| Show BACTERIA IN THE SOIL farmer owes immense debt to little germs waterlogged land C comes worth ie e for many purposes because of inability of organisms Organ lm to develop owing to moisture br by ml r 0 I 1 laboratory abor story of bacteriology uth utah agricultural col cot loge the average farmer seldom realizes to the fullest extent the immense debt he owes to the bacteria of the it la Is very often a surprise to him to hear bear that the continued fertility of the toll soil ie Is due almost hotly holly to these minute organisms which he never eee sees but which are present in astound ing lug i umber in every handful of soil on tila hii farm A soil exceptionally fertile Is to exceptionally rich tn in these organisms A dead worn out boll la in N one tn in which the organisms do not occur or it they do occur refuse to grow successful farm practice con tista slats quite largely in supplying eup plying conditions la in the soil soft which are favorable for the growth of beneficial organisms and detrimental to the growth of harmful organisms cultivation of the soil Is a method to supply air to the organisms organ lama which demand air the application of 0 a certain amount of mo moli liture turo to the soil Is a benefit in one way because of the fact that k bacteria of the soil demand a certain amount of moisture tor for their best growth A soil which becomes water waterlogged logged becomes worthies for many purposes because of the inability of the organisms organ lims to develop 11 due to the overabundance of or moist ire and other secondary influences ibe presence of too much alkali in a soil boil or of an acid eoll soil Is likewise harm ful to the development of the organ iams isms sms in other words the bacteria ot at the soil moll are an index to its fertility and every farmer whether he knows it lt or ia i not riot Is a bacteriologist in that he be I 1 Is f continually trying to cultivate cheso unseen friends of his by ordinary farm methods recent advances in soil bacteriology indicate that we are on the eve eye of a new era regarding regard lne our knowledge of soil processes chemists Chem late have hate demonstrated that certain western soils are immensely fe ule due to the pres pre ence in lift them of exceptionally large quantities of nitrogen compounds whether this nitrogen enrichment Is largely the result of the action of te to a question now before the bacteriologists for solution it Is known that in utah soils esper especially fally and similar eli allar soils there la is a germ called which chrly thries s with remarkable vigor this germ has the le ie power of drawing directly plant food from the air and it in the soil without the aid of any othor plant the mysteries of are remarkable it sometimes can be found in large numbers in thu thit eoll moll and sometimes eema seems about to disappear exactly what thia this variation la Is due to Is not known but undoubtedly much of the mystery sur our rou ng soil boil fertility can be solved by finding out how these wonderful germs act it Is a part of every farmers fan ners information that such crops as alt alfalfa alfa beane beans peas clover and vetch add ret mar markab kably ty ro to the fertility nf of the soil the observant knows also that on the roots of these plants are a snail biall nodules or swellings which it has ha been found ae aze ibo the breeding places of bacteria which feed the plant aron which they lire live directly from theair the air it these bacteria are absent from the act the ile pl int in borne some cases refuses to develop lo 10 its g full vigor this action of tie the bae bac v teria terla place places in the far farmers hinds a weapon fr always bis his all at a bleh high point of fertility by the proper rotation of crops in order to u oese rose powerful germs lo 10 his ail ad vantage bacteriologists are attempting to discover the exact number of germs alch are important tn in soil 11 ter fertility tilly and further cuore what ones are de ri mental to the soil boil they hope to be ab a e ultimately to dlag nose the poll oil exactly as up p now dlag nose the human body by finding what germs gems are growing in it they have at al read deviled methods of enriching the soil by growing in the les lea bottles lull of boned ml lal organ e lams lame aad aud pouring these a fie the seed before olt la Is sown any or to the bacteria laboratory of the agricultural college can fee see these gerin germis growing in small flasks flacks each flask flash containing frem three million millions to tour four billions bacteria fortunately most inter later gnoun iain soil soils contain these gerron germs in abend ance so it may never be tiec necessary eawy to use them from the laboratory labora tori OB on the soil however we may be abl able to develop germs in the la lab borato oralo y of an in exceptionally high power of mail 11 en rich ment even the most conserva conserve live tive scientist realizes that the future of scientific agriculture la Is very closely associated with the future of soil bac terl teri along with probable method methods of soil sail diagnosis may come methods of pro lection of the soil by artificial inoch lallon lation with bacteria and methods of at soil cure from diseases by bacterial inoculation these statements read like romance but the development of s bacteriology ba aa as a science within the last two or three decades has thrown open a held field so immense that tae the bold elat t a ts Is staggered i tAt |
