526 EXPEEIMENT STATION RECORD. 



ried out mainly at the agricultural school of Berthonval it was found that sul- 

 phate of potash was particularly beneficial to clovers, and improved the char- 

 acter of herbage in natural grass lands. Equally beneficial results were ob- 

 tained in experiments with potassium chlorid applied to oats. With sugar beets 

 and potatoes the best results were obtained with sulphate of potash and kainit, 

 and the chlorid was apparently not well suited to these crops. 



Summarizing the results of a large number of tests, the author concludes 

 that potassium chlorid is more particularly suited to oats; the sulphate to 

 tobacco, beets, and potatoes; and kainit to flax and grass lands. In case of 

 beets and potatoes the potash salt should be applied in autumn or winter. 



Potash lime, von Seelhorst {Rev. in Dent. Lnndic. Pressc, 39 {1912), No. 1, 

 pp. 3, /f). — The fertilizing value of this material, obtained by treating the waste 

 waters of potash factories with caustic lime, was tested in pot experiments with 

 barley and beans grown on sandy and loam soils. 



The results were inconclusive but seem to warrant further investigation in 

 view of the fact that the material contains considerable amounts of valuable 

 fertilizing constituents and utilizes a by-product which would injuriously con- 

 taminate streams if allowed to flow into them. The material used in these 

 experiments contained total nitrogen 0.07 per cent, water-soluble potash 1.92 

 per cent, lime in the form of caustic lime and carbonate 40.9 per cent, and 

 phosphoric acid 0.15 per cent. 



Phonolith as a fertilizer, R. P. Skinner {Daily Cons, and Trade Rpts. 

 [U. S.], 15 {1912), No. 26, pp. 490, If 91). —This article notes briefly the attempt 

 to put this material, which is a silicate of potash found in volcanic rocks occur- 

 ring in the Eifel Mountains, in competition with the Stassfurt potash salts. 

 The material is stated to contain from 8 to 10 per cent of potash, and can be 

 mined and ground for $4.76 per carload. It is shown that, while tlie results 

 of tests of this fertilizer on different kinds of crops have been somewhat con- 

 flicting, they generally indicate a very low fertilizing value for the material as 

 compared with potash salts. 



Alunite, a newly discovered deposit near Marysvale, Utah, B. S. Butlee 

 and H. S. Gale {U. S. Geol. Survey Bui. 511, pp. 6Jf, pis. 3).— The location, 

 character, extent, and commercial importance of this deposit are described, as 

 well as the geology of the region in which it occurs. Notes are also given on 

 the occurrence of alunite in other parts of the United States and in foreign 

 countries. 



The discovery is of particular significance because of the fact that this 

 mineral can be made to yield potassium sulphate by a comparatively simple 

 process of heating or calcination and may thus become a comparatively cheap 

 source of potash. " The Marysville deposit, so far as now known, is not of 

 such magnitude as to afford a source of all the potash salts now consumed in 

 the United States, but it may prove to be an important factor in providing an 

 American supply that will perhaps be especially available to local and western 

 markets, particularly in meeting the demand for higher grade salts." A sim- 

 ple field test for alunite is given. 



The potash search in America, G. E. Mitchell {Amer. Rev. of Revieivs, 45 

 (1912), No. 1, pp. 13-11, 'pgs. 3). — A brief account is here given of the efforts 

 which are being made by the U. S. Geological Survey and the Bureau of Soils 

 of this Department to develop a domestic supply of potash, including deep 

 borings for salt deposits, the study of methods of extracting potash from potash- 

 bearing minerals, and the utilization of giant kelps of the Pacific coast. 



The German Potash Syndicate, T. J. Albert {Daily Cons, and Trade Rpts. 

 [U. -S'.], U {1911), No. 265, pp. 760-162).— The present organization of this 



