SOILS FERTILIZERS. 421 



that suitably arranged solution tests may afford equally, if not more, instruc- 

 tive information than soil tests. " By suitable addition of glass-wool, sand, 

 chalk, humus, etc., tests which are primarily 'in solution' may be so arranged 

 as to separate at least partially the conglomeration of factors involved in soil 

 tests." 



The absence of nitrate formation in cultures of Azotobacter, K. F. Keller- 

 man and X. R. Smith {Ccnthl. Bakt. ictc.'], 2. Abt., 40 {1914), No. 19-21, pp. 

 479-482, fig. 1). — Studies of cultures of Azotobacter indicate that while these 

 strains are capable of fixing appreciable quantities of free nitrogen, they are 

 apparently unable to produce nitrates. 



Fertilizers in relation to soils and crop production, R. Harcourt and A. L. 

 Gibson {Onlario Dcpt. Agr. Bui. 223 (1914), pp. 30, figs. 2).— This is a popular 

 discussion explaining the use of manures and fertilizers in the improvement of 

 soils. 



Manurial requirements, Primrose McConnell (Jour. Agr. [New Zeal.^, 8 

 (1914), No. 1, pp. 43-49). — The results of two years' observations on the experi- 

 mental farm at Kuakura are briefly summarized in this article, the general 

 conclusions being that the soil of this farm, as in case of New Zealand soils in 

 general, does not need nitrogen if a iiroper rotation of crops is practiced; that 

 phosphoric acid, particularly in the form of basic slag and guano, gives uni- 

 formly good results; that comparatively little result, good or bad, is obtained 

 from the application of potash except in the case of potatoes and mangels ; 

 and that liming, particularly on the raw and apparently more sterile parts of 

 the farm, together with draining, is necessary to bring the soil into a profitable 

 state of cultivation. 



The inefficiency of fertilizers in dry farming regions, F. Couston and B. 

 Garrigxjes {Rev. Dry-Fanning yard Afric, 1012, Xos. 2, pp. 30-36; 3, pp. 59-62; 

 1913, No. 6, pp. 168-172). — Experiments on the high plateaus of Algeria, where 

 the winter is cold, the summer very hot, and the spring and autumn very dry, 

 and the annual precipitation A-arying from 180 to 500 mm. and averaging 

 320 mm., showed almost uniformly no benefit from the use of fertilizers. The 

 failure of the fertilizers to increase the crop yields is attributed to deficiency 

 of moisture in the soils. 



Fertilizer experiments in the German colonies {Diingungsversuche in den 

 Deutschcn Kolonien. Berlin: Kolonialamt, 1913, No. 3, pp. IlI-\-64, pis. 6, fig. 

 i).— An account is given of experiments carried out in German East Africa in 

 1912 and 1913 and of those i)lanned for 1914. The crops experimented with 

 included cotton, corn, sorghum, rye, wheat, barley, garden beans, mungo beans, 

 peanuts, potatoes, alfalfa, rubber, coffee, cacao, coconuts, sisal, besides various 

 forage plants and vegetables. The general conclusion reached is that as a rule 

 fertilizers produced a profitable increase in yield. 



The plant food content of liquid manure, P. Liechti and E. Truningeb 

 (Landw. Jahrb. Hchweiz, 27 {1913), No. 8, pp. 459-474). — Analyses of a large 

 number of samples of liquid manure as used by Swiss farmers are reported. 



Some of the samples represented liquids obtained without the addition of 

 water. In other cases a certain amount of water had been added in their prep- 

 aration. All of the samples contained more or less suspended matter. The 

 analyses showed wide variations in composition but the average of all analyses 

 showed 1.7 gm. of total nitrogen, 70 per cent of which was in the form of 

 ammonia, in 1 liter of liquid ; 4.37 gm. of potash ; and 0.3 gm. of phosphoric 

 acid. 



The escape of ammonia from soil treated with liquid manure, P. Liechti 

 and E. Ritter {Landw. Jahrb. Schweiz, 27 {1913), No. 8, pp. 436-458). — The 

 authors report further investigations (E. S. R., 25, p. 22) from which they 



