191 2.] Summary of Agricultural Experiments. 943 



The rainfall during the twelve months from September, 1909, to 

 August, 1910, amounted to 22^ inches. The trial started in the autumn 

 of 1909, when a plot of rye stubble was left untouched for comparison 

 with other plots which were disc-cultivated and ploughed in autumn, 

 and cultivated and harrowed in the following spring. The amount 

 of water in the soil of the two plots was determined at intervals, 

 and was considerably greater in the case of the cultivated 

 land. On May 6th, about the time when tobacco was planted, the 

 cultivated soil contained 15 per cent, of water at a depth of 24 in., 

 and 14 per cent, at 39 in., w T hile the uncultivated soil contained 10 per 

 cent, and 7 per cent, respectively. On June 28th, after the tobacco 

 had been using the soil moisture for six weeks, the content of water 

 was 13 per cent, at 24 in., and 12 per cent, at 39 in., but in the un- 

 cultivated soil it was only 5 per cent, at 24 in., and 4 per cent, at 39 in. 



Trials with the Campbell soil-packer were carried out in 1910, after 

 the usual thorough ploughing and cultivation of the "dry-farming" 

 system, with uniformly favourable results on cereals, potatoes, and 

 forage crops. 



Field Crops. 



The Growth of Sugar Beet (Somerset C.C., Report of Agric. Instr. 

 Com. for the period ending March 31st, 19 ii). — Sugar beet was sown 

 at six centres in Somerset in 19 10 alongside mangolds, the two 

 crops receiving exactly the same treatment except that the beet was 

 left closer in the drills. The average weight of beet was 16 tons 

 per acre, as compared with 40 tons of mangolds per acre. The com- 

 position of the sugar beet at the different centres is given, and the 

 conclusion is drawn that heavy manurial dressings tend to depress 

 the percentage of sugar in the beet. The average amount of sugar 

 in the roots was 16 per cent, 



Effect of Soil and Climatic Conditions on the Composition of Wheat 

 (Univ. of California, Agric. Expt. Sta., Bull. 216). — The writers of 

 this Bulletin point out that there is a wide difference of opinion as to 

 the factors which influence the composition of wheat. Generally speak- 

 ing, variety, climate, and soil are regarded as the most important, 

 though different investigators place different values on each. The 

 experiments of which an account is given in this Bulletin were designed 

 to throw light on the question. 



In a series of preliminary trials the following conclusions were 

 arrived at : — 



1. Wheats of the same variety when grown in the same locality 

 and under the same conditions vary but little in composition, even 

 though the seed differs widely in physical and chemical characteristics. 



2. Wheat of the same variety and absolutely uniform in other 

 respects, if sown in different localities with different climatic conditions 

 yields crops of widely different appearance and chemical composition. 



3. Soil and seed [this apparently does not refer to variety but to 

 general character] appear to play a very small part in influencing the 

 composition of wheat. 



These all suggest that climate is the principal factor affecting the 

 nitrogen content of wheat. 



In order to test further the effect of soil on the nitrogen content 



