lO ELEMENTARY TREATISE ON STOCK FEEDS AND FEEDING 



same plant show a great variation in water content. We have all 

 no doubt noticed that certain fruits like the apple, pear, lemon, 

 plum, peach, strawberry, etc., and roots and tubers as the turnip, 

 beet, radish, carrot, Irish potato, etc., contain a great deal of 

 water. Perhaps some have not heretofore thought that sub- 

 stances like corn grain, wheat kernel, rice kernel, the several 

 grain straws, etc., have water present. The following table gives 

 us the percentage of water in some familiar plants and parts of 

 plants. 



Fruits Foragb Pi,ants (green) 



Per cent. Per cent; 



Apple 80.0 Alfalfa 71-8 



Grape 83.0 Corn 79-3 



Peach 88.4 Cowpea 83.6 



Pear 83.1 Sorghum 79.4 



Strawberry 90.2 Timothy... .. 61.6 



Roots and Tubers Cereai,s and Straws 



Beet (mangel) 90.9 Corni(grain) 10.6 



Carrot 88.6 Oats (grain) 11. o 



Irish potato ••• • 78.9 Rice (rough) 10.9 



Sweet potato 71. i Rye straw • 7.1 



Ttirnip 90.5 Wheat straw 9.6 



Water in Young and Mature Plants. — The percentage of water 

 in young plants is greater than in mature plants. This is easily 

 accounted for because the young plant uses a great deal of 

 water in transferring food materials required for its growth. 

 The Maine State College conducted an investigation on Timothy 

 with the following results:^ 



Water Water 



Per cent. Per cent. 



Nearly headed out 78.7 Out of blossom 65.2 



In full blossom 71.9 Nearly ripe 63.3 



The results on Timothy are similar to what would be found 

 with other plants. It follows that the more mature a plant is, 

 the easier it is to field cure. 



Active cells in plants contain more water than do the older or 

 less active cells and this may account for the larger percentage 

 of water found in young plants. 



1 Jordan, " The Feeding of Animals." 



