44 MASSACHUSETTS HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 



upon a knowledge of the different kinds of peat materials and the 

 factors in the field which conditioned their accumulation and 

 character; hence their technical use should be treated as a rather 

 highly specialized form of business, if the best financial results 

 are to be obtained. 



Considerable attention has been drawn of late to statements 

 that an important and valuable effect of peat is in its value as a 

 plant food, — i. e., in the presence of certain "accessory" organic 

 food substances derived from bacterized peat material; very small 

 amounts of it are thought to be sufficient to satisfy the needs of 

 growing plants. This subject has been under investigation in 

 Germany and in England. The action of these compounds, as yet 

 undetermined chemically, is reported to have been variable. This 

 no doubt may be due to the difference in character and in the 

 conditions of the peat materials used in relation to the efficiesncy 

 and the duration of action of beneficial micro-organisms. To 

 bacteriologists the action of bacteria and fungi in converting 

 certain organic and inorganic substances into a soluble form and to 

 bind free atmospheric nitrogen is not a new problem. It is rather 

 in the technical handicap of using peat materials as carriers which 

 are free from objectionable qualities and in the development of 

 satisfactory methods to maintain an active state of condition in 

 the organisms yielding the requisite products. 



If Massachusetts continues to forge to the front as she has done 

 in her cranberry industry it will be through a recognition of the 

 differences existing in field conditions of peat lands and in peat 

 materials affected by them. This work may take much effort, 

 but it can be accomplished through the state agencies now at work. 



Conclusion. 



The reconnaisance work on Massachusetts peat lands leads to 

 the following general conclusions: 



1. The inequality in the character of peat lands encountered 

 and in the strata of their materials may render a more detailed 

 study one of considerable advantage in their agricultural or in- 

 dustrial utilization and requirements. 



