22 EXPERIMENT STATION EECORD. 



[Address of the President of the section on agriculture], A. D. Hall {Rpt. 

 Brit. Assoc. Adv. ScL, 1914, PP- 636-645). — This address, which dealt mainly 

 with the reclamation of waste lands, has already been noted from another source 

 (E. S. R., 32, p. 30). 



The fertilizer requirements of soil, F. MIjlleb (Landtc. Jahrb. Schweiz, 29 

 (1915), No. 1, pp. 119-134)- — The results of several years' field experiments with 

 hay at three ratlier widely separated Swiss experiment stations are reported, and 

 confirm the reliability of Wagner's method for determining the fertilizer require- 

 ments of a soil growing hay. 



This method is based on analyses showing that hay contains from 0.77 to 3.14 

 per cent potash, or an average of 1.6 per cent. A 2 per cent potash content In 

 the hay is, therefore, talien to indicate saturation of the soil with potash and 

 more than 2 per cent indicates oversaturation. If the hay contains 1.8 per cent 

 potash, it is possible to increase the yield by heavy potash fertilization, and if it 

 contains only 1.4 per cent, the prolmbility of increasing the yield is very great. 

 If the potash content sinks to 1.2 per cent or less, a deficiency is certain. The 

 phosphoric acid content of hay varies between 0.28 and 0.8 per cent and must 

 be about 0.7 per cent to indicate saturation. If the hay is saturated, about 200 

 lbs. of phosphoric acid is needed annually to produce about 8,900 lbs. of hay 

 per acre. 



It is considered feasible under Swiss conditions for a farmer to obtain an 

 analysis of a sample of his hay from the nearest experiment station and by 

 using this method to dotorniine the fertilizer requirements of his meadow land. 



Fertilizer tests on different crops, C. Dusserbe {.■\nn. Agr. Suisse, 16 {1915), 

 No. 1, pp. 73-82). — Fertilizer tests with phosphatic, potassic, and nitrogenous 

 fertilizers on meadow, pasture, vineyard, and cereal soils are reported. 



Both superphosphate and Thomas phosphate were profitably used on meadow 

 soils for the production of forage crops. On ordinary meadow soils the addition 

 of potash salts was not profitable, while on calcareous peat soils it was accom- 

 panied by a profitable increase in crops. Nitrogenous fertilizers, while producing 

 an increase in crop, were not profitably used on meadow soils. 



Tests on a wet clay pasture soil of a complete fertilizer and of fertilizers lacking 

 either potash or nitrogen showed that the largest profit was obtained with the 

 complete fertilizer and the smallest with the fertilizer lacking potash. Tests 

 on vineyard and truck soils of manure alone, a complete fertilizer, and a mixture 

 consisting of manure and complete fertilfeer 1 : 1 showed that the mixture was 

 the most profitable. It was also found that potash fertilizers increa.sed the 

 I'esistance of truck crops to freezing. 



Tests on vineyard soils of complete fertilizers containing sodium nitrate or 

 lime nitrogen showed that the best results were obtained with the spdium nitrate. 

 A marked increase in the yield of oats was obtained when kainlt was usetl for 

 the de.struction of weeds. Tests with wheat and oats deraonstratetl the prac- 

 ticability of reinforcing barnyard manure with mineral fertilizers on soils rich 

 in hunnis. 



How not to treat Illinois soils, C. G. Hopkins {lUinois Sta. Circ. 181 (1915). 

 pp. 3-32). — This is an address by the author before the Illinois State Farmers* 

 Institute at Harrisburg, February 23, 1915, in which he reviews work by himself 

 and others on soil improvement and emphasizes that profitable results from 

 soil treatment can be obtained only through intelligent and careful considera- 

 tion of all environmontal factors and through systonmtio methods of proceilure. 



Unexhausted manurial values: A criticism with some suggestions. J. 

 Hendbick (Trans. Highland and Agr. Soc. Scot., 5. scr., 27 (1915). pp. 256-280).— 

 The author offers critici.sms on the tables and conclusions of Voolckor and Hall 



