22 



AGRICULTURE 



growth. If it is not too cold, plant several dozen grains 

 of corn either in the ground or in a little box inside a 



After D. 8. Dtp*. Afr. 



FIG. aa. CORN GRAINS PLANTED AT VARIOUS DEPTHS 

 IN A Box WITH GLASS SIDES 



window (Fig. 22). Dig up a few of these every day to 

 learn how the young plant grows. 



Roots grow near the tip end. The sprouting of seeds is 

 called germination. When you dig up seeds that have 

 begun to sprout, you find that a little root has started 

 downward, and that a little shoot has grown upward to 

 make the above-ground part of the plant 



EXPERIMENT. Each day the root and shoot become longer. 

 Find whether the root grows only near the tip, or whether all parts 

 of it lengthen. To learn this, make two marks with India or draw- 

 ing ink or other "fast" color on a white root that is about an inch 

 or an inch and a half long. Lay a ruler by the side of the root and make 

 the first mark a quarter of an inch from the tip of the root ; make the 

 other mark half an inch nearer the grain. A black thread may be tied 



