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Agricultural Education Exhibition. 
The complexity of the details in these exhibits showed the 
amount of research work necessary to properly elucidate them. 
In a set of four large pots containing soil, poor in lime, to 
which magnesium oxide had been added in varying proportions, 
wheat plants were growing. An examination of plants growing 
in the natural soil showed a longer straw than those in soil 
to which magnesium had been added, and the grain from 
similar plants grown the previous year, is of a decidedly starchy 
character. It was remarkable to trace how the influence of 
small additions of magnesium oxide completely altered the 
character of the plant, as well as the type of grain. The straw 
became shorter, but stouter, with each addition, while the flag 
became darker in colour, showing greater carbon assimilation. 
The grain altered from the white starchy variety so often seen 
on our markets, to a very much harder and more glutinous 
type ; but the development of an immense amount of fibrous 
root, which increased up to a point with the amount of magnesia 
added, was one of the most interesting and instructive things 
in the exhibition. 
The section dealing with the soil investigations was one that 
appealed to the practical man strongly. It was desired to show 
how necessary good cultivations were for the maintenance of a 
proper degree of water saturation during dry weather. Speci- 
men soil particles were shown, obtained from a sandy loam in 
one case and a piece of Oxford clay in the other, together with 
tubes of soil, standing in water, illustrating their respective 
powers to lift water from the subsoil. These, together with 
diagrams and Mr. Freear’s explanation, were the means, we 
feel sure, of helping many to grasp the reasons governing a 
“ good tilth.” Also to show those who depend on an extra 
hundredweight of artificial manure to do the work of men and 
implements, how fallacious and disappointing must be the 
results. 
The dodder exhibit sent by the Botanical department was 
essentially practical and instructive. There is a common idea 
that the dodder plant will only grow on the clovers, but here 
was shown the European dodder growing on seedling red clover, 
and Chilian dodder growing on white clover. Lucerne rye-grass, 
and kohl rabi. Specimens of dodder seed obtained from 
European and Chilian clover were shown, and it was easy to 
see from the size of the Chilian seed how exceedingly difficult 
it is to clean clover seed contaminated with this weed. 
Another interesting exhibit sent by this department of the 
Society, was a large diagram illustrating “ The life of farm 
seeds.” Collections of weed seeds, diagrams illustrating the 
life of the wheat plant ; photographs and charts showing the 
average yields of wheat and barley in the continuous corn 
