770 Rural School Leaflet. 



Experiment V 

 Depth of Planting 

 By Ethel Gowans 



Purpose. To show the importance of depth of planting. 



Conditions necessary. Fine, moist garden soil. 



Method. Let each pupil plant five hills of beans, one foot apart, and 

 one seed in a hill. Plant the seed in the first hill five inches deep, in 

 the second hill three and one-half inches deep, in the third hill two and 

 one-half inches deep, in the fourth hill one and one-half inches deep, and 

 in the fifth hill one-half inch deep. 



Observations, i. In which hill does the bean plant come up first? 



2. Does the plant come up straight through the soil, or in a looped 

 manner? 



3. Are all the plants perfect? That is, do the)^ have the first pair 

 of opposite fleshy leaves (cotyledons) with the two smaller thin leaves 

 above (true leaves) ? 



4. If any plants have lost the two fleshy leaves, compare their 

 growth with the plants which have not lost the fleshy leaves. 



5. If any plants fail to come up, what reasons would you give? 

 Dig carefully into the hill and find the seeds; this may help you in ansv.'er- 

 ing. 



6. Notice the change from day to day in the first pair of leaves. 



7. The cotyledons have two uses; what are they? 



Subject Matter. The bean seed must be thoroughly soaked with 

 moisture before it will sprout; this is the reason that the seed planted 

 near the surface failed to germinate, and the purpose of packing the 

 moist soil over the seeds. 



The food is stored in the cotyledons as oil, starch and protein. In 

 the presence of water these are changed into soluble form by dissolving 

 agents in the seed. In the soluble form they can now be carried to 

 all parts of the plant where they are used as food. The oil, starch, and 

 protein were stored in the seed last summer, and now serve to feed the 

 plant until its leaves are large enough to make its own organic food. 

 These dissolving agents in the seed are analogous to some of the dissolv- 

 ing agents in the digestive juices. 



Other Lessons, i. Sprout twelve bean seeds and then cut the coty- 

 ledons from six plants. Compare results. Try the same with squash 

 seeds. 



