CHAPTER XXIX 



GERMINATION 



' rT!HE germ in the heart of the seed is in a state 

 JL that may be likened to deep sleep : its life is, as 

 it were, arrested, suspended. But under the stim- 

 ulus of certain conditions it awakens, throws off its 

 coverings, gathers strength from its stored-up food, 

 unfolds its first leaves, and appears above ground. 

 This opening of the seed is called germination. 

 Moisture, warmth, and air are the determining 

 causes; without their cooperation the seed would 

 remain a certain length of time in good condition for 

 sowing, after which it would wither and lose its 

 germinating power. 



"No seed germinates without the help of moisture. 

 Water plays a multiple part. First it soaks into the 

 germ and the parts surrounding it, causing these to 

 swell more than the envelope, so that the latter, how- 

 ever hard a shell it may be, is burst open. Through 

 the cracks of this broken envelope the gemmule 

 pushes out on one side and the radicle on the other, 

 and henceforth the little plant enjoys the benefit of 

 sun and air. Germination is more or less slow ac- 

 cording to the degree of resistance offered by the 

 walls of the seed. If these are hard and stony it is 

 only with extreme slowness that the germ absorbs 



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