84 
Experiments upon Swedes. 
fore merely pushes on the young plant, and is no longer avail- 
able when the roots begin to swell. The fact is, no soluble 
phosphate — i. e. bi-phosphate — of lime, as such, can enter into 
the delicate structure of tlie root-fibres ; it must first become 
insoluble before it can benefit the young turnip-plant, and this 
it docs readily when it is washed by a shower of rain into the 
soil, or applied at once in a state of solution with the liquid- 
manure drill. At any rate we have here presented to us an 
instance in which a superphosphate containing no nitrogen, and, 
practically speaking, no insoluble phosphates, produced an 
increase of 6 tons of cleaned swedes, tojiped and tailed, or almost 
as large an increase as any of the fertilizers tried in these expe- 
riments. 
Plot 18. Manured with 3 cwts. of Dissolved Bone-ash and 1 cwt. of 
Sidphate of Ammonia. 
tons. cwts. qrs. lbs. 
Produce 20 6 3 24 
Increase 5 12 2 20 
In this experiment the addition of sulphate of ammonia to 
dissolved bone-ash appears to have done no good whatever. I 
do not think, however, that the small difference in weig ht 
between Plots 17 and 18 warrants the conclusion that its influ- 
ence was prejudicial. 
Plot 19. Manured icith 3 cwts. of Sulphate of Potash. 
tons. cwts. qrs. lbs. 
Produce 17 0 2 4 
Increase 2 C 1 0 
The sulphate of potash used in this experiment was a good 
commercial sulphate. It produced about the same increase as 
2 cwts. of sulphate of ammonia ; and, in comparison to the effect 
which phosphatic manures produced, must be considered as a 
manuring constituent which did not seem to be required on the 
soils on which the experiments were tried. 
Plot 20. Manured with 3 cwts. of Dissolved Bone-ash and 1 cwt. of 
Nitrate of Soda. 
tons. cwts. qrs. lbs. 
Produce 21 0 2 4 
Increase 6 6 0 1 
In comparison with the produce from No. 17, we have here in 
round numbers 14 cwts. more roots. This larger increase 
falls quite within the limits of variation which we must natu- 
rally expect in two different parts of the same field. It cannot 
be, therefore, regarded as a proof that nitrate of soda increased 
the efficacy of the dissolved bone-ash. 
Rejecting some anomalous results, as those obtained from 
