October, '16] 



NITRATES IN ORCHARD SOILS. 



Table No. 1. 

 Mechanical Analysis of Soil. 



Subsoil 

 7 in. -3 ft. 



Fine gravel, 2 to 1 mm 



Coarse sand, 1 to 0.5 mm 



Medium sand, 0.5 to 0.25 mm. 

 Fine sand, 0.25 to 0.1 mm. . . . 

 Very fine sand, 0.1 to 0.05 mm. 



Silt, 0.05 to 0.005 mm 



Clay, 0.005 to mm 



Lyon, FippinandBuckman* give the average analysis of six fruit 

 soils, and it is here cited for comparison with the soil in question: 



Fine gravel 1.0 



Coarse sand 6.8 



Fine sand 42 . 



Silt 23.3 



Fine silt 7.3 



Clay 10.9 



From these analyses it will be seen that the soil under question 



is of a distinctly light nature, especially is the subsoil very sandy 



and therefore such a soil as we would expect to suffer a rapid loss 



of nitrates after a heavy rain, which has proven to be the case 



throughout. 



TREATMENT OF PLOTS. 



Plot 1. Sod. This plot has remained permanently in sod and 

 the grass is cut once during the summer and allowed to 

 remain where it falls. No fertilizer has been applied, and 

 no grass mulch is included in this experiment. 



Plot 4. Clean cultivation. This plot is plowed every spring and 

 cultivated every two weeks until September 1. No cover 

 crop is sown and no fertilizer applied. 



Plot 5. Cultivation and cover crop. This plot is plowed in the 

 spring and tilled every two weeks until July 10 when a 

 cover crop of crimson clover is sown, no fertilizer is applied. 



*Soils, 1915. 



