Crops Feed from Air and Soil

Contents: Introduction. I. The atmosphere as related to vegetation: i. Atmospheric air as the food of plants: 1. Chemical composition of the atmosphere. 2. Relation of oxygen gas to vegetable nutrition. 3. Relation of nitrogen gas to vegetable nutrition. 4. Relation of atmospheric water to vegetable nutrition. 5. Relation of carbonic acid gas. 6. Relation of atmospheric ammonia to vegetable nutrition. 7. Ozone. 8. Compounds of nitrogen and oxygen in the atmosphere. 9. Other ingredients of the atmosphere. 10. Recapitulation of the atmospheric supplies of food to crops. 11. Assimilation of atmospheric food. 12. Tabular view of the relations of the atmospheric ingredients to the life of plants. ii. The atmosphere as physically related to vegetation: 1. Manner of absorption of gaseous food by plants. II. The soil as related to vegetable production: i. Introductory. ii. Origin and formation of soils: 1. Chemical elements of rocks. 2. Mineralogical elements of rocks. 3. Rocks, their kinds and characters. 4. Conversion of rocks into soil. 5. Incorporation of organic matter with the soil, and its effects. iii. Kinds of soils, their definition and classification: 1. Distinctions of soils based upon the mode of their formation or deposition. 2. Distinctions of soils based upon obvious of external character. iv. Physical characters of the soil: 1. Weight of soils. 2. State of division. 3. Absorption of vapor of water. 4. Condensation of gases. 5. Power of removing solid matters from solution. 6. Permeability of liquid water imbibition capillary power. 7. Changes of bulk by drying and frost. 8. Adhesiveness. 9. Relations to heat. v. The soil as a source of food to crops: ingredients whose elements are of atmospheric origin: 1. The free water of the soil in its relations to vegetable nutrition. 2. The air of the soil. 3. Non-nitrogenous organic matters humus. 4. The ammonia of the soil. 5. Nitric acid (nitrates) of the soil. 6. Nitrogenous organic matters of the soil available nitrogen. 7. Decay of organic matters. 8. Nitrogenous principles of urine. 9. Comparative nutritive value of ammonia-salts and nitrates. vi. The soil as a source of food to crops: ingredients whose elements are derived from rocks: 1. General view of the constitution of the soil as related to vegetable nutrition. 2. Aqueous solution of the soil. 3. Solution of the soil in strong acids. 4. Portion of soil insoluble in acids. 5. Reactions by which the solubility of the elements of the soil in altered solvent effects of various substances absorptive and fixing power of soils. 6. Review and conclusion.