420 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



"Creatlnin and creatin exist in vegetable matter to a slight degree. Though 

 the amount of these compounds present is small it is worthy of attention, since 

 by the decay of plants and by direct cell sloughing or even by osmosis the crea- 

 ti'iiin and creatin are left in water and soil where they exercise an effect on 

 subsequent plant growth. Creatinin seems to persist for a considerable time 

 in soils and may indeed increase in the soil by accumulation. Since both crea- 

 tin and creatinin have a favorable effect on plant growth, their presence in 

 plants and in the medium in which plants grow has considerable bearing on 

 soil fertility." 



Efff'ct of creatmin on growth an4 absorption, J. J. Skinner (pp. 33-44). — 

 Wheat seedlings were grown in aqueous culture solutions containing monocal- 

 cium phosphate, sodium nitrate, and potassium sulphate in varying combina- 

 tions and proportions. "The concentration of all the solutions was 80 parts 

 per million of the fertilizer ingredients, PsOb, NHs, and K2O. . . . Two sets of 

 cultures were prepared; to one set were added merely the nutrient salts, to a 

 similar set oO parts per million of creatinin in each culture, in addition to the 

 nutrient salts." The results of these experiments are summarized as follows: 

 "Creatinin and creatin have beneficial effects on plant growth. Plants grown 

 in solution cultures containing only potash and phosphate show greatly in- 

 creased growth when creatinin or creatin is added. When large amounts of 

 nitrate are present in the culture solutions, creatinin or creatin produce no 

 appreciable effect on the growth. Plants growing in cultures, whether low or 

 high in nitrate, showed a greatly diminished absorption of this ingredient 

 when creatinin or creatin was present, whereas the removal of potash and 

 phosphate was practically normal. It appears, therefore, that creatinin and 

 creatin can replace the effect of nitrate in plant growth." 



The isolation of creatinin from soils, E. C. Shorey {Jour. Amer. Chem. Soc, 

 34 {1912), No. 1, i)p. 99-107). — Substantially the same article as that noted 

 above. 



Some causes of soil granulation, E. O. Fippin {Proc. Amer. Soc. Agron., 2 

 {1910), PI). 106-121, figs. 8).— The effect of alternate drying and wetting, scari- 

 fication, freezing, addition of sand, muck and muck extract, lime, and acids on 

 soil granulation was determined by measurements of penetration. 



The results show that all these methods of treatment promoted granulation 

 of the soil. Caustic lime was more effective for short periods than the carbo- 

 nate lime in improving tilth. 



Notes on soil moisture, C. F. Juritz {Agr. Jour. Union So. Africa, 2 {1911), 

 No. 6, pp. 739-758, figs. 4)- — The author discusses free, capillary, and hygro- 

 scopic water of the soil in relation to plant growth, and reports the results of 

 determinations of the hygroscopic water, organic matter, and nitrogen in typical 

 Transvaal and Cape Colony soils. 



The results show that the soils which contained the maxima of water also 

 contained much larger quantities of organic matter in general and of nitrogen 

 in particular. In 23 Transvaal soils which contained the most hygroscopic 

 water there was found an average percentage of water of 9.12; of organic 

 matter, 14.31 ; and of nitrogen, 0.214. In soils containing the minima of hygro- 

 scopic water there was found an average moisture content of 0.75 per cent ; 

 of organic matter, 3.25 per cent ; and of nitrogen, 0.066 per cent. " In the soils 

 containing the maxima of water, 1.5 per cent of the organic matter consists of 

 nitrogen; in those containing the minima this ratio is higher, namely, 2 per 

 cent." In 63 samples of Cape soils containing the maximum percentages of 

 moisture the amounts of water, organic matter, and nitrogen were respectively 

 4.67, 8.84, and 0.131 per cent. 



