208 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST, 



demonstrated to him that shallow tillage, by 

 affording a mulch of fine soil upon the sur- 

 face and breaking up the capillarity in the 

 soil, conserves that moisture so essential to 

 plant growth during our hot dry months of 

 June and July and sometimes a part of 

 August. Besides this, it has been shown 

 that the mechanical effect of loosening up 

 the soil and making it pervious to the action 

 of the air, is most helpful in rendering 

 available those elements of fertility which 

 would otherwise lie a long time locked up in 

 the ground, but now we are learning that it 

 has also a positive effect upon the tempera- 

 ture of the soil. Seeley (Mo. Weather Rev., 

 1 901) shows from actual tests that newly 

 cultivated soil is 6 degrees warmer at the 

 surface ; 5 degrees lower three inches below 

 the surface ; and about the same twelve 

 inches below — conditions most favorable for 

 plant growth. The warmer surface soil 

 hastens the process of growth in the plant, 

 and it is a protection against frost. The 

 soil just below the surface being cooler, re- 

 tards capillarity and thereby retains the soil 

 moisture- while the temperature about the 

 roots is about the same or a trifle higher 

 than the same in uncultivated soil. 



LIME FOR SOILS. 



A METHOD of determining accurately 

 the quantity of lime to apply to soils 

 to neutralize the acidity has been described 

 by Dr. Hopkins at a recent meeting of offi- 

 cial chemists at Washington, D. C. That 

 lime is useful in agriculture has long been 

 recognized in practice, but just in what 

 quantities to apply it, and to what soils, has 

 been a problem. The old warning is ex- 

 pressed in the couplet: 



The use of lime without manure, 

 Will surely make the farmer poor 



has deterred many from using it at all. In 

 many cases it would no doubt give splendid 

 results, especially in cold acid soils. Now, 

 if we can definitely determine the acidity of 



a soil and the proper amount of lime to ap- 

 ply to correct this condition, we have before 

 us an advance step in soil fertility. Wiley, 

 in an address on the subject, concluded as 

 follows : " Agricultural chemistry, passing 

 from having determined what the soil is and 

 what plants are and how fertilizers can be 

 made and applied, is now advancing to a still 

 higher plane of investigation, to determine 

 how the soil shall be made maximum in pro- 

 duction and how the conditions of growth 

 shall secure the maximum of desired quali- 

 ties." 



NITRATE OF SODA FOR i OMATOES. 



VOORHEES (New Jersey Expt. Sta.) 

 has found by experiment that the ap- 

 plication of 200 lbs. per acre of nitrate of 

 soda to tomatoes in two equal applications 

 during the growing season increased the 

 yield by 3,220 lbs. per acre, and when the 

 same quantity per acre was applied in three 

 equal distributions, the yield was increased 

 5,880 lbs. This is a sufficient evidence in 

 favor of the judicious use of this fertilizer. 

 It must always be borne in mind that its ef- 

 fect is to increase of the vigor of the plant 

 growth, and in some cases this would mean 

 a proportionate decrease of fruitfulness. 

 For example, Voorhees reports having tried 

 a larger quantity with distinct loss in quality 

 of yield. In one case he used 300 lbs. per 

 acre, applied as above, and the yield was de- 

 creased by 475 lbs. over that treated with 

 200 lbs. of nitrate of soda, because of larger 

 vine growth and later maturity of fruit. 



THE KIEFFER SELF-STERILE. 



POWELL (Del. Exp. Sta.) reports blos- 

 soms of the Kieffer practically self- 

 sterile, and that LeConte is a good pollenizer 

 for it. However, we do not need to worry 

 about a crop failure of this pear, for his 

 records of 1901 show that if two blossoms 

 out of one hundred set fruit the resulting 

 crop will be a heavy one. 



