5o8 Schemes for Agricultural Experiments. 



of fertilisers, prevented easy comparison of the action of definite 

 quantities of manurial elements on different crops, in different 

 districts, and on different geological formations. The difficulty 

 of making such a comparison may possibly, however, not be so 

 great as it seems, and the Board are at present co-operating 

 with the Agricultural Education Association in summarising 

 and collating the results obtained during the past twelve years 

 with a view to their being made more convenient for reference. 



This association, a voluntary body, which was founded in 

 1894, an d has as its object the development of agricultural 

 education by mutual assistance and advice amongst its members, 

 originally consisted of representatives of the agricultural depart- 

 ments in those English and Welsh colleges where such de- 

 partments had been organised. During the last few years the 

 scope of the association has been considerably enlarged, and it 

 now embraces members of any organisations or institutions 

 connected with agricultural education and research who them- 

 selves are, or have been, engaged in teaching or research. 



The association has now submitted schemes for joint experi- 

 ments for general adoption by its members, as well as by others 

 who may be disposed to co-operate in the work. Most of these 

 schemes are of so simple a character, and so direct and practical 

 in their objects, as to be capable of general adoption by farmers. 

 Every farmer should be more or less of an experimenter, and 

 the advantage of his testing the manurial requirements of his 

 own fields, on the lines of the association's schemes, is that he 

 has thereby the opportunity of comparing his results with those 

 obtained in other parts of the country. If he places himself in 

 communication with the collegiate centre that serves his district 

 he will, doubtless, have the opportunity of availing himself of the 

 services of the staff, and such a course would carry with it the 

 additional advantage of securing the inclusion of the results 

 obtained on his farm with those obtained in the same and other 

 districts. 



In encouraging the Agricultural Education Association to 

 formulate schemes for joint action, the Board were far from 

 desiring to do anything that would in any way interfere with 

 individual initiative. The field for original experiment and 

 research is still as open as ever for workers whose time and 



