248 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



August 



1912. 



EDITORIAL NOTICES. 



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^gricultiirat fleiufj 



Vol. XL SATURDAY, AUGUST 3, 1912. No. 26s. 



NOTES AND COMMENTS. 



Contents of Present Issue. 



In this number the editorial gives an account of 

 ^lurricanes, dealing more particularly with their origin, 

 their indications, and the signs which maybe employed 

 in avoiding them and in determining when the danger 

 due to them is past. 



An account of the state of the sugar industry in 

 India is given on page 243. 



Page 24-0 presents an interesting description of 

 work of agricultural experimentation that is being 

 carried on in Guadeloupe. It sh(jws that much atten- 

 tion is being given to the culture of citrus plants in 

 that island. 



A description of the results that have been 

 obtained in a recent investigation relating to absorp- 

 tion and excretion by roots in culture solutions is 

 presented on page 24-5. 



Page 247 is taken up mostly by an account of 

 very useful work that has been conducted recently in 

 England in relation to the determination of the waste 

 that takes place in cotton-spinning through the 

 irregularity of the staple of the cotton that is used. 



Legumes in Orchards. 



The 'juestirjn of a cover crop for use in orchards 

 has received much consideration from experimenters, 

 and the following experience in regard to the sword 

 bean {Cavavalia gladAuta), with reference to the 

 luaiter, which is described in the Annual Report of the 

 P.uto Rico Agricultural Experiment Station for 1910, 

 is of inierest. 



A number of leguminous plants was tried for the 

 purpose, and ihe best success was obtained with the 

 ]ilunt mentioned. This grew (|uickly, soon completely 

 cuvering the ground and keeping down all grass and 

 weeds. It showed particular usefulness on lands likely 

 to suffer from washing. 



A disadvantage in such use of the plant was found 

 to be its natural tendency to climb over the trees. 



The Insect Notes in this issue, on page 250, are 

 concerned with an account of twig girdlers and of 

 means for the natural control of citrus mealy-bug. 



Past attention has been afforded in this journal to 

 the employment of sulphur as a manure. The subject 

 receives further enlightenment in an article on page 

 251. 



The Influence of Soil Moisture on Nitrification. 



The .Journal of Agriculture of Victoria for Jlay 

 1912, p. 275 contains an account of an investigation 

 by J. W. Prtterson, B.Sc, Ph.D., Experimentalist, and 

 P. R. Scott, Chemist, to the Victoria Department of 

 Agriculture, dealing with the effect on nitrification of 

 varying the amount of moisture in the soil. 



It was found that nil ritication is inactive in the 

 soils investigated while they siill contam about three 

 times as much moisiure as they posse.'s when in aa 

 average air-dried condition. Comjiaring sand with 

 clay, less water is required to .start nitrification, at the 

 lower limits of moisture, in the former than in the 

 latter. At the higher limits of moisture, nitrification is 

 stopped by less water in sand than in clay. 



It is probable that the best amount of water for 

 nitrification varies for different soils, and has the higher 

 value for clay. Nevertheless, for both sand and clay 

 it ranges between 14 and 18 per cent, of the weight of 

 dry soil. 



An increase of the water content above this 

 optimum amount is more harmful than an equal 

 decrease below it. 



A result of practical value is that, if the working 

 in dry weather of land that is i-esting (fallow) helps to 

 keep water in the surface soil, this water may have 

 much use in relation to the pnjduction of nitrates for 

 the following crop. 



The nitrate su^jply for a crop may have been 

 reduced by the previous crop in two ways: by actual 

 consumption of the nitrates that were present, and by 

 drying the soil to such an extent that little nitrifica- 

 tion takes place in the time between the occupation of 

 the soil by the two crops. 



Another indication of practical value was received 

 to the effect thit the moisture requirements that were 

 found for nitrification suggest that good results mighti 

 be obtained by the single Hooding of fallow land in 

 dry seasons. 



