COCONUT PLANTER'S MANUAL. 127 



In this condition the root is valueless as an absorbing organ, but; 

 this does the palm no actual harm because an active root could absorb 

 no water from a soil dry enough to bring about this condition. Of 

 course, if every single one of the roots ceased to absorb the palm woul 1 

 naturally die, but this seldom if ever happens. The roots of a full-grown 

 oocoanut palm spread out for a distance of fifteen to twenty-five feet in 

 every direction, while some of them penetrate downwards for as much 

 as four and five feet, and the soil would have to be extraordinarily dry 

 if a few of these roots could not find a little moisture somewhere. 

 Young supplies, however, up to three or four years old, which have a 

 much more restricted root system, are frequently killed by the effect 

 of prolonged drought upon absorbing areas of their roots. 



The leaves of th? palm are affected next by drought. The older 

 leaves drop and hang down close to the stem, mamy of them wither 

 and fall to the ground and no new ones are put forth. 



Finally the nuts themselves are affected. Immature nuts in large 

 numbers fall to the ground, whilst those which are retained on the 

 palms remain small and shew no signs of development. 



The soils most adversely affected by drought are the thin sands and 

 the reason for this is because of the coarseness of the grains of rocE 

 of which they are composed. When rain fall upon sandy soil it meets 

 with little resistance in its passage down the subsoil with the result 

 that only a very small amount of water is retained in the upper layers 

 of the soil where the roots of the palms can get at it. Moreover sandy 

 soils have only a very small power of lifting water up from the subsoil 

 by capillarity cr, to use a more homely word, by soaking. 



Capillarity is a difficult word with a very simple meaning and it in 

 very importac- in connection with the supply of water to soils that it 

 must be cleany understood. 



If we spili a blob of ink on to a sheet of paper we can remove th^ 

 greater portion of it by touching it with the edge of a piece of blotting 

 paper. The ink runs up into the blotting paper under the influence of 

 the force known as capillarity. Similarly, if we lower a lump of sugar 

 on to the surtsee of a cup of tea the liquid will run up into the sugar 

 and spread it.self over the surface of each tiny grain of which the lump 

 is composed. 



Now supprse we had three lumps of sugar, one composed of very 

 small fine grams, one composed of very large coarse grains, and the 

 third made up of medium sized grains. If we lowered these one by 

 one on to the surface of a cup of tea we should find that the liquid toon 

 a very long time to creep up to the top of the first lump, which waa 



