No. 4.] MARKET GARDENING. 133 



were usually secured with the slaked lime than with ground 

 limestone. If you can apply the ground limestone long 

 enough before the alfalfa is sown it will answer the purpose, 

 but when one must seed early in the spring or early in Au- 

 gust, on very acid soil, and must lime immediately before 

 seeding, either the air-slaked or water-slaked lime will be 

 ])referable. The same is true of the hairy vetch, which is 

 equally as much in need of lime as alfalfa. For a light, 

 sandy or gravelly soil, from l/o to 2 or even 3 tons of ground 

 limestone per acre should be used. For the heavier soils one 

 may apply 3 or 4 tons of ground limestone. Not more than 

 half a ton to a ton of slaked lime should be used on any of 

 the light soils, whereas on the heavy silt and clay soils, and 

 on those rich in acid vegetable matter (which is immediately 

 removable by ammonia water), one may use from IY2 to as 

 high as 2l/> or even 3 tons with great benefit. The amount, 

 of course, depends upon the kind of a crop to be grown. 



QuESTiox. Will the air-slaked be as good as the water- 

 slaked ? 



Dr. Wheeler. It is better and safer to use where there is 

 any danger of immediate injury to a crop. One should re- 

 member that slaked lime consists of a mixture of water-slaked 

 lime and carbonate of lime, hence it stands between ground 

 limestone and marl on the one hand and water-slaked lime on 

 the other. The longer it has been exposed to the air the more 

 carbonate there is in it, and the safer it is to use on light, 

 sandy soil. 



Mr. Russell. Mr. Howard of West Newton is here, a 

 member of the Board. Can we hear from Mr. Howard ? 



Mr. H. M. HowAiji). ]Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen. I 

 was very much pleased with the address we have heard this 

 morning. The work along this line of variety tests and strain 

 tests I think is something we are all experimenting on on our 

 farms right along. I find that celery from some pieces of 

 land will stand up in storage for three and five weeks longer 

 than that from other pieces, and that must be due to some 

 extent to the manure. There must be something in the 

 make-up of that celery that makes it stand up. When the 

 very same seed is used on the whole farm, one section will 



