July, 1919 
WISCONSIN HORTICULTURE 
149 
growth, I watched the effect with 
k een interest. They are rapidly 
taking on the false blossom con- 
dition and I fear the tract will 
eventually be practically worthless. 
In examining false blossom vines 
I have often noticed a place on the 
vine where apparently the growth 
had been injured and consequently 
deranging the growth procedure. 
Very likely the roots continued to 
force nourishment upward into the 
stem and leaves and the sudden 
death of the new growth resulted 
is an abnormal growth of defective 
uprights incapable of producing 
fruit. 
In my case the condition and 
nature of the soil does not seem to 
be a factor. I have tried sanding, 
fertilizing, pruning, liming, deep 
drainage, and shallow drainage 
with no results in again bringing 
the vines back to their normal con- 
dition. 
Herman J. Gebhardt. 
Has any one an explanation or 
remedy to offer for the false blos- 
som trouble? Mr. Gebhardt has 
had a sorry experience. Any light 
on the subject would be gladly re- 
ceived. 
Mr. Nic Wirtz is this year look- 
ing after the growing 1 of the crop 
on the J. A. Cohen marsh in Cran- 
moor township. 
Measurements of Soil Fertility. 
By W. H. Jordan. 
(From Bulletin No. 424, N. Y. 
Experiment Station, Geneva.) 
1. Nine unlike soils were brought 
to the Station in quantity from 
different parts of the state for the 
purpose of studying the relation 
of the various methods of chemi- 
cal examination to their crop-pro- 
ducing capacity. 
2. Vegetation experiments were 
conducted with these soils in the 
Station forcing house during two 
years. 
3. The soils were submitted to 
chemical examination by different 
methods. 
4. These soils showed by the 
vegetation tests greatly unlike 
crop-producing capacity, the dry 
matter produced varying in two 
years from 161.5 grams per box 
to 9.4 grams per box. 
5. By no one of the methods of 
chemical examination was there 
established any relation between 
the amounts of nitrogen, phos- 
phoric acid and potash, either to- 
tal or soluble, and crop-producing 
capacity. 
6. There appeared to be some 
relation between the total soluble 
matter in the soil and productive- 
ness, to the extent that the two 
soils giving a very low yield of 
barley showed greatly less solubil- 
ity than did the others. This re- 
lation, however, was not consist- 
ent throughout. 
7. The general result of this in- 
vestigation shows that we are not 
yet in a position through labora- 
tory methods so far devised to 
measure the fertility of the soil. 
Much investigation has been di- 
rected toward the establishment 
of reliable measurements of soil 
fertility. Many persons seem to 
regard it as desirable that this be 
done in order that there may be 
determined for any given soil its 
capacity to sustain plant produc- 
tion and its deficiencies that 
should be met through the appli- 
cation of fertilizing material. It 
is not certain, however, that it 
would be of advantage to farmers 
as a rule, to give to them direc- 
tions for maintaining soil fertility 
that are worked out without any 
initiative or effort on their part. 
It is true that no request is more 
often made of this Station than to 
have a sample of soil analyzed in 
order to determine what fertilizer 
should be used to supplement its 
weak places and to what crop, or 
crops, it is adapted. There seems 
to be a very widespread impres- 
sion that it is now possible by lab- 
oratory methods to ascertain just 
what procedure should be adopt- 
ed in order to increase the crop- 
producing power of a given field. 
This impression persists notwith- 
standing the repeated assertions 
from scientific sources that no 
methods of analysis are now 
known which will give such meas- 
urements of fertility as will con- 
stitute a safe basis for practice. 
Notwithstanding all this, it is re- 
garded desirable from the stand- 
point of the investigator to estab- 
lish, if possible, some relation be- 
tween laboratory results and field 
i (‘sifts. It was for the purpose of 
getting additional light in this di- 
rection that the investigation 
herein reported were outlined. 
(Then follows a detailed ac- 
count of the experiments fol- 
lowed by the above summary.) 
Nitrate of soda applied to leaf 
crops occasionally stimulates their 
growth. Half an ounce to a gal- 
lon of water is usually sufficient at 
a time. When applied dry, 150 to 
200 pounds are used per acre. 
The wheel hoe makes garden cul- 
tivation easy. 
Too many plants to the foot is 
just as bad as weeds. Keep the 
plants thinned. 
Bone meal is a good fertilizer to 
work into the ground around per- 
ennials occasionally. 
