312 Bulletin 240. 



Corn. — 'Check plants twelve to fifteen cm. high, somewhat yellowish and 

 several of the lower leaves dead. Plants in fermenting material 

 forty-five to fifty-three cm. high, with better green color than any 

 other of the corn plants but some yellowish patches. Plants in 

 stronger concentration of previously fermented material forty-five 

 to sixty cm. high, yellowish tinged and somewhat yellowish striped. 

 Plants in weaker concentration of previously fermented material 

 twenty-five to thirty cm. high, yellowish. 



An examination of the photographs shows the constancy of the curve 

 of growth in all the dift'erent kinds of plants. In the earlier period the 

 plants in stronger concentration of previously fermented material outgrew 

 the others and presented a healthier growth. There being more food sub- 



^■?^*a^-;. 



•^ 



'•'J'SBfflftfeSN 





.« 



r 



t_^ii 



Fig. 123. — Sunflower seedlings growing in mushroom maferial. Photographed 

 April 'iT,th. From left to right the material is as follows: First, distilled water; 

 second, not previously fermented tnushroom material; third, stronger concentration 

 of previously fertnented mushroom material; fourth, weaker concentration of pre- 

 viously fermented mushrootn material. 



stance in the stronger concentration, it is reasonable to conclude, accounts 

 for the greater growth of the plants than in the weaker concentration. 

 The plants supplied with the previously fermented material, while out- 

 growing those in pure sand are checked somewhat perhaps because of the 

 slight injury to the tips of the deeper roots from the fermentation now 

 going on, but it is likely due more to the small amc^unt of food made 

 available at first by the process of fermentation. l>ut after the material 

 has reached an advanced stage of fermentation the corn and wheat plants 

 in the baskets where fermentation was going on during their growth 

 soon surpassed the others in healthy color and equalled or surpassed them 

 in height. 



