276 MASS. EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 171. 



The translocation of potash, magnesia and phosphoric acid back to 

 the roots is indicated but not proven, since there are the blossoms and 

 berries to be considered as a possible destination in their transfer. These 

 two sets of organs were not collected, however, as it was nearly impossible 

 to get anything approacliing accurate amounts of them from a series of 

 stalks, because the red asparagus beetle destroys them in preference to 

 other parts of the plant. 



Inorganic Constituents of the Asparagus Plant at its Different Stages {Per- 

 centages in Dry Matter). 



Effect of Fertilizers on the Composition of the Asparagus 



Plant. 



The material for the study of the effects of fertilizers on the composi- 

 tion of the different parts of the asparagus plant was chiefly obtained 

 from the experiment field ^ at Concord, but some was taken from the plots 

 at the experiment station in Amherst. 



The soil of the experiment field is typical of the soils chosen in Massa- 

 chusetts for asparagus culture, i.e., a coarse, sandy loam. Samples of the 

 soil from four sections of the field were analyzed by the conventional 

 method, and the results are given in the following table: — 



Soil Analyses. 



I See annual reports for 1908 and following years for description of fertilizer experiments. 



