828 



EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



these hillocks and from the adjacent level land gave the following 

 average results : 



Composition of hillock and level soil in South Africa. 



Hillock soil 

 Level soil . . 



Phosphoric 



acid. 



Per cent. 

 0.051 

 .032 



It will be seen from the table that each of the three constituents is 

 less abundant in the level soil than in the hillock soil, the lime being 

 especially deficient. 



Canadian soils, F. T. Shutt ( Canada Expt. Farms Ept. 1897, pp. 

 151-170). — The results are presented of chemical and partial mechanical 

 analyses (1) of soils sent by farmers for examination, including 2 sam- 

 ples from British Columbia, 5 (1 of muck soil) from Ontario, and 4 

 from Quebec; and (2) of virgin soils, 1 including 29 samples (with sub- 

 soils) from British Columbia, 8 from the Northwest Territories and 

 Manitoba, 9 from Ontario, 10 from Quebec, and 5 from the Maritime 

 Provinces — New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. 

 The samples and the regions from which they were obtained are briefly 

 described, and the value of soil analysis, standards of fertility, and 

 methods of analysis are discussed. 



"The solvent used in the determination of total or maximum percentages of the 

 mineral constituents has been hydrochloric acid, sp. gr. 1.115 (corresponding to 22.86 

 per cent IIC1.), 10 gm. of the air-dried soil being digested with 100 cc. of the acid 

 at the temperature of the water hath for 10 hours. 



"For the estimation of the available potash and phosphoric acid 1 per cent citric 

 acid solution has been employed, digesting 100 gm. of air-dried soil with 500 cc. of 

 the solvent for 5 hours at room temijerature." 



The latter determinations were made in 1 soil only. The average 

 composition of the surface soils examined is given in the following 



table: 



Average analyses of virgin surface soils of Canada. 



Number 



of sam- 

 ples. 



Province. 



British Columbia 



Northwest Territories and Manitoba 



Ontario (Muskoka only) 



Quebec 



Maritime Provinces 



Average of all 



Potash. 



Per cent. 

 0.42 

 .44 

 .22 

 .44 

 .44 



39 



Phos- 

 phoric 

 acid. 



Per cent. 

 0.27 

 .19 

 .15 

 .20 

 .11 



.18 



Nitrogen. 



Per cent. 

 0. 262 

 .537 

 .135 

 .226 

 .130 



.258 



Lime. 



Per cent. 



1.17 



1.08 



.44 



.52 



.11 



.66 



Although the above are averages of analyses of samples which "are 

 typical, and, as far as possible, thoroughly representative of large areas, 



1 For previous work on such soils see Canada Expt. Farms Rpt. 1896, p. 184 (E. S. 

 R., 9, p. 821). 



