FIELD CROPS. 557 



tilizers and 10 samples of wood ashes examined during L904. Attention is called in 

 the bulletin to the importance of insisting upon a guarantee of soluble phosphoric 

 acid in fertilizers intended for use on acid soils. 



Analysis of commercial fertilizers ( South < 'arolina Sta. Bui. 92, pp. 18) . — Analy- 

 ses and valuations of 231 samples of fertilizers are reported, with notes on regula- 

 tions governing the sale of fertilizers in the State, the taking of samples, etc. 



Fertilizers, 1904, T. Macfarlane (Lab. Inland Rer. Dept., Canada, Hal. 97, 

 pp. 35). — The results of analyses and valuations of 111 samples of fertilizers examined 

 under the provisions of the Dominion fertilizers act of 1890, and representing the fer- 

 tilizers offered for sale in Canada in 1904, are reported with general notes on such 

 subjects as care of nitrogen, treatment of barnyard manure, acquisition of nitrogen, 

 utilization of sewage, and moss manure. 



Analyses (water, ash, and nitrogen) of 24 samples of moss litter and peat are 

 included. The value of this material as an absorbent and deodorizer for use in 

 privies is pointed out, and it is claimed that "moss litter might also be applied with 

 i*reat advantage in public urinals. When a sample of it was supersaturated with 

 urine and artificially dried, and this process repeated several times, no offensive 

 odors were developed, and the product was found on analysis to contain 12.41 per 

 cent of nitrogen, which is equal to a valuation of $32.26 per ton." 



Mineral products of the United States, calendar years 1894 to 1903, 

 D. T. Day ( U. S. Geol. Survey, 1904, Sept. , folio) .—The quantity and value of the dif- 

 ferent products during the years named are given. Among the products of special 

 interest from an agricultural standpoint are phosphate rock, of which 1,581,576 long 

 tons, worth $5,319,294, were produced in 1903; marl, 34,211 short tons, worth $22,521; 

 and gypsum, 1,041,704 short tons, worth $3,792,943. 



The Tennessee phosphate field, H. D. Ruhm (Amer. Ferl., 21 (1904), No. 5, 

 l>/>. 5-11, figs. 7). — This is a brief account of the geology, location, and output of 

 this field. 



Potash minerals of Germany, F. H. Mason (U. S. Dept. Cum. and Labor, Mo. 

 Consular Rpts., 1904, No. 289, }>i>. 104-108). — This is a review of a treatise on the 

 German potash industry recently issued by the German technical journal Industrie. 



FIELD CROPS. 



Experiments in electroculture in 1903, P. Van Biervuet (L'rr. G6n. Agron. 

 [Louvain\, 13 (1904), No. 6, p}>. 241-253). — A summary of the results obtained in Eng- 

 land, Sweden, and Germany is given and the electrical installations used briefly 

 described. Other articles upon this subject by the same author have been previously 

 noted (E. S. R.,15, p. 248). 



In experiments by Pringsheim, in Germany, the percentage increase in yield on 

 plats under electrical influence was as follows: Strawberries 123 per cent, barley 32.5, 

 potatoes 7.6, sugar beets 119.5, and garden beans 30.2. The soil conditions of the 

 sugar beet plats were somewhat irregular. Carrots showed a reduction in yield, 

 largely due to the fact that the plat was not watered. 



In experiments conducted at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, an increase in yield is recorded 

 in nearly every case for the plats provided with the electrical installation. Water- 

 ing the plants proved beneficial in some instances and detrimental in others. 



In the Swedish experiments the electrical influence apparently increased the yield 

 of rye 19.5, of barley 40.1, and of oats 16 per cent. The plat of oats to which elec- 

 tricity was applied had imperfect drainage. The results with root crops show a small 

 increase in yield for potatoes and sugar beets and a decrease for fodder beets and 

 carrots, but unfavorable conditions interfered with this test. 



Analyses which show that under the influence of electricity the sugar content of 



