MANURING EXPERIMENTS WITH PADDY RICE. 
31 
as given on the preceding pages with reference to the absorption 
of nitrogen from highly nitrogenous manures. The largest 
quantities were accordingly found on the plot most copiously 
manured with (30 kilogrms.) phosphoric acid and on that which 
likewise received much of this nutrient and of potash but no ni¬ 
trogen ; in those cases there was contained in the dry matter:— 
Complete manure, rich Without 
in phosphoric acid nitrogen 
of the grain.0.727 % 0.766 % 
» >, straw.0.176 „ 0.115 „ 
„ ,, whole.0.340 „ 0.349 .» 
It is remarkable that the crop very liberally manured with 
phosphoric acid, but not supplied with nitrogen did not contain 
very much of the phosphoric acid in the straw. The reason for 
this unexpected result certainly is the early ripening of the 
plants. Owing to the deficiency of nitrogen in the soil these 
plants could not produce sufficient albuminoid for all the cells, 
wherefore the albuminoids from the older leaves were transported 
in an early period to the newly developing organs, leaving the 
former in so exhausted a condition that they soon turned yellow 
and dried up. As a considerable part of the vegetable body was 
thus put out of function, the absorption of phosphoric acid which 
takes place generally somewhat slowly, could not be continued 
to the same extent as by the plants copiously supplied with 
both nitrogen and phosphoric acid. 
Again we find here the variations in the composition to be 
larger in the straw than in the grain. In the former 
the relative proportion between the minimum and maximum 
content is 100: 176, in the latter 100: 140. 
An account of the absolute quantities of phosphoric acid that 
entered the crops from the manures is given in the following 
table : 
