IX. NUTRITION 



A. The nutrition of plants is very similar to that of 

 animals, with the exception that all green plants 

 manufacture their food out of inorganic chemical com- 

 pounds. Animals cannot do this. They must conse- 

 quently receive their food ready-made. But there are 

 some lower organisms (doubtfully animals) that pos- 

 sess the ability to elaborate their food out of inorganic 

 compounds, while on the other hand, certain plants, 

 such, for example, as the mushrooms and other plants 

 wanting chlorophyll, lack this power. 



B. The manufacture of carbohydrates is, in many respects, 

 the most important function of green plants. With- 

 out it all life would be impossible, so that its study 

 becomes of very great interest. We will first learn 

 how to detect the presence of a carbohydrate such as 

 starch, then study its occurrence in plants, and finally 

 the process by which it is made out of simpler chemical 

 compounds. 



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