.

With the introduction of things such as synthetic fertilizer, the law which forced corporations to create food with mostly natural products, and an education system which had a large focus on hard work and physical fitness. Berengar could rest easy knowing the future german population would have a hard time degenerating into a nation of lazy land-whales.

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