CULTIVATED CROPS 65 



purpose is to protect the parts within. It protects them 

 from heat, cold, and moisture. 



The Embryo. — The speck of hfe, or embryo, may be 

 taken from a soaked kernel of corn by the use of a sharp 

 knife or a needle. It is really a very tiny live corn plant, 

 and is found bedded near the tip of the kernel, in the white 

 starchy part. This embryo has a root and a stem. The 

 stem is not green, however, because it has been shut up in 

 the dark. If corn is properly ripened and kept dry, the little 

 plant within each kernel will stay alive a long time, and be 

 ready to grow when the kernel containing it is put into the 

 ground and supplied with heat and moisture. If corn be 

 allowed to freeze, perhaps thaw out and freeze again, the 

 little embryo within a kernel is not likely to live, and the 

 kernel would not grow if planted. It is for this reason 

 that farmers are careful to select for seed well ripened ears 

 of corn, and to store them safely in a dry place. 



Food Material.— After the seed coat has been removed 

 and the embryo taken out, a large part of the kernel is still 

 left. It is the food part. It makes food for us when the 

 com is ground into meal; or, when the seed is planted and 

 the embryo begins to grow, it is this part which furnishes 

 the embryo with food until it has developed roots and can 

 get its food from the soil. The large kernels have more of 

 this food material than the small ones. A stronger plant 

 will grow from a large kernel than from a small one, on 

 account of the greater amount of food material the larger 

 kernel contains for the early growth of the little plant. 

 This is one reason why plump kernels are better for seed. 



Questions: 



1. A kernel of corn consists of what parts? 



2. Tell all you can about each part. 



3. Where in the kernel did you find the embryo? 



4. What would injure or kill the embryo? 



5. How should corn which you mean to plant be kept? 



6. From which kernels come the strongest plants? Why? 

 Arithmetic: 



1. If com is planted May 15th and is struck by a frost Sept. 

 1st, how many days will it have in which to mature? 



2. A bushel of seed com will plant seven acres in check rows and 

 is worth $2.50 per bushel. What is the cost of seed corn per acre? 



3. A pays $5.00 per bushel for seed com, B pays $2.00 per bashel 

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