CANE SUGAR. 



Function of the Root. The functions of the root are two-fold ; 

 the root hairs closely envelop particles of soil, thereby maintaining the hold of 

 the plant on the soil, and, secondly, the root hairs absorb water and plant food 

 from the soil and transmit it to the other parts of the growing plant. 



Physiology of the Cane. The physiology of the cane has been 

 studied chiefly by Went 7 who concluded 



cor 



cor 



re 



FIG. 7. 



1. That cane sugar is the chief product of assimilation in the cane leaves, 

 dextrose and levulose only being formed by inversion; maltose was not 

 identified ; the proportion of sucrose, dextrose, and levulose in the juice of 

 the leaves is as 4 : 2 : 1. 



2. The sugar of the leaves is carried during the night in the form of 

 invert sugar to the stem and deposited round the cellular vessels as starch. 



3. The parenchyma of the leaves, and above all of the central rib, is very 

 rich in sugar and tannin, while the cellular vessels contain less sugar and 

 tannin and more albumenoids. 



10 



