SECTION IV. GERMINATION OF SEEDS 



THE seeds have been called the children of the plant. 

 The parent plant provides the seeds with food enough to 

 serve them until the young plants have formed roots and 

 leaves with which to gather their own food. 



Food for the young plant. Let us examine a grain of 

 corn to see how the plant packs up the good things for its- 

 seed children. Soak a few dozen grains of corn in water 

 over night so that for to-morrow's 

 lesson you may be better able to sepa- 

 rate their parts. Outside is the tough 

 coat, which you will remove from the 

 soaked kernels. With a sharp knife ^ 



you will cut crosswise through a dry FIG. 21.- CROSS-SECTION 



. ., THROUGH A CORN KER- 



or soaked kernel, with its groove side NEL 



Up. YOU will probably be able tO see a, germ; b, hard starch7 



first a cream-colored portion or germ kyer .[ f' soft white 



starchy layer. 



next to the groove and near the tip of 



the kernel ; second, a layer of soft white starch ; and 



third, a harder whitish layer, also made up chiefly oi 



starch. 



The germ is the only part of the grain that sprouts. It 

 may be called the baby plant. The two layers of starch 

 and other materials are placed near at hand only to sup- 

 ply the germ with food when it first wakes to begin its 



21 



