Crude Fiber hi the Plant 73 



the amount of cellulose in a plant. While crude fiber 

 is mainly cellulose, it contains a small proportion of 

 other compounds, and besides, more or less cellulose 

 is dissolved by the acid and alkali treatment, so that 

 the percentages of crude fiber given in fodder tables 

 only approximately measure the cellulose present in 

 feeding stuffs. 



All plant tissue is made up of cells, the walls of 

 which are chiefly or wholly cellulose. It is this sub- 

 stance out of which is built the framework of the plant, 

 and which gives toughness and rigidity to certain of 

 its parts. The more of this a feeding stuff contains, 

 the more tenacious it is, other things being equal, 

 and the more difficult of mastication. 



The proportion of crude fiber in plants varies greatly 

 with the species. Large plants have more than small 

 ones, as a rule. The dry matter in the trunks and 

 limbs of trees is mostly wood}' fiber, and the chemical 

 treatment involved in making paper from wood has for 

 its main object the separation of this from other sub- 

 stances. Grass and other small herbage plants are less 

 rich in fiber, still less existing in such species as pota- 

 toes, turnips and beets. 



The proportions of cellulose in the different parts of 

 a plant are greatly unlike. It is usually most abundant 

 in the stem, with less in the foliage and least in the 

 fruit. With vegetables like potatoes and turnips, the 

 leaves are much richer in fiber than the tubers or roots, 

 which contain a comparativelj^ small proportion. Of the 

 grains or seeds considerable is present in the outer coat- 

 ings, while but little is found in the interior. Cousid- 



