Vol XI. Xo. 257. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



ing on the London markets and in other European 

 centres. According to the Bulletin <hi Musee Colon- 

 ial de Haarlem (July 1910) a compani^ has been form- 

 ed at Monierey, in Mexico, for the exploitation of 

 Pedilantltu-'i paronis, the plant whi-^h produces it. 



This plant grows wild in North Mexico and in the 

 neighbouring territory of the United States. It is 

 a shrub of from 2 feet tj inches to 4 feet in height, and 

 every part of it is covered with a thin coating of wax. 

 The yield in the works is from 3i to 4 per cent. 



The cost of a factory capable of producing 22G 

 kilos, of wax per day is about 12,000 francs. The 

 working expenses amount to 370 francs, per ton, and 

 the price of the product is 3,000 franc§ per ton. • This 

 •wax is used for candles, varnishes, photographic plates 

 and electrical insulators. It is hard, of a pale colour, 

 with a high melting point. It is superior to Car- 

 nauba wax, as it keeps perfectly white. 



trifuge bowl, the top clamped in place, and the solution 

 whirled for ten minutes. By means of a thumb screw 

 a part of the solution is drawn off through the glass 

 tube while the machine is still at full speed. The first 

 10 c.c. is discarded and then about 70 c.c. of the solu- 

 tion is collected. Thi.s amount is readily caught in 

 a small beaker, which should be covered at once with 

 a cover glass to prevent loss by evaporation. 



'Fifty cubic centimetres of the solution, which 

 represents 1 gramme of soil, is drawn off with a pipette, 

 placed in a weighed porcelain dish, and evaporated .to 

 dryness on a steam bath. The dish is then dried to 

 constant weight in an oven at 110 C, and the weight 

 recorded. The contents of the dish are then ignited in 

 a muftie furnace, and weighed again after cooling w) 

 room temperature. The loss in weight upon ignition 

 represents the weight of the humus, and the increase 

 of the last weighing over the weight of the empty dish 

 represents the weight of the ash.' 



Electricity and Animal Production. 



An experiment in connexion with this subject 

 is described in Dqylomatic and C''>nsidar Reports, 

 Xo. 4(i.")0, issued in May 1911. in which it was indi- 

 cated that the birth rate of lambs, under the conditions 

 of the trial was more than doubled, and that the yield 

 of wool was greatly increased. 



In the experiment, which was conducted in Cali- 

 fornia, 1,000 sheep were placed in a field under the 

 power wires of the Great Western Power Company: 

 the same number of sheep was employed at the same 

 time as a control, without electricity. Where electri- 

 city was used, the average production of lambs was 

 a little more than two lambs to each ewe; while under 

 the ordinary condition it was less than one. At the 

 same time the sheep, where electricity was used, yielded 

 one-fifth more wool than those wRere it was not 

 employed. 



A Method for the Determination of Humus 



in Hoils. 



The Iowa Station Bulletin, Xo. 124, p. 370, pre- 

 sents an account of a method for the determination 

 of humus in soils, which has been devised with 

 a view to the avoidance of difWculties that arise in 

 regard to filtration, when the ordinary methods are used. 

 In the manipulation described, a centrifugal machine is 

 employed, and an account of the procedure is given as 

 follows : ' After washing free from chlorides, the soil is 

 transferred to a 1 -litre shaking bottle with 500 c.c. of 

 a 4 per cent, ammonia solution, using a glass rod to 

 loosen the soil... The flask is then stoppered with 

 a rubber stepper, placed in the shaking apparatus 

 [which is described] and shaken at the rate of 50 revolu- 

 tions per minute for three hours. At the end of this 

 time the bottles are removed and the contents allowed 

 to settle for ten minutes... About 350 c.c. of the solu- 

 tion is then decanted through a funnel into the cen- 



The Properties of Calcium Cyanamide. 



The interest in this manure, of comparatively 

 recent production, has caused a large amount of inves- 

 tigation to be undertaken concerning its properties. 

 Some of the work done in this way receives attention 

 in the Experiment Station Rerord, for .June 1911, 

 p. (i23. 



In the experiments noted, it was found that only 

 about one-half of the weight of commercial calcium 

 cyanamide consists of the pure compound: the other 

 half is composed of free lime and other impurities. 

 Dicyandiamidc and other similar comjDOunds are only 

 present in traces. When subjected to the action of the 

 moisture and carbon dioxide of the air, the commercial 

 product absorbs water (see also Agricultural Neius, 

 Vol. X, p. 313) and finally undergoes a perceptible loss 

 of ammonia. With improved methods of preparation, 

 this loss is much lessened. 



The loss of nitrogen from calcium cyanamide was 

 also shown to depend upon the method of storage: 

 when it) was placed in thin layers, under dry conditions, 

 the loss was 1'7 to 18 per cent, of the total nitrogen, 

 during eight months: under moist conditions, however, 

 the loss was increased to 8 per cent., in the same time. 

 It was found that when the manure is applied to the 

 soil in normal amounts, no loss of ammonia takes place, 

 for any of this compound that may become free is 

 absorbed by the soil and undergoes nitrification. 



Storage of cxlcium cyanamide in a dry place was 

 shown to cause an increase in its content of dicyan- 

 diamidc. Past results, which indicate that the latter 

 compound is poisonous to plants, were supported by the 

 work of the investigators. Another result that received 

 confirmation was the fact that calcium cyanamide should 

 be mixed with the soil, before sowing takes place, rather 

 than applied as a top dressing. This manner of use 

 prevents loss of ammonia, and causes any dicyandiamide 

 that may be formed to be converted quickly into am- 

 monia, which subsequently undergoes nitrification. 



