846 



HORTICULTURE 



December 28, 1907 



I don't blame him. It is a grand country; a noble, 

 upright, open-hearted clean-cut people inhaliit it, whose 

 motto is: Everyone for himself and a chance for the 

 other fellow. Still, all sides of the question must be 

 considered by the man who has anyone dependent on 

 him. Better come out for a year on a visit before mak- 

 ing it permanent. There are too many examples now 

 of men who have sold out everything, have come West, 

 and then returned home again bitterly disappointed, 

 with their brightest dreams shattered — a desolation in- 

 comparable. 



Water Soluble Fertilizers 



Three of the more commonly used and best known of 

 the simple soluble fertilizers are Nitrate. of Soda, Sul- 

 phate of Ammonia, and Sulphate of Potash. The first 

 two are a source of that most expensive element "Nitro- 

 gen and the last gives Potasli. All three are generally 

 cataloged by seed houses and are frequently analysed 

 by the State Experiment Stations. Almost every read- 

 er of HoRTicuLTDEE IS soniewhat familiar with them. 



The following figures are based on Massachusetts re- 

 ports of which we have tried to strike a fair average. 



It is to be remarked here that the use of the term 

 "Nitrogen" (abbreviated to "N.") is simpler in many 

 ways and is to be preferred to the term "Ammonia." 

 To be sure the valuation of a fertilizer carrying nitro- 

 gen looks larger when calculated as "Ammonia" but 

 that is all. For example, liad a fertilizer 17 per cent 

 calculated as "Ammonia," it would have just 14 per 

 cent calculated as "Nitrogen." It is like the case of the 

 Frenchman with his five francs and the poor American 

 with only four quarters. If five francs or four quarters 

 were worth one dollar on the spot who was the richer? 

 So we will calculate all nitogenous bearing substances 



as N. 



We will consider for this article that Nitrate of 

 Soda has 15 per cent N.. Sulphate of Ammonia as 20 

 per cent N., and the sulphate of Potash has 50 per 

 cent Potash, calculated in the usual -n^ay. Now these 

 must be the high grade commercial chemicals to carry 

 these amounts, and, while no doubt some on the market 

 today may h'ave more, as we have said above we are 

 trying to strike a fair average. 



A strength of soluble fertilizer often mentioned and 

 also a convenient, round and practical figure, as a 

 barrel usually holds fifty gallons, is one pound to a hun- 

 dred gallons of water. This also means, as one gallon 

 of fresh water weighs 8.31 lbs., one part by weight to 

 831 parts. 



Using Nitrate of Soda at the pound per 100-gallons 

 rate we ba\e N, present in the water in the proportion 

 of one |i;irt to 5,500, N, in Ammonia Sulphate solu- 

 tion would lie one in 4,200 and the Potash in the Sul- 

 phate of Potash one to 1,700, These are round but not 

 distorted figures. 



The writer wishes to impress the reader if he has 

 not already thought of it with the small amounts of 

 fei'tilizer the above amounts seem, and also with the 

 fact that same amounts are really high if compared 

 with the use of the old English formula as indicated 

 in the table below. This is an orchid mixture of chem- 

 icals which has been very useful and does not have 

 any of the above mentioned chemicals in it. 



Except Cookson's, 1 pound to 100 

 gallons water. 



Chemical. 



Nitrate of soda (N 

 say 15 per cent.) . 



Sulphate of Ammonia 

 (N. say 20 per 

 cent.) 



Sulphate of Potash 

 (Potash say 50 

 per cent) 



Cookson's formula, 

 (say 98 per cent, 

 pure) as used by 

 its author 



Gives N. 



Gives Potash. 



one part in 



1,500 



one part in 4,200 



one pari in 1,700 



one part in 80,0001 one part in 40,000 



Cookson's Formula has been mentioned here because 

 it is one of the best known of the survivors of chemical 

 mixtures of which there used to be many. In water 

 culture there were also many mixtures and today, in 

 simUar lines of work, mixtures are made with just as 

 little in them as the above formula. 



The plant can take-up the good from weak solutions 

 just as well as it can from stronger ones and note that 

 in Nature it has to put up with ratlier slim lirothg. 



Lilium [Philippinense x longif brum 



(See Front i,-;piece) 



This new variety first exhibited before tlie Gardeners' 

 and Florists' Cluli of Boston, December 17, 1907, was 

 raised by R. & J, Farquhar & Co, of Boston. The 

 plant exhibited in bloom was produced from seeds sown 

 February 17, 1907, It has to a large degree the erect 

 wiry stem of Lilium Pliilippinense, the foliage being 

 intermediate between the two parents and a decided 

 improvement in this respect upon Philippinense, while 

 it has the herbaceous habit of that variety in throwing 

 up shoots from the bulb after the first shoot shows 

 bloom. The flower is of the same glistening white ap- 

 pearance, and has the long, slender Philippinense tube, 

 widely flaring at the mouth. 



