INSTITUTE, PUSA, FOR 1919-20 39 



very probable that such phosphates would be more effica- 

 cious than superphosphate in calcareous soils. This point 

 is under investigation. 



From the above it will be seen that the phosphate 

 manuring of calcareous soils is obviously a very different 

 problem to that of non-calcareous soils and requires special 

 study. 



VII- The windrowing of sugarcane. 



An account of the work done at Peshawar on the wind- 

 rowing of sugarcane has been submitted for publication. 

 The investigation has further been continued in the 

 laboratory during the past season. Samples of cane were 

 cut into pieces and, after paraffining the cut ends, these 

 were kept in desiccators. On examining these later on, it 

 was found that the sucrose did not fall off but that, on 

 the other hand, there was generally a slight increase of 

 cane sugar. On wetting the canes which have been thus 

 windrowed by desiccation there was a fall in sucrose 

 •content. It will be remembered that under field conditions 

 at Peshawar there was noticed a similar increase of sucrose 

 in the windrowed canes and that after a rainfall a dete- 

 rioration of the canes set in. Canes are thus seen capable 

 of being windrowed at Pusa where the temperature con- 

 ditions are much higher than those obtaining at Peshawar. 

 It appears that moisture is probably one of the important 

 factors involved in these changes. In the laboratory, 

 .samples of canes were further examined under different 

 conditions and the results obtained tend to show that the 

 transformations of sucrose are caused by agencies which 

 are present inside the cane and that enz}^mic activities are 

 closely connected with these phenomena. This point is 

 under further investigation. 



VIII. The excretion of toxins from the roots of 



PLANTS. 



The water culture experiments detailed in the Pusa 

 Memoir, Vol. II, No. 3, Botanical Series, " Note on a toxic 

 .excretion by the roots of plants " were supposed by the 



