September 12, 1908 



HORTICULTURE 



351 



of a microscope having a magnifying: 

 power of about nine hundred diame- 

 ters, you will be able to trace the my- 

 celium of the fungus investing with 

 its anastomosing fibres the outside of 

 the root and penetrating through the 

 epidermal cells of the host. 



In speaking of the ferments we are 

 prone to infer that the work is all done 

 by the micro-organisms already re- 

 ferred to, but it seems that still more 

 important in the economy of plant as 

 well as animal life are the unorganized 

 ferments or enzymes. It now seems 

 likely that these enzymes may have 

 an important bearing on the fertilizer 

 question. Just what the nature of 

 these substances may be, at the pres- 

 ent time we do not know as it is dif- 

 ficult to collect them in a pure state. 

 That they are highly nitrogenous 

 however, is generally believed. But it 

 is their action which concerns us most. 

 It is said that these ferments bring 

 about changes by their mere presence, 

 or at least without loss of their own 

 substance. That is what is called cat- 

 alytic action, just as the presence of 

 certain metals in a solution will pre- 

 cipitate other metals. 



These enzymes exist in all parts of 

 the active tissues of the plant, and are 

 found in abundance upon the growing 

 point of roots. They evidently have 

 the power of reducing the si arches. 

 fats and proteids to forms which can 

 be directly assimilated and used in 

 the building up of tissue. In fact it 

 appears that it is to the worn of these 

 enzymes that the bacteria and other 

 simple firms of vegetable life owe 

 their power of rendering up in such 

 a remarkable degree the nitrogen con- 

 tained in albuminoids and other com- 

 pounds. The enzymes have been 

 studied principally as they appear 

 within the plant body. They are not 

 themselves organized, and are prod- 

 ducts, not parts, of the vegetable cell. 

 They can bring about their character- 

 istic changes as well outside as inside 

 the body; and an interesting question 

 is how far these substances may ex- 

 tend outside the plant body, and if it 

 is not possible that in some genera 

 .of plants the work of collecting nitro- 

 gen from the soil is not due directly 

 to them without the intervention of 

 the fungus. 



In discussing the fertility of the 

 soil, there are other factors than the 

 presence of chemical elements neces- 

 sary for plant food. The food must be 

 accessible, there must be a supply of 

 water for solvent purposes, and there 

 must be a sufficient amount of heat 

 to encourage the action of the dissolv- 

 ing agencies. The physical condition 

 of the soil plays a very important 

 part in determining the fertility of the 

 soil. Air and water are not usually 

 spoken of as fertilizers, but they, 

 nevertheless, are vital to the success 

 of the plant. The soil must be of 

 such character that the air can cir- 

 culate among the particles and come 

 In contact with the rootlets. The soil 

 must also be in such condition that it 

 will hold a certain amount of water, 

 and it must be of such consistency 

 that the root hairs can visit every 

 little grain of earth in search of nutri- 

 ment. 



The soil must not be so fine as to 

 obstruct the free passage of air and 

 water, nor so coarse as to allow 

 either to flow through in currents. 



FORMOSUM LlLIT M LONGIFLORUM 

 (Grcwn from Wuli is of the Yokohama Nursery <'".» 



Surplus offer of 



FORMOSA L1LIUM LONGIFLORUM 



On account of unfavorable weather the bulbs of the Formosa Lilium Longiflorum did 

 not grow up to the sizes expected but the plants formed good solid bull s. We are con- 

 vinced our 6/8 in. size will give the same results which under favorable conditions a bulb 

 of 7/n in. would produce, and if two bulbs are planted in one pot the plants make a nicer 

 showing than those with a single stem. 



6/8 in. bulbs, oo in a case at $16.00 per case, 5% cash discount. 



CALLAS, WHITE, JAPAN CROWN 



Our stock is grown for one season in dry loamy soil to make these roots fit for the 

 long journey, consequently they are not as large as California grown stock. They pro- 

 duce however more flowers and are perfectly healthy. 



Size 1 — 2 in. in diameter $45.00 per 1000, 5% cash discount. 



THE YOKOHAMA NURSERY CO, Ltd., 3 1 Barclay St., N.Y. 



What we need is a happy medium 

 where the spaces between the soil 

 particles are such that a mere film of 

 water encircles every one, or what is 

 called hygroscopic, holding of mois- 

 ture. In this condition the soil is 

 capable of absorbing and holding the 

 greatest possible amount of nutrients 

 in a readily accessible manner. In 

 this condition too it will maintain a 

 more equable temperature and become 

 a more comfortable home for nutrify- 

 ing bacteria. This physical condition 

 of the soil is brought about by tillage, 

 and it is frequently the case that 

 proper handling of the soil makes all 

 the difference between success and 

 failure. 



So much for some of the factors 

 which we have to consider in increas- 

 ing the fertility of our fields, and 

 now let us consider briefly some of the 

 causes of loss of fertility. We are 

 apt to attribute loss of fertility en- 

 tirely to absence of available plant 

 food. That such is not always the 



case will be evident to anyone who 

 has had long experience in gardening 

 operations. 



In the originally fertile farm lands 

 of Central New York where a rota- 

 tion of corn and wheat and clover, or 

 wheat, clover and grass, or something 

 of that kind was pursued for long 

 years, we heard complaints of lessen- 

 ing fertility. The land would no 

 longer grow clover, or, as the farmers 

 expressed it, the land was "clover 

 sick." This land still grows a fair 

 crop of corn or potatoes or the grasses, 

 but clover must be given a rest and is 

 uncertain. 



After a few years rest, probably the 

 clover grows again. There are fail- 

 ures of other crops it is true, failures 

 which are often and perhaps justly 

 attributed to exhaustion of the soil or 

 at least of certain of the elements. 

 The theory is that the land must be 

 rested or a rotation pursued which 

 will allow of a recovery, or a renewal 

 of the missing element. It is such 



