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MISCELLANEOUS COMMUNICATIONS AND NOTICES. 



V — L Experiments on Nitrate of Soda and Saltpetre. 

 By VV. Stratford Dugdale, M.P. 



Many communications having been forwarded to the Society on the 

 value of saltpetre and nitrate of soda as manures, perhaps the result of 

 an experiment I have made upon two fields of wheat, eight miles distant 

 from each other, may not be uninteresting. One field is of a light gra- 

 velly soil, which was manured with a coat of marl in the autumn before 

 the wheat was sown. 



The other field is of a stiff clayey soil, and was manured with lime in 

 the autumn. About the middle of last April I measured off three quar- 

 ters of an acre in the field of gravelly soil, and sowed one quarter with 

 saltpetre, one with nitrate of soda, and left the remaining quarter with 

 nothing but the marl. 



I also measured off four quarters of an acre in the clayey field, and 

 sowed one quarter with saltpetre, one with nitrate of soda, one with soot, 

 and left the remaining quarter with lime only. In both cases the quan- 

 tity of saltpetre and soda was as one hundred weight to the acre. In the 

 gravelly field the produce of the quarter of an acre with nitrate of soda 

 was, of — 



Wheat . » . 13 bushels 2 pecks, weighing 63^ lbs. per hush. 

 Straw ... 9 cwt. 72 lbs. 

 Chaff and waste . 2 qrs. 27 lbs. 



Saltpetre, 



Wheat . . . 10 bushels 2.1- pecks, weighing 6 lbs. per bush. 

 Straw ... 8 cwt. 56 lbs. 

 Chaff and waste • 3 qrs. 24 lbs. 



Marl only, 



Wheat . . , 10 bushels 2 pecks, weighing 64 lbs. per bush. 

 Straw ... 8 cwt. 54 lbs. 

 Chaff and waste . 1 cwt. 



In the clayey field : — The produce of half an acre, manured with— 





Bsli. 



pk. 



lbs. 



Nitrate of soda, Wheat , 



. 18 



1 



weighing 64 per bush. 



Do. with Saltpetre . . 



. 17 



2 



63 



Do. with Soot . . . 



. 17 





63§ 



Do. with Lime only . 



. 16 



0 



62| 



In this experiment my bailiff did not measure the quantities of straw 

 and waste. 



I also sowed seme soda and saltpetre, to the same amount per acre, 

 on some grass-land. 



I was not at home when the hay was cut ; but am informed that the 

 crop was greatly increased, particularly by the nitrate of soda. 



