136 GROWTH OF PLANTS. 



which he terms a " farinaceous leaf/' The second 

 day the sheath gives way, the gemlet or plume rises 

 upwards, and the seed-lobe appears moist. The third 

 day the seed-lobe becomes quite turgid; the gemlet 

 looks green; and two other radicles begin to sprout 

 from the two side radicles, while their sheath begins 

 to waste. The fourth day, the seed-lobe when pressed 

 yields a white sweetish fluid, somewhat like milk, 

 while the other parts are increased in 'length. The 

 fifth day the gemlet pierces the membranous envelope, 

 pushing up a green rolled leaf sheathed by the enve- 

 lope, the seed-pulp is much diminished ; and the five 

 radicles are nearly of a length, and clothed with hairs. 

 About the sixth day, the plantlet, still in its sheath, 

 begins to expand, while the envelopes of the seed 

 shrink. After the eleventh day, these envelopes still 

 adhere, but are much wasted, and yield on pressure 

 only water and air, while the stem, now forming many 

 knots, and the radicles, sending out many rootlets, 

 progressively enlarge. After a month, new buds burst 

 upwards from the crown of the root (formerly, as I 

 think, the neck of the embryo), and new radicles shoot 

 out downwards. After two months, several young 

 plants are seen, enveloped in withered sheaths, rising 

 from the same spot, the two original envelopes of the 

 seed still remaining attached. 



It is this mode of shooting up many stems that 

 causes corn to be so prolific, Du Hamel having seen a 

 seed of barley produce 200 ears, each having 24 grains, 

 or in all 4800 grains. Other plants, with one seed- 

 lobe, do not yield so many stems ; but Poiteau says it 



