THE NEW FERTILIZATION. 113 



bearing fluid as he may desire to use. This .is then sprinkled 

 upon the soil or upon the seed, as he. may prefer ; or he may 

 wet a quantity of earth with it and scatter this as manure over 

 the field to be fertilized. 



Where soil lacking in nitrogen is thus inoculated the results 

 are little less than wonderful. A plot of ground producing 

 372 pounds of crimson clover, after inoculation produced 6,290 

 pounds, and an immense increase is common with all the 

 leguminous plants. Equally remarkable is it that these bac- 

 teria enable the plants to which they are more particularly par- 

 tial beans, peas, lentils, clovers, etc. to leave behind them 

 in the soil from which they are gathered such a favorable 

 condition of things that the next succeeding crop is almost 

 equally benefited. An acre yielding originally 932 pounds 

 of cotton produced, following a crop of inoculated clover, 

 1,30*4 pounds, a gain of 40 per cent. A patch of wheat fol- 

 lowing a crop of inoculated melilotus showed an increase of 

 64 per cent ; potatoes after crimson clover, 50 per cent. ; oats 

 after velvet beans, 300 per cent. ; and rye after an inoculated 

 crop of peas yielded the enormous increase of nearly 400 

 per cent. Some time and some labor are necessarily bestowed 

 in the fertilizing of a field by inoculation, but this is not so 

 great, and the money cost is ridiculously insignificant only 

 a few cents an acre. 



The intelligent cultivation of the soil is thus seen to be 

 largely for the purpose of providing favorable conditions for 

 its bacteria. They must have air and warmth and moisture. 

 Where the soil is too wet plants do not thrive. Drainage is 

 therefore resorted to, which is wise ; but the real reason why 

 the plants did not do well in the wet soil, at least, one of the 

 reasons, and an important one, was that the superabundance 



