1012 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



Experiments on the effect of Nitragin and inoculation material 

 upon lupines, W. Edler (Ftihling's Landw. Ztg., 48 (1899), Xo. l,pp. 

 22,23). — A report is given of pot experiments with lupines in which 

 soil inoculation and Nitragin inoculation were compared with each 

 other and with plants grown in pots which did not receive any inocu- 

 lating material. Fifteen pots were filled with a light sandy soil free 

 from lime, and all were equally fertilized with phosphoric acid and 

 potash. Five pots were inoculated with Nitragin, 5 with soil-inocu- 

 lating material from Dr. Salfeld, and the others remained as checks. 

 The yield of the several pots is given, from which it appears that as 

 compared with the yield of grain from the untreated pots the yield of 

 grain from the pots which received Nitragin was 38.44 per cent greater 

 and from those receiving the soil-inoculation material 10G.51 per cent 

 greater. The yield of plants was increased 12.17 and 42.86 per cent 

 respectively. 



The same line of experiments was undertaken in the open field on 

 clay soil. In this experiment the rows of yellow, black, white, and 

 blue lupines were grown across the field, the different rows receiving 

 the different inoculating materials. Some differences were noted in 

 growth, but the experiment only tended to more firmly establish the 

 author in the opinion that when the mechanical and chemical con- 

 ditions of the soil are not suited to the growth of lupines, no addition 

 of lupine-inoculation material will materially increase the growth of 

 those plants. 



Influence of bacterial soil on plant growth, E. Gain (Ben. Gen. 

 Bot., 11 (1899), No. 121, pp. 18-28).— After briefly reviewing the general 

 subject of relation of soil bacteria to plant growth, the author gives in 

 some detail a report of experiments conducted to test the efficiency of 

 Alinit in promoting the growth of cereal and allied plants. The first 

 series was conducted with flax, the plants being grown in pots con- 

 taining garden soil. The results in these experiments showed that 

 plant growth was increased in all those pots which had been inoculated 

 with Alinit. 



Plat experiments were conducted in a similar manner with buck- 

 wheat and flax. The buckwheat was grown in garden soil and the 

 yield from the inoculated plats exceeded that of those receiving no 

 inoculation material, the gain in seed being 7.5 per cent and in plant 

 12 per cent. The plat experiments with flax which were conducted in 

 a siliceous calcareous soil showed similar effect due to the inoculation, 

 the proportional gains being 11.4 per cent for the total weight of the 

 plants and 9.3 per cent for the seed. 



The author states that under the conditions of these experiments it 

 seems that Alinit exercises a very favorable effect on the total develop- 

 ment of plants and also upon the amount of seed matured. 



Section of seed and plant introduction, O. F. Cook ( U. S. Dept. Agr., Division 

 of Botany Giro. 16, pp. 6). — The recent transfer of this section to the Division of 

 Botany, together with a change in tho personnel of the Office, has made it desirable 

 to supplement some of the details of the plans under which the work of plant intro- 



