The bean culture resulted in a little private contest between Albert and Jay.  That winter The Chief had given the boys a talk on inoculation of soil.  One day while they were working on their land Jay suggested that they separate the bean section of their garden, having a bean plot at one end and another of the same size at the extreme other end; that one of them should inoculate the soil of his plot and the other should not.  These plots being so far removed would not be in danger of soil washing one from the other.  Albert, who rather scorned inoculation of soil, willingly agreed to make the experiment, stipulating that he have the uninoculated plot.

By inoculation of the soil is meant introducing into the soil a germ.  This germ makes it possible that the nitrogen already in the soil be given to the plant in such a form that it may be absorbed, and absorbed in greater quantities than it otherwise could be.

Jay sent to the nearest State Agricultural Experiment Station, asking for the soil.  This was sent free of charge.  It was a soil, fine in texture and brown in appearance.  According to the directions sent with it Jay spread it evenly over the top of his bean patch.  A piece of land for inoculation should be prepared all ready for planting; then the inoculated soil is merely put over this, as frosting on a cake.  After this the seeds are planted.  They planted bush limas.  Of course they had to plant the same kind of bean for the sake of the experiment.

Beans are not hard to cultivate.  They should be kept free from weeds and the soil well stirred up.  Albert, fearful of his beans becoming affected by spots or anthracnose, sprayed them from the start.  This disease is likely to affect beans about July.  So in order to get ahead of the inoculated crop the boy did what he later found there was no need of.  To be sure beans are liable to this trouble, but it is not a surety.  It is never likely to appear unless the weather be very moist.  This summer happened to be a dry one.

The spray he used was the Bordeaux mixture.  His father offered to supply him with the mixture if he would do mixing for both.  So he used this receipt:  Dissolve six pounds of copper sulphate in six gallons of water.  It is an excellent plan to crush up this chemical in a mortar and put this powder into a bag.  Hang the bag up so it just touches the surface of the water.  Add twenty-five gallons of water to this.  To four pounds of slaked lime add twenty-five gallons of water.  Then add this solution to the other.

The boy’s father had a spraying machine.  So Albert used this.  I have known boys to use a corn broom to spray with.  Dip this in the spraying mixture and shake over the foliage.  The only spraying rule Albert used was to keep the foliage covered with the mixture; this does not mean many applications.

At the close of the bean season Jay had the finer, larger, beans with a better flavour.  His yield was one-third greater than Albert’s.