318 GEORGE B. RIGG 



value of the organic nitrogenous matters in peat is a clear 

 knowledge of the individual substances actually present in 

 such material. 



Schreiner and Shorey (47, p. 43) have isolated organic com- 

 pounds from peat soils and have emphasized the fact that a vast 

 number of chemical compounds are added to the soil on the death 

 and decay of plants. Skene (46) found that the '^Sphagna do 

 actually utilize in growth the bases held absorbed by the acid 

 compounds of the cell walls." 



Dachnowski (17, p. 332) believes that nitrogen in peat is 

 bound up in organic compounds unavailable for growing culti- 

 vated plants. He reports (18, p. 11) that the relative availability 

 of peat nitrogen is 8 per cent to 12 per cent, but that this can be 

 greatly increased by composting with the bacterial life from 

 stable manure. He suggests (19, p. 514) that organic nitrogenous 

 products of the activity of micro-organisms may be absorbed 

 and assimilated by some plants. He states (21, p. 62) that 

 "Every green plant is undoubtedly able to a certain extent to 

 assimitate nitrogenous and other organic compounds." 



Coville (13, pp. 44-48) found that peaty soils are deficient 

 in "available" nitrogen because nitrifying bacteria cannot 

 thrive in these soils on account of their acidity. He sees indi- 

 cations that the mycorrhizal fungus of the swamp blueberry 

 transforms "nonavailable" nitrogen to "available" nitrogen 

 and possibly even transforms free nitrogen of the air into a form 

 suited for the use of the blueberrj^ plant. It seems equally 

 possible that this might be true of other bog plants. 



Coville (8, p. 6) also states that "It is conceivable that a crop 

 plant might utilize nitrogen that existed in organic form in 

 soils." If we distinguish between "available" and unavailable" 

 nitrogen it may be possible that plants not having mycorrhiza 

 and not capable of using insect food may be at a disadvantage 

 in sphagnum bogs because of a deficiency in "available" nitro- 

 gen. Bottomly (5, p. 539) finds evidence in his experimental 

 work on bacterized peat for suggesting that plants depend not 

 only upon the supply of mineral food constituents but also upon 

 a supply of certain accessory organic food substances, very small 



