Abstract
In the culture of cranberries it is often necessary to flood the bogs as a protection against frost and certain insects. The length of the flooding period may vary from a few hours to several days. To ascertain the relation between the oxygen content of waters and injuries which had occurred to the vines as a result of flooding, an investigation was begun in I9I8. This work was carried on during the seasons of I9I8 and I919 in the cranberry regions of Massachusetts and Wisconsin. One of the first things that became apparent as a result of the study of flooding water of cranberry bogs was the extent of variation of the oxygen and carbon dioxide content of water from different sources and the correlation of these variations with weather and other conditions. The oxygen and carbon dioxide content of exposed waters under certain conditions varies considerably as between day and night. The extent of this variation is affected by the amount of sunlight during the day as determined by the presence or absence of clouds. The velocity and direction of the wind and the temperature of the water also affect the gas content of flooding waters but are less important than light intensity. The effect of cloudiness on the oxygen and carbon dioxide content of water is indirect, resulting from the action of light on submerged vegetation. When plants are submerged, oxygen and carbon dioxide during respiration or photosynthesis are absorbed from the water or given off into it in solution. Accordingly, the oxygen content of the water is increased during the day in proportion to the amount of vegetation present and to the light intensity, while the carbon dioxide content decreases under the same conditions. The presence of oxidizable organic matter in the water or in the substratum tends to reduce the oxygen and to increase the carbon dioxide content of the water. This effect has been observed in the marshes, used by many Wisconsin cranberry growers for reservoirs, and in the water of cedar swamp reservoirs in Massachusetts. On a clear day the amount of oxygen produced by photosynthesis is much in excess of that used up in respiration or by the oxidation of organic matter. For this reason, when vegetation is present, an accumulation of oxygen occurs. In cloudy weather the accumulation is less. The oxygen content may even decline in densely cloudy weather. A diurnal variation is thus to be expected in ponds with
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