STATE POMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 85 



gives a large amount of lime, which our soil needs particularly. 

 That was all except where we were growing some particular 

 crop, where we put on a special fertilizer for that particular 

 purpose. Practically all the land planted out this season was 

 given that sort of treatment. Then we took up the question of 

 lime. W^hile we had 40% of lime in the basic slag, we 

 thought the land needed something more, — a direct application 

 of lime. We have not yet got to the point of applying the lime. 

 What we did was to find in what shape to get the lime and the 

 best way to apply it. We took the matter up with a number of 

 firms who manufacture what is called agricultural lime. A 

 New Jersey lime company sent us samples of three different 

 kinds. One was ground limestone, about like chopped corn for 

 fineness, and not burned at all, simply the limestone ground and 

 sacked up. That they sell, I think, down our way for about 

 $3.50 a ton, and a number of station investigators have found 

 that very satisfactory indeed. They also sent us a hydrate of 

 lime which had been slaked with water and came to us as white 

 powder. And the third form, which it Seems to me is what 

 we want, was a freshly burnt lime in small lumps. When I 

 took this matter up first I discussed it with our foreman who is 

 a practical man. I said "Why shouldn't we get freshly burned 

 lime as it comes in casks?" He said at once that you would 

 not get an even distribution on account of the lumps. I thought 

 perhaps it could be distributed by harrowing. In buying that type 

 of lime you pay for only the regular lime. In the unburnt lime 

 of course you have a lot of other materials, and in the slaked 

 lime you are paying for a lot of water. We can furnish the 

 water. It seemed that the freshly burned lime was what we 

 wanted. This firm gave us a sample that came in lumps as big 

 as the end of one's thumb. You could get an even distribution, 

 pay for nothing but pure lime, and get all the benefits without 

 the slightest difficulty. That is what we are planning to buy 

 next year. We are planning to apply it at the rate of about 

 half a ton to the acre. 



Question. Wouldn't that be cheaper than hydrate of lime? 



Prof. Sears. I think so, very much. Of course the manu- 

 facturers have to pay for the labor of putting the water on and 

 we can do it cheaper than they can. So much for the matter of 

 fertilizer. 



