EXPERIMENT STATION REPORTS. 263 



ment Station and the College — three-fourtlis time for the former and 

 one-fourth for the latter. 



ADAMS FUND WORK. 



The Adam.s project (Adams 2dj entitled ''The absorption of solutes 

 with special reference to balanced solution.s-' was actively pursued. 

 Considerable of the laboratory and greenhou.se culture work to establish 

 fundamental j>rinciples was completed before the summer of 1918 and 

 the problem was then considered far enough along to begin work in the 

 field on a larger scale. The practical api>lication of this project rests in 

 testing out a plan jjreviously devised in the laboratory for determining 

 the fertilizer requirement for a crop or a soil. The evidence, so far, is 

 very strongly in favor of adopting a certain method, but it will take 

 further field work for a period of several years to be able to draw definite 

 conclusions. The plan should be modified to include the idea of crojj 

 rotation. 



The first field work was started in the spring of 1918 on an acre of 

 land in Field 10 on the College farm. The results from this experiment, 

 together with other data, are now being brought together for publica- 

 tion. The results show that for that jjarticular soil under inve.stigation 

 and for the then existing climatic and environmental conditions, an ap- 

 jjlication of a three salt mixture containing a large amount of acid 

 phosjjhate gave the greatest yield of grain. The belief that acid phos- 

 phate alone might give as good results was not borne out by this experi- 

 ment. It seems necessary to add a little of the other two to get the best 

 results. The increase in jield more than pays for the extra cost of the 

 other two fertilizer ingredients. 



This work was followed ujj by three field experiments mentioned in my 

 report for 1919 as being started. The first was laid out on the station 

 farm on poor, sandy soil. The land set aside amounted to about two 

 acres. It was about the best level piece of land available. The crop was 

 oats. The number of fertilizer combinations, exclusive of double com- 

 binations and .single applications, was twenty-one. This was dujdicated 

 for the same total concentration. The concentrations (total fertilizer 

 ajjplicationsj were two in number, eighty pounds of active ingredients 

 per acre and one hundred and sixty pounds per acre. 



The .second exjieriment was run on the farm of L. J. Keed, M. A. C. 

 '13, at Clio, Michigan, on a sandy loam, low in fertility. Tlie amount of 

 land set aside was about three acres and the crop was corn. 



The third exj>eriment was run according to the same jjlan as the two 

 above but on a different type of soil and with a different croji. The .soil 

 was a fine sand with consideral>le organic matter incori>orate<J. The 

 crof» was potatoes. This experiment was conducted on the farm of J-]zra 

 Levin, M. A. C. '15. >.'o results were gathered from tJjis experiment ex- 

 cept what could be observed before hanest. Through a failure to re- 

 ceive a telegram the crojj was ha^'^'ested before we received notice of 

 what was taking place, TIjc results of the other two experiments are be- 

 ing worked up for publication. 



In the spring of 1920 before the end of the fi.scal year June 30, 1920, 

 one field exj»eriment only was started. Conditions of finances did not 

 warrant the carr3'jng out of oiir original plan and cut us down to one 

 experiment. This experiment was .'i ycui'^iiicm of tlie oup for the year 



