1910] REED—TRANSPIRATION AND GROWTH OF WHEAT 83 
2000"* per hectare. In one set of experiments the soil received 60 
per cent. of its capacity, and in another set 27 per cent. The effect 
of these treatments was found to be as follows: 
Relative way 3 
Soil containing 60 per cent. of its |2™M0Unts of water] <5 a -,. |amounts of water 
f . . oil containing 27 per cent. of its . i 
water capacity. Treatment po beaiemnt gs water capacity. Treatment main ed 
of dry weight of dry weight 
7. 
No pes Pcie os ek ces 100.0 No potash salts. 00.25. <5 100.0 
aaa kainit per hectare... 90.5 roookg kainit per hectare... ro eS 8 
oot kainit per hectare... 88.4 2o0ookg carnallit per hectare. 68.9 
2000%8 carnallit per hectare. QI.9 
The economizing influence of the potash salts naturally showed 
itself more strongly upon the soil which contained the smaller pro- 
portion of water. 
The pots in MAERCKER’S experiments were not sealed to prevent 
loss of water from the surface of the soil; his figures therefore repre- 
sent the total amount of water evaporated from the soil directly and 
through the activity of the plants, but they show very distinctly a 
tendency toward economy in water absorption where the potassium 
salts were applied. 
HARTWELL, WHEELER, and PeMBER (5) have also reported that 
the application of potassium chlorid to wheat seedlings in soil causes 
an increase in green weight relatively larger than the increase 
in transpiration. In nutrient solutions it was found that sodium 
usually had a similar effect in retarding transpiration in comparison 
with growth. 
GARDNER (3) has reported results which also show that the 
general effects of fertilizers applied to soils in pots was to increase 
in various ratios the amount of green weight in proportion to the 
Water transpired. 
SORAUER (15) and Harter (4) have reported the results of 
©xperiments in which a large amount of soluble salt was added to 
soil or solution and the effect upon transpiration noted. The large 
‘mounts of salts which they employed produced halophytic conditions 
with Corresponding changes in the anatomy of the plants, therefore 
their results will not be compared with those which follow in this 
Paper, because in them the amounts of salt added were not sufficient 
'o alter materially the concentration of the soil solution. 
