The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1907-05-29
Florida State Horticultural Society.
Continued from page ~

dDOut What goes on III the SOIL from
a physical point Of view We had all
along felt that there was a consider
able loss of fertilizer from the soil,
due to teaching, but had been told
repeatedly by trustworthy witnesses
that potash and phosphoric acid be-
came fixed in the soil. 1t is now
demonstrated from a physicists point
OF view that a considerable amount
of fertilizer is actually washed out
and carried into the static water in
the soil, from which it is impossible
to reclaim any considerable portion.
The chemist has told us faithfully
what he found in his crucible. The
physicist is likewise telling us how
differently natural and inert materials
behave in the soil. How the water.
moves; what effect different elements
produce in the soil when applied; but
all of this still leaves us in the dark
as to what role different living sub
Jects play III the economy of plant
growth.
For the solution of these problems
we shall have to look to the soil
bacteriologist and botanist I need
here only to mention the rather re-
cent work that has been done on the
n1trltylng organism, or the organisms
which enable leguminous plants to
make use Of the atmospheric nitrogen
We have here three distinct sciences
chemistry, physics, and botany
which are each laboring actively to
subdue the same realm, the soil.
These three, however much they may
discover, will not complete the work
for us. What we shall need when
these three have secured the vast
store of scientific information locked
up in the soil, is the physiological
botanist to tell us what effect a varia-
ton Of these factories has on our
cultivated crops. Of what use is it
to raise an orange that turns even
the stomach of an insect, or to raise
a variety of celery that has such a
thick epidermis that even a fungus
cannot pierce it?
There probably never has been
meeting Of this society during which
the question Of fertilizers was not
discussed, and it is to be hoped that
this society will not let the question
conceptions have been cleared away.
This ideal state will not be reached,
however, until we know more about
our SOIL until we know more about
the needs Of our plants; and until
we know Our fertilizers. What we
believe as true Of certain elements
today, may tomorrow be proven to be
a fallacy; and our beliefs Of tomorrow
may likewise on the following day be
shown to be incorrect. Let me cite
single illustration During the early
history of our society, we found
earnest and eloquent advocates of the
use Of ground rock phosphates as
fertilizer for citrus trees. These ad-
vocates have either been converted to
the use of soluble phosphates, or have
been silenced Ground rock is no
longer being actively adyocated by
Patterson, director Of the Maryland
Experiment Station. He used nine
different chemical fertilizers as sourc-
es of phosphoric acid-all that are
ordinarily found on the markets. In
Guided in this list is acid phosphate,
dissolved bone black, bone black, raw
bone meal, and Florida soft phos-
plate. The plots were laid off in the
regular form as is usual for such
work. The same chemical being ap-
piled year after year since 1906 to
each plot, making eleven years of
continuous use of the same chemical
on each particular plot Now comes
the most startling part, his conc1u-
sions. Two of them are of special
interest to us. The third of his con-
illusions is that, "Insoluble phosphates
produce a slightly higher total aver