82 BOTANICAL GAZETTE _ [FEBRUARY 
supplemented with ammonium chlorid. In each series wheat, barley, 
beans, peas, and clover were grown. The third series having the 
ammonium chlorid failed to make satisfactory growth, but the other 
two yielded data of interest. 
The application of the mineral fertilizer to soil in which wheat 
was grown diminished the amount of water required for the produc- 
tion of a unit of dry matter, and the mineral plus ammoniacal fertilizer 
diminished the amount still farther. The same relations held in the 
case of peas and clover. On the contrary, the amount of water trans- 
pired per unit of dry matter in beans was somewhat increased where 
the mineral fertilizer was present, and the same was true to a rather 
small extent in the case of barley, but only when the mineral fertilizer 
plus ammonium chlorid was present. 
The experiments of SacHs (12), which have become classical, 
consisted in adding pure chemicals to sand, earth, or solution in whic 
a plant was growing, and carefully observing the effect on the trans- 
piration for a few days. In some experiments the supply of water 
in the soil was replenished after a few days, in others it was not. It 
was observed that the addition of KNO,, (NH,),SO,, or gypsum to 
the soil decreased the amount of transpiration compared with that 
of a similar plant in control soil. Similarly, the addition of NaCl 
or (NH,),SO, to distilled water decreased transpiration. A small 
amount of HNO, added to distilled water caused a great increase 
in transpiration, but a small amount of KOH caused retardation. 
The investigations of BURGERSTEIN (1) confirmed the statements 
of Sacus and others in finding that acids accelerate transpiration 
aad alkalies retard it. Solutions of calcium nitrate, potassium 
nitrate, potassium phosphate, potassium carbonate, ammonium 
nitrate, ammonium sulfate, magnesium sulfate, and sodium chlorid 
were tried, and all found to increase transpiration up to 4 certain 
point. 
The observations of MArRCKER (10) upon the effects of potash 
fertilizers showed that the application of substances like kainit and 
carnallit has an effect upon the water requirement of white mustard. 
In his experiments the plants were grown in an artificial soil in large 
zinc pots. The soil, which consisted of sand containing 2.5 P& 
cent. of peat, received the raw potash salts at the rate of 1000 and 
