CHAPTER VIII. 



SOILS, ASH CONSTITUENTS, AND WATER-CULTURE. 



632. WHEN a plant is carefully dried at a temperature slightly 

 exceeding that of boiling water until it ceases to lose weight, 

 there remains behind a brittle combustible residue. The dif- 

 ference between the weight of the plant and that of the resi- 

 due represents the amount of water previously contained in 

 the plant. This differs widely, according to the kind of plant 

 and its age. The following table gives the proportion of water 

 contained in a few of the most common plants : 



Red Clover, before flowering 83 pe cent. 



" " in full flower . . . . '. '. . 78 



Oats, before flowering 82 



" in flower 77 



Turnip (root) 91 



Beech (leaves), in summer 75 



" " in autumn 55 



Dry grains 14 to 15 



Dry woods 15 



633. If the brittle residue left after complete expulsion of the 

 water is burned in the open air, there remains behind a small 

 amount of gray ash ; all the rest is wholly consumed. The 

 amount of ash also varies widely, according to the kind of plant 

 and its age. In the following table 1 are given the proportions 

 for a few common plants : 



Per cent of ash in Per cent of ash in 



fresh material. dry material. 



Red Clover 1.5 5.6 



Sugar Beet (root) 8 4.3 



Indian Corn 1.1 5.5 



" (grain) 2.1 1.5 



Beech (leaves), in summer ... 1.3 

 " " in autumn ... 3. 



634. In a general way it ma} r be said that the combustible 

 matters are derived chiefly from the atmosphere, while all the 



1 The student is referred, for detailed accounts of analyses from which these 

 figures have been chiefly taken, to Johnson's "How Crops Grow," 1868. 



