DAIRY A.ND SEED IMPROVEMENT MEETINGS. 377 



than where the hme falls between the furrows, which it may do, 

 if the furrows lap and stand somewhat erect. On lands which 

 can be plowed, far better results will follow the use of lime 

 after plowing, as mentioned above, than by merely using it as a 

 top-dressing, but for pastures this is seldom feasible. 



THE EFFECT OF LIME ON THE PHYSICAL CONDITION OF SOILS. 



Attention has already been called to the benefit from liming 

 clay soils which bake badly. This is due to the fact that the lime 

 causes several small particles of such soils to unite and form 

 single larger ones, thus making them much more open. On this 

 account the rainwater passes into the soil and can rise again 

 more readily as the crop needs it, whereas, otherwise, more of it 

 would tend to flow off the surface and thus be lost to succeeding 

 crops. Another advantage of liming such soils is that it enables 

 the air to gain access to the roots, for if this movement becomes 

 greatly restricted, agricultural plants fail to thrive normally. 



It is generally true that soils which have been limed can be 

 worked earlier in the spring. They also exhibit a better condi- 

 tion of tilth than acid soils which have not had such treatment. 

 In the case of sandy and gravelly soils, ground limestone has a 

 tendency to improve their physical condition by making them 

 more retentive of moisture and organic matter, and less subject 

 to loss of plant food by leaching than before. 



EFFECT OF LIME UPON THE MICROSCOPIC ORGANISMS OF THE SOIL, 



It is now well known that certain soils contain organisms 

 which can assimilate nitrogen directly from the air, and the 

 growth of these is favored by liming. It is also known that there 

 are still other organisms which tend to destroy nitrates, when 

 once formed, changing a part of their nitrogen into organic 

 forms, and sending the remainder into the air as gas. These on 

 the other hand are rendered less active by liming. 



Most of the nitrogen taken up by plants is assimilated in the 

 form of nitrates, although some of them can, under certain 

 circumstances, probably use some ammonia as such, and perhaps 

 also small quantities of soluble organic nitrogenous compounds. 

 It is nevertheless true that if one wishes to render manures and 

 fertilizers most highly available to plants, such conditions must 



