SOILS FERTILIZERS. 225 



nitrogenous fertilizers in overcoming tlie vanillin effects ; the mainly potassic in 

 overcoming the quinone effects." 



Catalytic fertilizers for sugar beets, J. Stoklasa {BL ZuckornbcnMu, IS 

 (1911), No. 11, PI). 193-197; abs. in Chem. Ztg., 35 {1911), No. 86, Repert., p. 

 361 ) . — The yield of sugar beets vras increased from 30 to 50 per cent by adding 

 9 kg. (19.8 lbs.) of manganese and 4.48 kg. (9.8 lbs.) of aluminum per hectare 

 in form of the sulphates to a complete basal fertilizer. The assimilable alumi- 

 num salt apparently corrected the toxic action and promoted the stimulating 

 effect of the manganese salt. Lead nitrate, vphich is found in small amounts 

 in Norwegian calcium nitrate, increased the yield from 30 to 40 per cent and 

 the sugar content 1 per cent when used at the rate of 0.9775 per cent, but began 

 to depress the yield but not the sugar content when used at the rate of 1.855 

 per cent. Beneficial effects of lead nitrate were also observed in case of oats, 

 corn, and other crops. 



Arsenic, which is generally present in superphosphates to the extent of 0.01 

 per cent, was found to exert a stimulating effect on sugar beets when used 

 in amounts not exceeding 0.4 per cent in the form of either arsenious or arsenic 

 acid. Arsenic trioxid and pentoxid are more toxic. 



The author holds that manganese, aluminum, zinc, copper, and like substances 

 are catalytic agents, perfoi-ming an important function in carbon assimilation 

 by promoting rapid photosynthesis in the chlorophyll apparatus. 



Analyses and valuations of commercial fertilizers, C. S. Cathcaet et ax. 

 (Neio Jersey Stas. Bui. 2-^0, pp. 8-^9). — ^Analysis of 591 samples of fertilizing 

 materials, including factory mixed and home mixed fertilizers, and miscel- 

 laneous unmixed materials examined during 1911, are reported. 



Special attention is called to the fact that this bulletin reports in addition 

 to nitrogen as nitrates, ammonia, and organic matter " the water-soluble or- 

 ganic nitrogen, the active insoluble organic nitrogen, and the inactive insoluble 

 organic nitrogen. 



" The ' water-soluble organic nitrogen ' includes all of the organic nitrogen 

 which is soluble in water and is probably of high availability. Many of the 

 standard ammoniates contain a small amount of organic nitrogen that is 

 soluble in water, but, in mixed goods, when a large proportion is water-soluble, 

 it probably results from the treatment of the material with acid during the 

 process of manufacturing the fertilizer. 



" The ' active insoluble organic nitrogen ' includes that portion of the nitrogen 

 in the residue remaining after the water-soluble portion as been removed, which 

 is liberated by the method adopted by the stations . . . known as ' the alkaline 

 permanganate method.' A very large proportion of the organic nitrogen in 

 standard ammoniates is not soluble in water, but it is well known that they 

 are highly available to plants after they have decomposed in the soil. The 

 determination of the 'active insoluble organic nitrogen' is intended to show 

 the quantity of the insoluble nitrogen that will thus become available to the 

 plants. 



" The ' inactive insoluble organic nitrogen ' is that part of the insoluble 

 nitrogen which is not liberated during the prescribed treatment. It is not 

 claimed that this form of nitrogen will not become available after a consid- 

 erable time but that it is actually inactive and on account of this condition 

 should be considered as having but little value as quick-acting nitrogen." 



The object of these additional determinations is to furnish a more accurate 

 means of judging of the availability of the nitrogen of mixed fertilizers. "In 

 estimating the availability of the total nitrogen content in a fertilizer, it must 

 be remembered that the total availability is not determined by the availability 

 of the insoluble nitrogen alone but that it must be judged by all of the various 



