22 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



On the fertilizing value of salts of manganese, I.. Ubandeau {Jour. Agr. 

 Prut., II. xcr., I ) {IH07). Xo. .j.i, iqi. HOH-t^Ki; iib-s. in Iter. (Sen. Agron., n. scr., 

 3 (lOOH), Xo. ^. in). .'id, 50). — Attention is called especially in this article to 

 experimeuts by \on Feilitzen on moor soils at Flahiilt, near Jijukoping, Sweden 

 (E. S. R., 19, p. 1022). The author concludes from his review of this work, 

 as well as that of other investigators, that while interesting results have been 

 obtaineti with manganese salts, particularly the sulphate, these results are not 

 (if sufficient importance to warrant the regular use of such materials as fer- 

 tilizers. 



The American fertilizer handbook iPliilodelphia, 1908, pp. 2//.), figs. 2). — 

 This contains articles on National Fertilizer Association, census of the fer- 

 tilizer industry, the phosphate movement, 1906-7, points for fertilizer salesmen, 

 sulphuric acid catalytic processes, German potassium deposits, American sul- 

 phur mines, a study of soils, the " filler " in fertilizers, station analyses of fer- 

 tilizers, explanations of market quotations, fertilizer materials, Peruvian and 

 other guanos, flsh and fish scrap fertilizers, the value of fertilizer, our large 

 rural population, sulphuric acid tables, practical superphosphate manufacture, 

 soluble and insoluble phosphates, the phosphate industry, commercial nitrogen, 

 Chilean nitrate, abattoir by-products, ammonium sulphate, cotton-seed meal, and 

 other sources of nitrogen, as well as fertilizer manufacturers, allied fertilizer 

 trades, and cotton-seed oil meal directories. 



Fertilizer materials market {Oil, Paint, and Drug Reporter, ?J {li)08). No. 7, 

 pt. 2, pp. 5't-56). — This is a review of trade in fertilizers during 1907 in the New 

 York, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Charleston markets. 



Nitrate of soda in 1907, Maizieres (Engrois, 23 {1908), No. 2, pp. 36-38).— 

 Statistics of production and consumption of nitrate of soda for many years past 

 are given. The total production in 1907 is stated to have been 1,66.5,000 metric 

 tons. Of this amount Europe consumed 1,274,000 tons, America 345,000 tons. 

 A comparison with statistics for pi-evious years shows that the European 

 consumption increased 33,000 tons in 1907, while that of America decreased 

 about 10,000 tons. 



Nitrate of soda {Chem. Trade Jour., h2 {1908), No. 1018, pp. 48-5i).— This 

 article gives statistics and discussion of the nitrate of soda industry in 1907. 

 It is reported that the world's consumption of nitrate in 1907 was 1,646,890 

 tons or only 7,590 tons greater than that of 1906. The organizations and 

 combinations controlling the trade and the outlook for 1908 are also discussed. 



Agricultural uses of crude ammonia, E. Bouant {Sci. XX. Steele, 5 {1901), 

 No. 60, pp. 356-359, figii. 5; ubs. in Set. Amer. Sup., 65 {1908), No. 1615, p. 95).— 

 This article summarizes information regarding the manufacture and use of 

 this material as an insecticide, weed destroyer, and fertilizer. See also a 

 previous note (E. S. R., 18, p. .325). 



The material has been prepared for many years in all large French gas 

 works by absorbing the nitrogenous compounds in the Laming mixture of slaked 

 lime, ferrous sulphate, and sawdust. It is reported that 1.3,000 tons of crude 

 ammonia are annually produced in France and 8,000 tons are imported. It is 

 utilized in the manufactui'e of annnonium sulphate, Prussian blue, pure sulphur, 

 and a mixture known as precipitated sulphur, which is used by grape growers 

 as a remedy for mildew. The greater i)art of the material, however, is used 

 directly in agriculture as an insecticide, a destroyer of weeds, and a fer- 

 tilizer. Its value as a fertilizer has not yet been very definitely determined, 

 but it has been shown to be effective as a weed destroyer and insecticide. 



On the influence of plant constituents on the physical and chemical prop- 

 erties of peat, Y. Zailer and L. Wilk {Ztselir. Moorkultur u. Torfverwert., 

 1901, pp. 1-109; Ztschr. Landw. Versuchsw. Osterr., 10 {1901), No. 11, pp. 181- 



