EFFECT OF BORAX ON GROWTH AND YIELD OF CROPS, 3 
harmful results. The plantings in these experiments were made late 
in the summer, and the crops did not mature. 
A general survey of the injury to the 1919 potato crop in Maine by 
borax in fertilizers is given by Morse (9), together with a report on pot 
experiments with borax fertilizer on potatoes, beans, oats, wheat, and 
buckwheat. Fertilizers applied to soil in pots so as to add 17.6 
pounds of anhydrous borax per acre produced severe leaf injury 
when the fertilizer was mixed in the upper 6 inches of the pot or when 
placed in the 3 inches of soil below the seed piece. The larger appli- 
cation of borax caused greater root injury and more stunting of the 
lants, but less tip and marginal injury to the leaves. An application 
ie means of the drill of fertilizer containing anhydrous borax equiv- 
alent to 4.4 pounds per acre caused severe injury to beans, while the 
same fertilizers sown broadcast in quantity equivalent to 8.8 pounds 
of borax per acre caused no apparent injury to oats, wheat, and 
buckwheat. 
The work of Neller and Morse (10) is also very conclusive in showing 
that borax is extremely poisonous to plants. A number of pot experi- 
ments are reported which were conducted under the joint auspices of 
eight different institutions, namely, the experiment stations of the 
States of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode 
Island, Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey. The work was 
pamned in order to determine whether injury previously observed 
oth in the field and in the greenhouse was due alone to the borax 
present in the fertilizer applied and to determine the maximum 
quantity per acre that can be safely applied to land on which impor- 
tant food crops are to be grown. Potatoes, corn, and beans were 
gown, and borax was applied with fertilizers in quantities varying 
rom 1 to 20 pounds per acre. While these experiments were made in 
pots and a direct comparison with field conditions can not be made, 
the results obtained are very valuable and show conclusively that 
very small quantities of borax can be injurious to plant life. Corn and 
beans proved to be more susceptible than potatoes to the injurious 
effects of borax. Three pounds of borax per acre was the largest 
quantity that could be applied in drills with safety to beans; the 
limit for corn was under 5 pounds and for: potatoes slightly above 5 
pounds per acre. Mixing the fertilizer with the soil decreased the 
injury and slightly raised the quantity of borax that could be applied 
per acre with safety. These results were obtained with a typical 
greenhouse potting soil which had a water-holding capacity of 37.5 
per cent and was kept at an bp water content of 19.2 per cent. 
ubsequent experiments with beans showed that greater injury 
occurred where the soil moisture was kept at 15.2 per cent than where 
it was kept at 30.4 per cent. 
The damage to crops in North Carolina, principally cotton, tobacco, 
corn, and peaches, by borax in fertilizers, observed in 1919, is given 
in a report by Plummer and Wolf (11) in which they also include the 
results of their experimental work. Their experiments, using pots 
containing a sandy soil to which 5 pounds of borax per acre were 
2, ae showed considerable injury to corn, and when 10 pounds 
ot borax were applied the plants were entirely lacking in green color 
and soon died. Cotton did not grow where 5 pounds per acre were 
used. In clay soil both cotton and corn showed marked injury when 
the quantity of borax exceeded 7 pounds per acre, although in sandy 
