A Botanical and Economic Study 



159 



CHAPTER IV. 

 Chemical. 



IT is important to study the chemistry of a plant for the 

 following reasons: (1) It is necessary to know the value 

 of the plant as a human food. This has been determined 

 by practice, but scientific analyses are essential if we desire 

 to compare a new food with older and more established 

 ones. The Germans have made painstaking analyses to dis- 

 cover the cheapest and most economical foods for use in the 

 army, and the commissary department, after much experimen- 

 tation, has turned its attention to maize. (2) Different 

 plants take from the soil a varying proportion of plant food. 

 It is necessary to estimate this loss in order to supply 

 deficiencies. (3) Products once wasted are now saved. This 

 is essentially a utilization of bye-products. Chemical inves- 

 tigation is useful in ascertaining the value of refuse. 



The chemical analyses which follow have been selected 

 and arranged with great care from the most reliable sources. 



Table I. 

 Relations in Weight between Different Portions of Maize in 



the Green State} 



Leaves . . . 

 Tassel . . 

 Ear, stem . 

 Upper stalk 

 Middle " 

 Lower " 



29.20 

 .66 



1S.01 



7-56 



1 4. 86 



30.01 



1 



47-87 



\ 52-13 



100.00 



100.00 



1 ( ioffart, Culture and Ensilage of Maize. 41. 



