Januaay 2D. 1908 



HORTICULTURE 



99 



About Fertilizers and their Use 



bOLUBILlXY 



To dispose of this term solubility when used in its 

 broad sense would be to go to the roots of all science, 

 while to attempt to do so within the compass of a few 

 words would be chemical sacrilege. Chemical concep.- 

 tions of any sort, especially concerning solids, are al- 

 ways complicated with questions of solubility. The 

 alkali of the Western plains makes vast areas inhos- 

 pitable to plant life and troublesome to eradicate be- 

 cause of its everlasting solubility. The slow but cer- 

 tain action of the elements making our granite rocks 

 yield up their stores of potash for vegetable growth is 

 largely a question of solubility. The only "Open 

 Sesame" at the plant root is solubility. Animal and 

 vegetable life both are dependent upon solubility. 



Every day conditions upon this planet are such that 

 we immediately associate solubility with that combina- 

 tion of elements called water. Water and solubility. 



The illimitable solvent action of water needs no proof 

 or elucidation here. Even our late friend Jernegen of 

 Gold-Sea- Water fame was right, for sea water does have 

 gold — some — and likewise many other minerals which 

 dissolve by the conditions in Nature, although gold is 

 one of the most obdurate metals, being dissolved by only 

 the strongest acids. Yet gold is not soluble in water in 

 the common acceptation of the word for it does not dis- 

 solve easily and entirely in a moderate amount of water. 

 Such substances as sugar, nitrate of soda or sulphate of 

 potash do, although not to the same degree because 

 sugar will dissolve in twice its weight of water, pure 

 nitrate in nearly its own weight while the sulphate takes 

 ten times to become dissolved. 



The simple solvent action of water, while remarkable, 

 should not become confused with that obtained when 

 combined with agents as air or the juices from bacteria. 

 Many "mixed fertilizers,"' blood or bone, are insoluble 

 and "require something besides water to dissolve them. 



In this connection the great influence of the fineness 

 of fertilizing materials should be noted for its great 

 practical importance. The ease or otherwise with which 

 it yields up its value depends largely upon the amount 

 of surface exposed or in other words upon the working 

 surface. Fine grinding makes surface grow in astound- 

 ing fashion and therefore even if the solubility is slight 

 the work done in a given time is vastly increased and 

 the maximum effect is reached with the finest powder. 



Everybody is cognizant of this truth and note its ap- 

 plication to bone. Being of slight solubility in water 

 its immediate value depends to a great extent upon its 

 tineness. Almost any action upon it from any agent 

 will be aided by large surface. To have bone last a 

 long time we use "inch" bone. To have it last years 

 we use "meal." To get its value as near to "now" as 

 possible, use very fine. But no grinding mill ever made 

 by man can begin to equal the smallness of the particle 

 of a fertilizer already dissolved in water yet fine grind- 

 ing does advance a little along the road of solubility. 



The great importance to the plant of this question of 

 jolubility lies in the accepted fact that no solid can be 

 taken iii by the root. Whatever necessary mineral is 

 wanted by the plant must first be dissolved; to be admit- 

 ted to the internal works it must be as a liquid. 



The Hydrangea Controversy 



Editor of Horticultgue: 



The criticisms on the name bestowed by our firm 

 upon the Hydrangea known as arborescens alba grandi- 

 tlora have been duly noted. If Professor Bailey, in 

 using the name H. arb. var. sterilis, copied same from 

 Asa Gray's works this would not prove the one described 

 by Gray and the variety named by ourselves to be 

 identical, by any means. We cannot conceive that so 

 valuable a shrub as the variety named by us could pos- 

 sibly have escaped for so many years the attention of 

 those interested in hardy shrubs. 



The dissemination of H. arli. alba grandiflora was 

 brought about througli agencies quite unusual. It was 

 not disseminated by any nurseryman or plantsman, but 

 was widely scattered by private individuals through a 

 stretch of country embracing Dayton, Piqua, Spring- 

 field and Yellow Springs, Ohio. In this particular one 

 of our critics makes us say that we knew it was held 

 and grown by a large number of plantsmen. If the 

 word plantsman as used means those in the trade then 

 such reference is incorrect and untrue. 



I cannot see that either the secretary of the S. A. F. 

 or ourselves are to blame for the part taken in naming 

 and registering the variety H. arlior. alba grandiflora. It 

 is conceded that we were the first to describe and offer 

 the variety in a commercial way. ilr. E. Y. Teas, who 

 has furnished a number of notes on the variety under 

 the name arb. sterilis, saw the plant blooming for the 

 first time on our place and we had the privilege of call- 

 ing his attention to it. 



The fact that one or two foreign- horticultural jour- 

 nals call this hydrangea by the old botanical name 

 should not outweigh the fact that nearly all the cata- 

 logue men in this country use the name given by our 

 firm. With all due respect to the critics it does seem 

 as if a mountain had been made out of a small affair. 

 We have not believed the variety named by us to be 

 identical with the variety described by Gray and Torrey 

 and until proof is forthcoming that such is tiie case we 

 shall decline to drop the name given by us. Let those 

 who are contending so strenuously bring the proof that 

 such is the case and then we will cheerfully surrender 

 the name given by us. 



Hind-sight criticism is not always on the line of a 

 square deal. If the writers who have had so much to 

 say in the way of criticizing both the name and the 

 registration had given their (supposed) information 

 earlier it would have looked more like a desire to ascer- 

 tain the truth rather than to reflect on the alleged short- 

 comings of the registrar. 



We have this solution to offer. We suggest that 

 Professor Charles S. Sargent be made the referee in 

 the matter of determining the name. Wlien the 

 hydrangea in question comes into bloom at the Arbor- 

 etum the Professor could then compare it with the dried 

 specimens in the herbaria and whatever decision Pro- 

 fessor Sargent shall render will be eminently satis- 

 factorv to us and should be to all concerned. 



/ 



M^ccy 



