191 1.] Summary of Agricultural Experiments. 



599 



samples of milk from individual Shorthorn cows and four from Guern- 

 sey cows taken at the Liverpool Show were examined. Differences 

 in the milks were obvious, e.g., the globules in one sample being 

 much more uniform in size than in another. From the results 

 which have been obtained at present, however, it is seen to be impos- 

 sible to classify the different breeds in relation to their globules, for 

 there is as much variation in the individual milks of the same breed 

 as there is in the different breeds. With many more figures it may 

 be possible to classify the milks from different breeds of English cattle, 

 but it is obvious that they cannot be divided into "large," "medium," 

 and "small" globuled milks, as has been done by D'Hont in the case 

 of the milks obtained from some few English and foreign breeds. 



A description is given of an apparatus which has been constructed 

 for measuring accurately the churnability of cream, another for churn- 

 ing a number of creams at once at a fixed temperature, for the purpose 

 of ascertaining the best temperature for churning creams from different 

 breeds, and also a new form of tube for accurately sampling milk. 



Weeds, and Insect and Fungus Pests. 



Destruction of Wild Radish by titrate of Lime (Mitt, der Deut. 

 Landw. Gesell., August igth, 1911)- — A note appears in this publica- 

 tion on the eradication of wild radish by nitrate of lime, by Herr 

 Ritter, of Damerow, near Rostock. The application of 30 to 35 lb. 

 of nitrate of lime per acre was at first recommended as it was feared 

 that larger quantities would harm the growing corn crop. Herr Ritter 

 now suggests that 50 lb. of nitrate of lime per acre must be applied to 

 obtain satisfactory results, this amount not causing any material 

 damage to the cereals. The treatment is naturally beneficial when 

 the soil is in need of nitrogenous manuring. Herr Ritter contradicts 

 the statement that the nitrate of lime must be applied when the plants 

 are wet with dew or rain, application of the material during dry, 

 windy weather having given excellent results. Charlock seems to be 

 more resistant to the treatment than wild radish. 



Germination Experiments with Weed Seeds (Jahresbericht der 

 Vereinigung fur angewandte Botanik, 19 10). — The following summary 

 of experiments carried out at the Danish Seed Control Station at Copen- 

 hagen from 1896 to 1909 is taken from a paper read by Professor K. 

 Dorph-Petersen, Director of the Station, at the Second International 

 Seed Testing Congress at Miinster and Wageningen in 1910. 



Seeds of certain weeds were found to be capable of lying dormant 

 in the soil for a long period before germinating. In the case of such 

 well-known weeds as Thlaspi arvense, Sinapis arvensis, Geranium 

 molle, and Malva vulgaris, six to twelve years often elapsed between 

 planting and germination. The time that the seeds are kept before 

 planting would seem to have some effect on the rapidity of germination. 



The degree of ripeness of the seeds affected germination. Unripe 

 seeds often germinated more quickly than ripe seeds, although both 

 were obtained from the same plant. In general, however, the ripe 

 seeds had a much higher germinating capacity, and retained their 

 germinating capacity longer than the seeds which were less ripe. 



A trial was commenced in 1899 to ascertain the length of time 

 during which seeds of Plantago lanceolata and Sinapis arvensis will 



