SOIL INOCULATION ! HOW DONE 



149 



obtained and enough water used to make a muddy solu- 

 tion and in this the seed is soaked, after which it is dried 

 and sown. 



The "pure culture" idea. This idea is not so recent, 

 as you may have been led to believe from the foolish and 

 erroneous advertisement that has been given "pure cul- 

 ture" inoculation. Several years ago two German scien- 

 tists worked out this idea, and prepared pure cultures of 

 the several bacteria suited to the important legumes. 

 These cultures were called nitragin and soon gained con- 

 siderable commercial atten- 

 tion, even finding their way 

 across the waters to us on 

 this side. But these cultures 

 failed, when asked to work 

 outside of European lands. 

 Soon after the advent of ni- 

 tragin, Moore brought out 

 his so-called discovery and 

 invention. It was hailed by 

 magazines and many agri- 

 cultural papers as a panacea 

 for all the ills of the soil. 

 While often successful, this 



method is still in the experimental stage. It promises 

 much, however. 



Following is the Moore plan of such cultures for com- 

 mercial use : bacteria were grown on nitrogen-free me- 

 dia ; they got no nitrogen, and hence were starved, the 

 idea being that when grown later in their natural habitat, 

 their nitrogen appetite would be quickened. The next 

 step was to lay these away in cotton and dry them, that 

 journeys to distant points might the more easily be made. 

 But the plan was not satisfactory despite all that has been 



GROWING BACTERIA IN THE 

 LABORATORY 



