A routine procedure in which the Technicon AutoAnalyzer is used for the determination of boron in plant tissue with azomethine H is described.The preparation of the reagent as the condensation product of H-acid and salicylaldehyde is given. The reagent is highly sensitive to boron, and only copper, iron and aluminium interfere. These interference effects are eliminated with an EDTA solution. The procedure is performed in aqueous medium thus simplifying its adaptation to an automated system and its use for routine determination.

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An automated turbidimetric procedure for the determination of sulphur in plant tissue is described. A double-probe system is used so that the system is washed with a buffer solution on the wash cycle. This ensures a satisfactory return to the base-line. The values obtained are compared with those obtained by the standard gravimetric procedure.

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Several rapid ashing procedures for the analysis of leaf-tissue samples to determine their inorganic constituents are described. Various types of sample were extracted with different acid mixtures or ashed for short periods under different conditions and their constituents were then determined by means of atomic absorption. The values obtained by these methods were compared with those obtained by use of standard procedures.A general procedure for the rapid ashing of plant material, which is suitable for the determination of a number of inorganic constituents, is described in detail.