Mifcellanea Curiofo. 205 



Plants pro/per and thrive very greatly in Water. 

 The other is this ; they take a certain quantity 

 of Earthy and bake it in an Oven j then they 

 weigh it, and put it into an Earthen Pot. Ha- 

 ving well water'd "this Earth* they make choice 

 of fome fit Plant, which, being firft carefully 

 weighed, they fet in it. There they let it grow, 

 continuing to water it for fome time, till 'tis 

 much advanced in bignefs : Then they take it 

 up 5 and though the Bulk, and Weight of the 

 Plant be much greater than when firft fet, yet 

 upon baking the Earth, and weighing ir, as at firft, 

 they find it little or not at all diminifhed in 

 weight ; and therefore conclude, 'tis not the 

 Earth but Water, that nouriflies and is turnd 

 into the Subftance of the Plant. 



I muft confefs I cannot fee how this Experi- 

 ment can ever be made with the nicety and juftnefs 

 that is recjuifite, in order to build upon it fb 

 much as thefe Gentlemen do. 5 Tis hard to weigh 

 Earth in that quantity, or Plants of the f%e of 

 thofe they mention, with any great exatlnefs j 

 - or to bake the Earth with that accuracy, as to 

 reduce it twice to juft the fame Drinefs. But I 

 may wave all this ; for though the Experiment 

 be never fb eafily practicable, and all the Acci- 

 dents of it exactly as they fet forth, yet nothing 

 like what they infer can pofiibly be concluded 

 from it 5 unlefs Water, which they fo plentifully 

 beftow upon the Plant in this Experiment, be pure, 

 homogeneous, and not charged with any t err eft ri- 

 al Mixture j for if it be, the Plant after all 

 may owe its Growth and Encreafe intirely to 

 that. 



Some 



