480 



JOUKNAL OF THE EOYAL HOK riCULTLlRAL SOCTE'rV 



is to cause a marked decrease in their numbers, quite apart from any 

 poisonous action. The labour and cost involved are exceedingly small 

 ■ — a bag of sawdust at Is., allowing 6<i. for carriage, and Is. worth of 

 phenyl at 3s. 6d. the gallon will be sufficient for a fairly large garden. 



C. H. H, 



Smut, Stinking-, Prevention of. By F. Ditzell and E. G. Down- 

 ing {Agr. Gaz. N.S.W. vol. xxii. pt. 4, pp. 341-357). — Compara- 

 tive experiments on the relative values of different preventives of bunt 

 showed that copper sulphate solution, with or without the addition 

 of salt, fergusine and Bordeaux paste were equally efficient as 

 destroyers of bunt, but that fergusine is the only agent which does not 

 impair the germination of the wheat. Formalin is very uncertain in 

 its action. Scalescide and lysol are practically useless. — S. E. W. 



Smut, Treatment for. By G. L. Sutton {Agr. Gaz. N.S.W. vol. 

 xxh. pt. 3, pp. 189-195; 3 figs.). — Soak the seed in a 2 per cent, 

 solution of copper sulphate for five minutes, drain, then dip the wet 

 seed in lime-water for three minutes. Dry before planting. — S. E. W. 



Soil, Manurial requirements of. By F. Ledien {Gartenflora, 

 vol. Ix. pt. 2, pp. 25, 26, and pt. 5, pp. 94-106).— The amount of 

 nitrogen in the soil is increased by the agency of azotobacteria ; their 

 activity is increased by the presence of phosphates and lime. By 

 digging in fallen leaves, the nitrogen in the soil is further increased. 

 The action of the Leguminosae o:i the soil is well known. 



Orchards require the following^ treatment annually : for 120 square 

 yards 6 lb. basic slag, 20 lb. kainit, 30 lb. chalk well mixed in the 

 soil. In April 3 lb. superphosphate, 3 lb. sulphate of potash, and 6 lb. 

 nitrate of soda divided into two doses, or 5 lb. sulphate of ammonia inj 

 one dose. Humus is provided by using stable manure. In the culti- 

 vation of vegetables, farmyard manure is the main fertilizer; it should; 

 be supplemented by 8 lb. sulphate of potash, 8 lb. of superphosphate, 

 and 16 lb. nitrate of soda to. each 120 square yards. The latter isi 

 given as a top dressing or better as a three per cent, solution in fourj^ 

 separate doses. — S. E. W. 



Soy-Bean, History and Varieties of. By 0. V. Piper and 



W. J. Morse {U.S A. Dep. Agr., Bur. PI. hid., Bull. 197, Dec. 1910; 

 plates). — The soy-bean appears to have been first made known to 

 Europeans by Kaempfer, who discovered it in Japan about 1690. 

 Linnaeus first described it in a work on the flora of Ceylon, and later 

 formally named it Dolichos Soya, and gave its habitat as India. What 

 this Indian or Geylon plant of his may have been is not now clear, as 

 his description does not fit any of the varieties at present found in those 

 countries. Other early botanists describe species which are now 

 difficult to identify. Under existing botanical rules the present culti-l 

 vated plant is known as Glycine hispida, and its nearest relative as 

 Glycine Soya, though on the whole it seems probable that there is but 



