64 THE CULTIVATION OF THE 



It is recommended in using kainit on grain crops to sow 

 the autumn before, and incorporate it with lime in some 

 cases, to eheck too free chlorine evolvement, which might 

 injure the grain-plant. No such care, I believe, need be 

 taken in applying it to fruit trees. I believe I have 

 previously stated that I am not much in favor of fertiliz- 

 ing young trees on good soil until after they have borne 

 the first crop, which should be the third or fourth 

 season, unless I see a special necessity, and in applying 

 potash fertilizers, especially in their crude state, don't 

 apply them in contact with the young trees or they will 

 seriously injure, if not kill them. 



Potash is known to the chemist as Potassium Oxide, 

 and this is its valuable fertilizing ingredient. It must be 

 soluble in water as plant-food and we get it as sulphate 

 and muriate for agricultural purposes. We have spoken 

 of the sulphate in kainit. The sulphate-salt is expen- 

 sive and we use, generally, when we want a potash 

 fertilizer, the muriate known to the chemist as Potassium 

 Chloride. The muriate of Potash is valuable to the peach 

 not only for its potash, but for the chlorine ; and, as I 

 said before, this chlorine is useful in the leaf in the pro- 

 cess of changing starch to sugar, which process is said 

 to go on at night, and Dr. Goessmann says the muriate 

 has the faculty beyond the sulphate of liquefying the 

 starch in the cells and setting it in motion, thus pro- 

 moting healthy nutrition. Be this as it may, it gives 



