4 UNIV. OF N. H. AGR. EXPERIMENT STATION [lUlllclin 23<S 



FLOOD LANDS HELPED BY TESTS 



I'ollowiiifj;- the flood oi November, I'J'd;. Ford S. Prince obtained soil 

 sani])les from the Connecticut River Valley, where fields were covered to a 

 depth of ^4 to 20 inches with a dei)osit of silt. A series of tests 

 made with the newly deposited soils in comparison, with the old in the 

 university greenhouses during the winter showed that while organic matter 

 and available nitrogen were too low for maximum yields in the soils, the 

 lack of available potash and phosphorus was the limiting factor. These 

 preliminary tests were helpful in making definite crop plans for the follow- 

 ing season. The plots which were manured at the rate of 20 tons to the 

 acre, and the plots given 800 pounds of an 0-12-6 fertilizer produced good 



Silt deposits like this, 24 inches deep, as a result of the flood in the Connecticut 

 Valley caused a special soil problem during the year 



crops of alfalfa, swe^t clover and timothy. The plants grown on the plot 

 treated with 200 pounds of nitrate of soda did |)Oorly. 



The new soils were found to be sufficiently sv/eet to grow alfalfa and 

 other legumes without liming. Tests made of the hydrogen ion concentra- 

 tion by T. G. Phillips showed that the PH of the new soils varied from 

 fi.8 to 8.32. The PH of the soils in the state varies, as a rule, between 

 5.0 and 6.0. (State Fund.) 



SOIL FERTILITY STUDIES 



The problem of soil fertility is of basic importance in the agriculture of 

 the state, and in 1925 the Experiment Station started a series of studies on 

 carefully selected sites in different sections of New Hampshire. Five of 

 these series are now being conducted, the fifth having been started during 

 the past year. The investigations, which are being supervised by Ford S. 

 Prince and Thomas G. Phillips, include experiments with both grass and 

 legumes on the Whenal Farm in Greenland, and one wdth dairy farm rota- 

 tions on the Carter Farm at Boscawen. All three of these deal with 



