These figures merely confirm what has already been observed; 

 namely, that while the Hutchinson-MacLennan method enables us to 

 distinguish between soils demanding lime and soils not requiring it so 

 urgently, yet we cannot agree to the statement that a complete failure 

 of crop is the accompaniment of an acidity of O-IS %. For there are 

 Southland soils naturally requiring Ume that, after a dressing of lime 

 that experience shows to be sufficient for the practical purpose of soil 

 amehoration, may still show as high an acidity as 0-24 % ; while those 

 of the Canterbury Plains and of the Southland River Flats, though 

 having initially average hme requirements of 0-103 and 0-135 % 

 respectively, have nevertheless not shown any marked demand for 

 lime, and certainly are being farmed very profitably without it. 

 Hutchinson and MacLennan would apparently, in the hght of their 

 experience, hme a soil till its acidity is reduced to nil ; our experience, 

 while confirming the belief that hme is urgently needed where the initial 

 acidity is greater than about 0-20 %, gives us no proof from the point of 

 view of crop production, that Hme is necessary where the acidity is less 

 than about 0-10 %. 



