398 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



It is estimated that the 5 leading crops (corn, wlieat, oats, timothy, 

 aud clover) grown in Indiana take from the soil -f 104,003,700 worth of 

 fertilizing constituents, while only $1,501,680 worth, or less than 1.} per 

 cent, of these constituents are returned to the soil in the form of fer- 

 tilizers. 



Solubility of phosphoric acid in bone meal, L. Gebek {Ztschr. 

 angeui. Chem.^ 1894, JSio. 7, p. 103). — The author found 80 per cent of 

 the phosphoric acid soluble in citrate solution by Wagner's method. 

 Removing fat did not increase solubility. liemoval of gelatin reduced 

 solubility to 70 per cent. Ignition com])letely changed the character 

 of the phosphate. The results in general indicate that only a small 

 amount of the phosphate of bone is in tribasic form. 



Field experiments "witli fertilizers, C. S. Phelps {Connecticut 

 ^torrs lSt<(. Bpt. 1893, pp. 119-12r>, 136-139). — In continuation of 

 cooj)erative experiments commenced in 1888 (E. S. \i., 5, p. o74), soil 

 tests Avith fertilizers were made under the supervision of the station 

 on farms in different parts of the State. In most cases the results 

 were vitiated by drought, and are therefore reported in tabular form 

 without comment. 



In one of the exi^eriments, which has been conducted for 3 years on 

 a light alluvial loam, deficient in organic matter and \Aorn by previous 

 cropping witlumt manure, the results indicated that it is necessary to 

 supply such soils with an abundance of organic matter containing 

 nitrogen in order to get the full benefit of mineral fertilizers, and that 

 on soils of this character soluble phosphates in absence of available 

 nitrogen may diminish the yield by hastening maturity and thus 

 shortening the life of the plant. 



It was incidentally observed that the percentages of water in corn 

 (ears) grown in the different experiments varied so widely as to render 

 field weights unreliable as measures of the yields. For this reason all 

 yields of ears are calculated to 11 per cent of moisture in the report. 



Field experiments with fertilizers in G-reat Britain {B<J. Agr. 

 Bpt. Distrih. Grants for A</1. Education in Great Britain 1893-94, pp. 

 41-6()). — These include experiments on grass and pasture lands, pota- 

 toes, and Swedes (ruta-bagas) in different parts of Anglesey, Carnarvon, 

 and Cardigan counties, Wales, and Northumberland and Durham 

 counties, England. 



Experiments on pasture lands (pp. 41, 55-04). — In experiments near 

 Amlwch, North Wales, during one season superphosphate gave better 

 results than slag, and a mixture of nitrate of soda with the different 

 phosphates proved better than the phosphates alone. No potash 

 fertilizers were tested. 



In experiments on 5 different farms in Northumberland the best 

 average results were obtained from the use of mixtures containing all 

 three fertilizing constituents. Sulphate of ammonia jiroved superior 



