USE OF EXPLOSIVES AND THE BLOW-LAMP IN THE GARDEN. 1 1 



hard when dug up in the autumn. It would be interesting to know 

 whether this failure, which I understand was not uncommon last 

 season, was due to directly defective formation of ferment or to 

 want of a " hormone " secretion, if indeed these peculiar substances 

 exist in the vegetable world.* 



The failure of this variety is the more to be regretted in the light 

 of the differences between the crops of the other two varieties. 



Table I. shows a detailed plan of the trial patch with the numbers 

 of plants, weights, &c., and in Table 11. the results are given in per- 

 centage form. It will be seen that there is a certain variation in the 

 yields of individual rows, and this is particularly obvious in the rows 

 R and S ; here evidently the soil was more fertile, no doubt from having 

 been the site of a celery trench, nevertheless it was affected by the 

 explosive. The continued wet weather of the earlier part of the 

 year was followed by drought from about May lo. On August 3 it 

 was noted that the six rows of * Rehance ' (A, B, C, F, G, and H) on 

 the 2 oz. treated ground showed marked yellowing of the leaves, but 

 none of the other plants gave any sign of flagging. It might be 

 thought that the capillarity of the ground had been unduly upset, 

 and it is perhaps interesting to note that this patch was not tamped 

 with hme, which, however, was done on all the rest of the exploded 

 ground (ij, i, and J oz.). 



* Rehance ' responded better to the smaller charges of explosive, 

 viz. I oz. and J oz., both of which gave an increased yield of more 

 than 18 per cent., whilst 2 and ij oz. only gave about 8 per cent, and 

 4 per cent, respectively. It will also be seen that the average weight 

 of the larger tubers (excepting rows R and S) was rather greater on 

 the unexploded land. With regard to the figures relating to small 

 tubers, it should be pointed out that a considerable proportion of 

 the small sizes was due to secondary growth, though some was to be 

 ascribed to " original sin " of the plants ; it seemed hardly practicable 

 to separate these from one another. 



So far as the experiment goes, the more moderate charges are best 

 suited to this variety. 



With regard to * Crimson Beauty,' we see that the response to the 

 explosive is very well marked, and notwithstanding the fewness of 

 the rows the results acquire value through the yields being graduated 

 concordantly with the doses of explosive. Thus, omitting row Q, 

 which is in proximity to the aberrant rows R and S, we find that the 

 J oz. charges gave about 15 per cent, increase, the i oz. 43 per cent, 

 and the 2 oz. about 88 per cent. Row Q works out at 41 per cent., 



* " Hormones " (Starling and Bayliss) are substances which are secreted 

 in one part of the animal economy, and stimulate secretion of certain specifically- 

 affected but remote glands. In the botanical world there seems to be a tendency 

 to misuse this term, and even to make it include foreign substances ; for instance, 

 Russell ("Soil Conditions and Plant Growth," 1913) quotes that ammonia, 

 toluene, ether, and chloroform are highly effective hormones. It is very 

 regrettable that a new word in biology should be so soon divorced from its proper 

 meaning. 



