Vol. XVII. No. 416. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



105 



the same way as the other roots, apd allow to settle. 

 The sooner the starch is taken out and dried after it 

 settles, the better its colour. 



'The refuse left in the strainer, mixed with wheat 

 flour or corn meal, can be made into puddings or dump- 

 lings.' 



Pedigreed Seed 



Mucli interest in this subject is being evinced in 

 Canada, as sho\\n by various articles in the Agricul- 

 tural Gazette of Canada, February 1918. 



The outstanding requirement ih good seed is that 

 it be able to reproduce plants with desirable characters. 

 In speaking of pedigreed seed we might define it as 

 that grown from plants with a known record, and 

 strictly speaking, that definition is correct. In 

 .seed, as in live stock, the ruling principle is that like 

 tends to produce like, as a result of which it is of the 

 greatest importance that the seed or the animal used 

 for propagation of its kind should be of the best 

 quality and breeding. Two methods are used in this 

 direction: hybridization followed '. by selection, and 

 selection alone. In every case where selection has 

 been consistently applied to plants grown in cultiva- 

 tion, its value has been proved 'in maintaining the 

 purity and vigour of the type. 



The Relation of Flowering to Crop on Lime 

 Estates. • 



Mr. Joseph Jones, the Curator of the Botanic 

 Uarden in Dominica, sends the following interesting 

 note on the above subject: — = 



'Recently, lime trees have flowered abundantly, 

 which is taken b\' many to indicate an excellent coming 

 crop. But lime trees always flower sufficiently to bear 

 excellent crops, as successive Hushes of flowers occur 

 between January and June. The dominating factor 

 in crop production is the presence in the soil of the 

 necessary plant fiods in sufficient quantities to enable 

 a good crop to be borne. The well-grown trees, with 

 their dark-green foliage, which are seen on the best 

 lands, although they flower well, never make a con- 

 spicuous show such as is seen on thin-foliaged trees 

 growing on soils which, owing to poor husbandry, are 

 deficient in the elements necessary for healthy and 

 productive plant life. The latter trees in what is 

 called a good season arc almost white with flowers; yet 

 this is nothing but an outward sign of poverty, and 

 a visible assurance that a good crop cannot be carried 

 owing to lack of vigour caused by want of plant food. 

 Estimates of coming crops on the mere evidence of 

 flowers should never be made. It would be better to 

 bast' estimates on the amount spent in draining and in 

 tVrtiiizing the fields. There never was a tree more 

 willing to do its work of producing fruit than the lime. 

 If only cultivators were as willing to do their share in 

 attending to the tree's requirements, the lime crop of 

 Dominica would be doubled er nearly so within two 

 vears. As it is, even under tiie best conditions, nothing 

 like full advantage has been or is being taken of the 

 wonderful bearing capabilities of the lime tree." 



The Influence of Radio-Active Ore on Plants^ 



The question as to whether radio-activity plays- 

 any part in the growth of plants has been considerably 

 debated, and although stsitements have been made as 

 to the value of radio-active material in the soil, based 

 mainly on the results >ii>f experiments conducted in 

 America, the work done, so far in England has nob 

 bourne out the expectation. An extr-nsive series of 

 trials carried out at Beaming by Mr. H. F. Sutton, pro- 

 duced negative or contradictory results. In the report 

 or pot-culture experiments in 191(! at the Woburn 

 Experimental Station. Dr. Voelcker, Consulting 

 Chemist to the Royal Agricultural Society of England, 

 gives the result of investigations on this point carried 

 out at Woburn. 



A quantity of a radium ore from Portugal, very 

 finely ground, was obtained, and used in the experi- 

 ments. Ths ore was stated to be ground radio-active 

 natural ore, and to contain 'lb per cent, of uranium 

 oxide. 



It was determined to try it in quantities equiva- 

 lent to 5 cwt., lOcwt., and 1 ton. respectively, per acre, 

 and on a wheat crop. The experiments were in 

 duplicate, with two untreated pots as controls, each 

 pot containing 401b. of soil. The ore was used intimate- 

 ly mixed with the top 201b. of soil. 



There was nothing to be noted in regard to 

 germination, the several treated pots and the untreated 

 all doing much about the same. During the period 

 of growth also, the untreated set looked quite as well 

 as any of the others. The crop was harvested five 

 months after sowing, the result being that the untreated 

 pots gave a somewhat superior return both of corn and 

 straw compared with any of the treated pots It would 

 not appear therefore, from this experiment, that there 

 was any advantage whatever accruing in the case of 

 wheat from the application of radio-active ore. 



The Effect of Light in Healing Tree "Wounds. 



Experiments base been made in the Dutch East 

 Indies on four-year-old rubber trees of equal dimensions, 

 to prove the influence of light with regard to the heal- 

 ing of wounds of the bark. A note on the subject iu 

 the India Rubber ^Vorld. February 1, 191.S, gives the 

 following short account of the experiments and results. 



From each tree a strip of bark and cambiuia, 

 measuring 1 by ■'5 centimetres, was cut at a height of l',5 

 metres from the ground, and the wound was co\ered, 

 excepting a small opening at the bottom, with pieces 

 of blue, green, yellow, red, and colourless glass. The 

 best results were obtained with the blue and colourless- 

 glass: yellow glass gave the worst results, all the wounds 

 under this becoming mouldy. Id appeared also that 

 wounds from which tJie rubber scraps had been remo\cd 

 healed more slowly that those in which scraps had bee« 

 left, while the latter healed less rapidly than wounds- 

 coveted with colourless glass, thus indicating that it is 

 desirable to cover wounds on the trees as a healing 

 measure 



