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REPORT OF TEE CHEMIST 163 



SESSIONAL PAPER No. 16 



Experiments at Experimental Farm, Nappan, N.S. 



As already stated, the treatment of an orcliard soil, with respect to the control of 

 its moisture-content, will naturally be largely regulated, by the climatic conditions likely 

 to prevail in the district. Thus, we find that the practice in the Niagara district and 

 west, in regard to the time of ploughing under the cover crop, &c., differs, and rightly 

 so, from that in vogue in eastern Ontario and Quebec. Recognizing this, the value 

 of data from experiments similar to those carried on in the orchards at Ottawa for 

 some years past, but obtained in the various fruit-growing areas of the Dominion, will 

 be obvious. With this in mind, a series of experiments was conducted during the past 

 season on the Experimental Farm, Kappan, N.S. The work in connection therewith 

 at Nappan was conducted by Mr. W. S. Blair, the Horticulturist, who in his report is 

 givin{j full details regarding the plots, their treatraent and the. results obtained; the 

 moisture determinations were made in the farm laboratory, Ottawa. These latter are 

 given in the subjoined table, being expressed as percentages and as tons per acre to 

 a depth of 14 inches of soil. We purpose merely to utilize these data here in so far as 

 tliey may furnish information relating to the effect of crops in general and clean cul- 

 tivation on the soil's moisture-content. 



Plots adjoining one another on soil of uniform character, clay on clay subsoil. 



Plot 1. — Seeded to Winter Rye and Clover in autumn of 1903. Rye harvested 

 August 3, 1904, crop standing 55 inches. Clover made but poor growth and was not en- 

 tirely covering the ground when the season closed. 



Plot '2. — Seeded to Crimson Clover in 1903, which was winter killed. Ploughed 

 -May 26, 1904, worked and seeded with oats June 20. 



Plot 3. — Seeded to Crimson Clover, 1903, which was winter killed. Ploughed May 

 13, worked and cultivated May 29, June 20 and 29. Seeded to Alfalfa July 7, which 

 made a strong growth, 12 inches high, before the close of the season. 



Plot 4. — Seeded to Crimson Clover in 1903, which was winter killed. Ploughed 

 May 13, 1904, disked and harrowed May 29, June 20 and 29, July 7, 13, 25. Crimson 

 Clover sown July 25. This made excellent growth. 



Plot 5. — Seeded to Oats, Mammoth Red and Alsike Clovers and Timothy, in spring 

 of 1903. It made excellent growth and was cut for green feed. In 1904 the growth 

 of clover was good; it was cut and fed June 23. A matt of growth 5 to S inches 

 remained at the close of the season. 



THE EFFECT OF GROWING RYE ON THE JIOISTURE-CONTENT OF THE SOIL 



The most striking results are those from plot 1, which, as we have seen, carried 

 a crop of rye until August 3. At the outset (itay 12) the moisture-content of this 

 soil did not differ widely from that of the others of the series. Very shortly after this 

 date, however, this soil (No. 1) began to lose moisture, so that by June 9, in spite of 

 the fact that 2J inches of rain had fallen during the first month of the experiment the 

 water-content was reduced 5"S9 per cent (from 18*41 to 12'52 per cent) — equivalent to 

 a loss of, practically, 150 tons from the first fourteen inches of soil per acre. This 

 was, of course, due chiefly to the large amount of water used by the growing rye on 

 this plot, but a part of this water was no doubt lost through capillarity being estab- 

 lished (the soil not being stirred) and subsequent evaporation. 



On June 23 Uie percentage of moisture in this soil was further reduced to 10'46, 

 while the soils of plots 2, 3 and 4 (at this time in clean cultivation) practically main- 

 tained their initial percentages. By July 9, though an inch of rain h-ad fallen during 

 the preceding fortnight, the soil of tJiis plot (No. 1) had lost another 1'5 per cent of 

 water. The moisture-content on July 21 showed a still further reduction; it was now 

 but 7'46 per cent, practic^xlly one-half of that in soils of plots 2 and 3, and but one- 

 third of that of plot 4. The comparison between the moisture-content of soils in crop 



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