FIELD CROPS. 123 



leaves. The presence of sugar in fresh tobacco was first ascertained 

 by J. Nessler.i 



At the wholesale houses 12 samples were selected from the original 

 packages; these were all of a pale color and, except the Virginia, Ken- 

 tucky, and Algerian, were known in the trade as "sun-dried" tobacco. 

 The following- is a list of the varieties with the percentages of sugar 

 found: Algerian, none; Kentucky, none; Greek, a trace; Turkish, 2.3; 

 Syrian, 2.8; Chinese, 3.5; Virginia leaf, 3 samples, 5.4, 7.2, and 9.8; 

 Bright Virginia, 3 samples, lO.G, 12.5, and 15.2 per cent. A repetition 

 of the experiment confirmed the above results. 



The samples of green leaves from Kew analyzed were from 10 

 varieties of 2 principal species, Nicotiana tabacum and JS^. rustica, 

 "the former being the one chiefly cultivated in America, whilst the 

 latter seems to furnish most of the Oriental tobaccos." The fol- 

 lowing list contains the names of the varieties and the percentages 

 of sugar found: Nicotiana texana var. rustica, 1.5; Shiraz, 4.0; 

 N. rustica, 4; N'. tabacum var. rirginiana, 2.3; Maryland tobacco, 

 5; N. tabacum, 6.2; Bhilsa tobacco, 3.5; JSf. tabacum var. atteniiata, 3.2; 

 N.gigantea,4:.2; N. macrophyJla purjnirea, 4.5. 



The author says: "Although I have in the foregoing shown that a 

 very considerable quantity of saccharine matter may be present in 

 certain kinds of tobacco as a natural constituent, I had no means of 

 proving that so large an amount as 15 per cent (the (luantity I found 

 in the best Bright Virginia leaf) was produced by the plant itself." 

 He found that in the yellow tobacco the amount of matter soluble in 

 water varied within small limits, and concludes that " the addition of 

 even a small percentage of sugar to tobaccos of this class would upset 

 the average proportion of soluble and insoluble matter, unless a pro- 

 portionate amount of soluble matter had been previously removed." 



Experiments •with -wheat, oats, and fertilizers {An. Rpt. School 

 Agy., Stellenbosch ; reprinted in AgJ.Jour. Cape Colony, 9 {1896), JSfo. 10, 

 pp. 238-240). — Variety tests were made with wheat. Smith Nonpareil, 

 Fluorspar, Anglo- Australian, Pringle Defiance, and Marshall No. 22 

 were satisfactory. 



Stable manure proved to be a much more economical fertilizer than 

 artificial potato manure. Artificial manures applied to crops cultivated 

 duHng the growing season only proved remunerative with copious 

 irrigation. 



Notes on the threshing of -wheat, N. A. Cobb {Agl. Gaz. N. 8. 

 Wales, 7 {1896), No. 4, pp. 204-208).— In 1893 36 varieties, in 1894 460 

 varieties, and in 1895 nearly 1,000 varieties were tested. Bags con- 

 taining a given quantity of heads received a uniform number of blows, 

 when the contents were emptied and the results determined. 



The nature of the chaft' determines the ease or difficulty of thresh- 

 ing. If it clings closely to the grain, the wheat threshes hard. Lists 



'Der Tabac, seine Bestandtheile und seine Beliandlung. Mannheim: 1867. 



