of  the  Ashes  of  Plants. 
529 
The  examination  of  this  table  cannot  fail  to  convince  every 
reasonable  person  that  the  flax-plant,  considered  in  relation  to 
mineral  matters  only , is  not  necessarily  an  exhausting  crop ; on 
the  contrary,  that  with  the  use  of  a proper  system  in  the  employ- 
ment of  the  seed  and  the  steeping  of  the  straw,  it  is  one  of  the 
crops  which  least  exhausts  the  mineral  contents  of  the  soil ; for  it 
may  be  confidently  asked,  what  vegetable  produce  sent  to  market 
is  there  that  from  an  acre  of  land  carries  with  it  so  little  as  1 lb. 
of  phosphoric  acid  and  two-tenths  of  alb.  of  potash?  Whilst, 
however,  it  is  confidently  asserted  that  flax-culture  is  not,  when 
properly  managed,  half  so  minerally  exhausting  as  that  of  any 
other  crop,  we  must  be  held  excused  for  not  expressing  any 
opinion  as  to  whether,  in  a general  sense,  flax  is  or  is  not  exhaust- 
ing ; and  the  more  so  that  at  present  no  certain  knowledge  exists  of 
the  cause,  or  modus  operandi  of  the  cause,  producing  the  results 
to  which,  in  agricultural  language,  this  title  has  been  given. 
Potatoes. 
During  the  ravages  of  disease  to  which  this  crop  has  been 
exposed,  it  has  seemed  almost  useless  to  expend  upon  its  ash 
analysis  any  great  amount  of  labour,  inasmuch  as  the  results 
couid  never  be  said  with  safety  to  apply  to  the  normal  or  healthy 
condition  of  the  plant. 
Not  wishing,  however,  entirely  to  leave  out  the  mineral  history 
of  a crop  which,  under  other  circumstances,  would  have  demanded 
a large  share  of  attention,  we  have  made  the  following  analyses. 
For  the  specimens  we  are  indebted  to  Mr.  W.  Eggar,  of  Anstey, 
near  Alton ; they  were  common  round  white  potatoes,  grown  on  a 
gravelly  soil 
Specimen  1. — Collected  August  21st,  18-19,  the  plants  being  in  bloom  and 
the  berries  fully  formed.  Three  plants  were  dried  lor  analysis. 
Specimen  2. — Collected  August  2Dth,  immediately  after  the  bloom  had 
dropped,  from  the  same  row  as  the  previous  specimen. 
Specimen  3. — Tubers  of  the  foregoing,  collected  in  October,  when  the 
potatoes  were  fully  matured,  and  the  haulms  had  dried  off. 
Per  centage  of  Water  and  Ash  in  Potatoes  : — 
1 
W ater. 
Ash. 
Ash  calculated  on 
dry  substance. 
Tubers. 
Haulm. 
Tubers. 
Haulm. 
Tubers. 
Haulm. 
No.  1.  The  Bloom  . 
80-72 
88-40 
•66 
1-59 
3-45 
13-75 
No.  2.  After  the  fall  of) 
the  Bloom  . . ] 
7S-34 
85-16 
•60 
2-25 
2-76 
15-00 
No.  3.  The  Tuhers  being) 
matured  . . J 
72-94 
• • 
•71 
• • 
2-98 
• • 
