158 



BOTANY OF CROP PLANTS 



hill, these laterals are about 4 or 5 inches below the soil level. 

 The laterals may be shallower than given, in heavy soils 



ground line 



Fig. 56. — A, root system of corn (Zea mays); the squares are one foot on a 

 side; B, prop or aerial roots of corn. (A, redrawn from U. S. De-pt. Agri,; B, 

 somewhat modified after Bailey.) 



and wet seasons. The roots of most plants are more super- 

 ficial in a heavy or wet soil than in a light and drier soil. 



