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I(e2ztz¢e}zy Forage P/a7z!s— The C/mers and their AZ/zes. 1]. V  
ter to that of tubercle bacteria and clovers. At any rate the ‘
tendency for some time past has been to consider the evidence
of fixation by Algae and mosses as not completely satisfactory.
Nitrifying Bacteria.
The bacteria producing tubercles on the roots of clovers and
cowpeas are very different from those described by the natur-  
I alist Wiiiogradsky, and which he obtained in ISQI from soil, {
` and succeeded in growing in pure cultures on a medium con- _ V
taining soluble silicates. These nitrobacteria are of three ·   `·`` ·.
sorts, one of which (Nitrosomonas) attacks organic matter at jg
a certain stage of decay, producing nitrites, after which, act-  
ing on the nitrites, a second form (Nitrobacter) produces the '
nitrates which are assimilated by growing crops. It thus ap- ii.
pears that the plants employed for crops are completely de-  =*i`r
pendent on lowly soil—inhabiting bacteria; upon the nodule-
forming species for the free nitrogen obtained from the air;
and upon the nitrobacteria of 'Winogradsky for rendering _
nitrogenous material already in the soil available as plant
food. I
A Bacterial Cultures for Wheat and Corn. ·
Of late a preparation known as "alinit" has been distributed
to stations in this country by a European manufacturer*,
which is claimed to encourage the growth of wheat and allied ;__ ,
plants by its action on nitrogenous materials in the soil, its "ki
effect being like that produced by the Nitrosomonas and
Nitrobacter of \\’inogradsky. Samples received at this Station  ’
last SI11l}II1€I‘ were put up in small vials of brown glass, each  
’ vial containing enough for an acre of ground. The brown  
powdery contents include with other material compact masses Q
of an organism that may easily be the Nitrosomonas. The W    
_ ._ enterprise appears to be an effort to utilize \\’inogradsky’s V"?
discoveries. The preparation has not been tested by us in a
practical way. A French worker, Malpeaux, has recently an-
nounced that he has obtained results from pot experiments
indicating that alinit has a beneficial effect in soil very rich in
*Friedr. Bayer & Co., Elberfeld, Germany.
I
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