272 



UOW OROPo FEED. 



of ashes of clover, and bicarbonate of potas^i, h orJertTiat 

 the phmts growing in it miglit have an abundant supply 

 of all the ash-ingredients they needeil. Finally^ the soil 

 of pot D received the same mineral matters as pot C, and, 

 in addition, a small quantity (1.4 gram) of nitrate of pot- 

 ash. The seeds were sown on the 5th of July, and on the 

 30th of September, the plants had the relative size and 

 appearance seen in the figure, whei"e they are represented 

 in one-eiglith of the natural dimensions. 



For the sake of comparison, the size of one of the 

 largest leaves of the same kind of Sunflower that grew 

 in the garden is represented at D, in one-eighth of its 

 natural dimensions. 



Nothing can be more striking than the influence of the 

 nitrate on the growth of this plant, as exhibited in this 

 experiment. The plants A and C are mere dwarfs, al- 

 thougli both carry small and imperfectly developed flow- 

 ers. The plant D, on the contrary, is scarcely smaller 

 than the same kind of plant growing under the best con- 

 ditions of garden culture. Here follows a Table of the 

 results obtained by the examination of the plants. 



C— aslius, phosphate of lime, and hi-' 

 carbonate of potash, added to thej 



D — ashes, phosphate of lime, and ni-' 



irate of potash, added to tlio soil..| 198.3 



3.42 I 0.15G ' 0.0027 



21.111 I 182.00 I 8.444 I 0.1666 



We gather from the above data : 



1. That without some compound of nitrogen in the soil 

 vegetation cannot attain any considerable development, 

 notwithstanding all requisite ash-ingredients are present 



