FROM ROOT TO LEAF 



never become so 

 large and strong 

 as the stems of 

 trees which have 

 their wood in lay- 

 ers. It is not 

 an arrangement 

 which is so well 

 suited to great 

 size and strength. 

 The water as- 

 cends through the 

 xylem of the 



Stems as readily as FIG. 32. Cross section of corn stem showing the scat- 



through the xylem tered arran 8 ement of bundles. 



of the roots. It becomes indistinguishable from the sap 

 of the plant. It is the sap. It 

 continues to move up. 



If the cut ends of vigorous young 

 branches are immersed in red ink 

 and left in the sunlight for a few 

 hours, the ink will enter the stems. 

 Its color reveals the path which 

 the ascending sap follows. (See 

 Figure jj.) 



The vascular bundles branch 

 out from the stems and enter the 

 leaves. Here they are called veins. 

 Hold a thin leaf to the light and 

 see the delicate tracery of the veins. 

 (See Figure 34.} Into every part 

 of the blade they penetrate. 



FIG. 33. Apple twigs split to 

 show the course of colored 

 water up the stem. After 

 Hunter. 



