Department of Soil Technology xxxix 



and insect-pest control work. The United States Department of Agri- 

 culture employed two persons for the plant-disease survey and two for 

 wheat-smut demonstrations. Various other institutions, departments, 

 corporations, and individuals cooperated by participating in the expense 

 of the work. 



Needs of the Department. — The Department is not satisfactorily housed. 

 This has never been more apparent than during the past cold, dark winter. 

 The light, needed for microscopic work, is very weak, practically 

 necessitating the use of artificial light most of the time. The low tem- 

 perature was unavoidable, but low temperature in a basement is not 

 conducive to good health. 



There has been a steady demand for investigation of the low-temperature 

 conditions of cold-storage warehouses in relation to the decay of fruits 

 and vegetables. Fundamental work should be done first, but there are 

 no facilities in the Department for such work. The initial expense of 

 proper equipment would be moderately large, but the number of important 

 investigations awaiting such facilities justifies the installation of such equip- 

 ment. Much of the apparatus could be used to advantage in a study of the 

 relation of conditions in packing houses and refrigerator cars to the decay of 

 fruits and vegetables in transit and on the market. 



The value of plant-disease experts to assist county agents during the 

 growing season has been fully established, and definite .funds to finance 

 this work should be made available for next year. 



SOIL TECHNOLOGY 



T. Lyttleton Lyon, Professor of Soil Technology 



Teaching. — In the Department of Soil Technology a course in soil 

 bacteriology was given this year for the first time. It is a two-hours 

 course consisting chiefly of laboratory work, and requires as prerequisites 

 general bacteriology and certain courses in soil technology. The instruc- 

 tion was given by Dr. J. K. Wilson. 



Investigation under the Adams fund. — Work under the Adams fund is 

 embraced in one project — a study of the availability and utilization of 

 plant nutrients in soils under different methods of treatment. 



Data covering the experiments of the first five years with twelve 

 lysimeter tanks have been compiled and interpreted. These tanks were 

 filled with Dunkirk clay loam soil, each tank holding about 3^ tons. 

 The soil in certain of the tanks received an application of lime at the 

 beginning of the experiment, and an annual application of sulfate of 

 potash was administered to the soil in two tanks. As there was no pro- 

 tection from the weather the natural rainfall was allowed to fall upon 



