24 riEST STUDIES IN PLANT LITE 



IV.— THE BOOT.— Part II. 



1. What the root seeks and avoids. The first 

 use of a root is to fix the young plant in the soil ; and 

 the second use is to seek food in the soil. And so it 

 has come to pass that the tiny white root points down- 

 wards from the very first, just as the tiny green shoot 

 strives upwards from the very first. The root there- 

 fore has learned to shun the light, just as the green 

 shoot has learned to seek the light. We can see hov/ 

 strong is this habit from the air roots of the ivy. 

 Examine these roots, and you will find that they 

 always grow away from the light and on the shady 

 side of the stem. We can see how hard the root tries 

 to escape the light in roots like that of the carrot, that 

 actually shrink into the soil. Look also at the tip of 

 a bramble shoot that has rooted, and you will see how 

 strongly the root pulls the tip into the earth. 



2. Why does the root keep near the surface ? 

 But here you ask : " Since the root goes down, why 

 does it not go farther down ? " WeU, there are several 

 reasons. One is that the moisture comes from rain or 

 dew that may not sink far. Another reason is that 

 the deep soil may be too cold. A third reason is that 

 the soil near the surface is better aired. A root, like 

 a germinating seed, needs warmth and air as well as 

 moisture. Trees sometimes, in hot weather, send 

 their roots too far down into cold sodden sub-soil. 

 Such trees suffer from " wet feet." The monks of old 

 knew this, and would place a large flat stone under 

 the roots of their peaches to keep them fi-om going 



