8 



In 1899 our first dressing of nitrate went on at the begin- 

 ning of January, and the last at the beginning of April. The 

 actual dates of nitrate sowing in each of the last four years 

 are shown in the following table : 



1896. 1897. 1898. 1899. 



Date of first nitrate dressing 



(BtoF) Feb. 12 ... Feb. 22 ... Jan. 20 ... Jan. 4 



Date of second nitrate dressing 



(C to F) Mar. 20 ... Mar. 20 ... Feb. 25 ... Feb. I 



Date of third nitrate dressing 



(D to F) Apl. 14 ... Apl. 12 ... Mar. 29 ... Mar. I 



Date of fourth nitrate dressing 



(EandF) May 13 ... May I ... Apl. 22 \ 



Date of fifth nitrate dressing [ Apl. I 



(F) June 23 ... May 25 ... May n j 



The year 1899 has been a year of extraordinary natural 

 productivity. 



To illustrate this, it may be recalled that our A plot has 

 received no nitrogenous manure of any kind since 1895, when 

 it received an ordinary dressing of dung. Ever since, it has 

 received every year either superphosphate or basic slag, with 

 a dose of potash salts, but no nitrate or other nitrogenous 

 manure. In 1897 an d J 898 this plot only produced 7^ and 

 8 cwt. of hops per acre, while our best nitrated plot produced 

 in the same two years 13 \ and 155 cwt. per acre, there being, 

 therefore, a difference of 6 cwt. and 7 cwt. per acre due to 

 the use of nitrate in addition to the phosphates and potash. 

 In 1899, however, this plot A, which might have been 

 supposed to be, from a hop-growing point of view, in a state 

 of nitrogen starvation, actually produced over a ton of hops 

 per acre though, as we shall see hereafter, of but poor 

 quality. Now, a ton of hops per acre certainly cannot be 

 grown without a very good supply of nitrogen from some- 

 where, and, as no nitrogen had been added to the soil since 

 1895, the natural capital of organic nitrogen in the soil and 



