May, 1920] BOIL SCIENCE 261 



1797. dk Castella, F. Potash manures sulphate or muriate? Jour. Dept. Agric. 

 Victoria 17: 3U9--370. 1919. A discussion of the relative efficiency of the Bulphate and 

 chloride of potash for agricultural purposes. The sulphate is concluded to he the best. — 

 J. J. Skinner. 



1798. Gavilan, Jtjan. Nitrato de sosa de Chile. [Chilean nitrate.] [nformacion Agric. 

 [Madrid] 9:25-29. 5 figs. 1919. — An account of the exploitation of the Chilean nitrate de- 

 posits. A resume of experiments with the salt is given showing increased yields of con 

 alfalfa, olives, grapes, and onions. — John A. Stevenson. 



1799. Metgb, G. [Rev. of: Popp, M. Diingungsversuche mit verdorbenem Kalkstick- 

 stoff. (Research on fertilizing with damaged crude calcium cyanamide.) Mitteil. Deutcsh. 

 Landw. Ges. 32:776-7S0. 1918.) Biedermann's Zentralbl. Agrikulturchem. 47:299-307. 

 1918. — The author shows I hat the injurious action of old calcium cyanamide is due to the 

 dicyandiamide set free. The calcium cyanamide takes up water and is decomposed into 

 dicyandiamide and urea or ammonia. The author carried out pot experiments on moor soil 

 witli old and fresh calcium cyanamide, ammonium chloride, ammonium sulphate, urea, u 

 nitrate and other nitrogenous substances. The review contains the results of a serie- 

 experiments on the growth of oats in potted moor soil which had been variously treated. 

 The old or dicyandiamidc-rich calcium cyanamide gave a higher nitrogen content in the 

 oats straw. Two series of garden experiments also were carried out in the year 1916, using 

 potatoes. Plots with calcium cyanamide gave only little better yield than untreated plots. 

 Urea nitrate gave the most favorable yield with the "Gertrude" variety, while urea gave a 

 higher yield with "Roode Staar." In experiments with cabbage the presence of dicyan- 

 diamide caused the edges of the leaves to become white and very clearly injured the growth. 

 [See also next following Entry, 1800.] — T. M. Schertz. 



1800. Muller, B. [Rev. of: Meyer. Die Lagerung von Kalkstickstoff in Sacken. 

 (Storage of crude calcium cyanamide in bags.) Illustr. Landw. Zeitg. 58: 347. 1917.] Bie- 

 dermann's Zentralbl. Agrikulturchem. 47:286-287. 1918.— Calcium cyanamide in storage 

 takes up moisture and carbon dioxide from the atmosphere whereby the weight and volume 

 increases, the material hardens and sticks together. Decomposition sets in and a consider- 

 able quantity of dicyandiamide is formed. The calcium cyanamide must not be stored 

 in jute sacks, for the alkajj in the fertilizer affects the sacks and, further, the taking up of 

 water and carbon dioxide causes the fertilizer to expand and burst the sacks. When stored 

 in paper or jute sacks, in 8 weeks the increase in weight was 10.9 per cent, and in 21 weeks 

 11.7 per cent. — Calcium cyanamide from the outer layer of the sack showed 10.93 per cent of 

 nitrogen while samples from the middle showed 14.31 per cent. The outer layer increased 

 36.1 per cent in weight while the middle increased 4.0 per cent; 7.9 per cent of the outer 

 layer had changed into dicyandiamide while in the middle 3.5 per cent had so changed. 

 Decomposition was greater during the warmer months. Storage in a heap is recommended, 

 in a dry place, the pile being covered with Thomas slag, layers of dry fertilizer sacks or dry 

 peat. [See also next preceding Entry, 1799.] — F. M. Schertz. 



SOIL CLASSIFICATION 



1801. Blanck. [Rev. of: vox HorvXth, Bela. Uber die Einteilung der Boden nach 

 ihrer elektrischen Leitfahigkeit. (Classification of soils according to their electrical conduc- 

 tivity.) Internat. Mitteil. Bodenk. 6:231. 1916.] Biedermann's Zentralbl. Agrikulturchem. 

 47: 283. 1918. — Conductivities of soils w r ere compared with the soil types. For several rea- 

 sons classification of the soils by their conductivity is questioned.— F. M. Schertz. 



1802. Tores, Francisco. Clasificacion de los terrenos. [Classification of soils.] In- 

 formacion Agric. [Madrid] 9: 105. 1919.— Soils are classified as sandy, calcareous, clay, 

 loam, and saline. The natural vegetation occurring on each type in Spain is given, together 

 with the fertilizing elements required by various cultivated crops. — John A. Stevenson. 



