AGRICULTURE FOR SOUTHERN SCHOOLS. 7 
Lesson 9. — Composition of Plants. 
1. Organic v. inorganic matter. 
2. Crude fiber. 
3. Carbohydrates. 
4. Proteids. 
5. Fats. 
Illustrative material . Chart showing composition of plants. 
SOILS. 
(36 lessons, 18 periods for practical work.) 
References: Any of the general texts in soils. Also, United States Depart- 
ment of Agriculture Bulletin 355, Extension Course in Soils. Price List No. 46, 
United States Public Documents Relating to Soils (for sale by the Superinten- 
dent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C). 
Lesson 1. — Weather and Water in Soil Making. 
1. Weathering of rocks. 
2. Work of water. 
3. Ice as a factor. 
Lesson 2. — Work of Plants and Animals. 
1. Lichens and mosses. 
2. Stems and roots. 
3. Work of animals. 
4. Sources of organic matter in the soil. 
5. Life in the soil. 
Illustrative material : Stones upon which lichens, mosses, or other plants 
are growing. 
Lesson 3. — Transportation of Soils. 
1. Residual soils. 
2. Gravity as a factor — colluvial soils. 
3. Water as a factor — alluvial soils. 
4. Ice as a factor — glacial soils. 
5. Wind as a factor — loessial soils. 
Exercise 4. — A Field Study of Soils. 
Purpose: To determine the nature of soil and to study the various 
processes of' formation and transportation. 
Directions : In connection with a study of soil formation the entire 
class should be taken to a near-by railroad cut, a gully washed by 
water, or some excavation where the students may study the relation 
of the soil to the subsoil and the underlying rock and note the effects 
of the various agencies in the formation and modification of soils. 
Record and report: A written report, which should be required 
of each student, should bring out, with any notes of special interest, 
answers to the following questions : Are the soils of the neighborhood 
visited residual or transported? What relation, if any, do you note 
between the nature of the prevailing types of soils and the rocks 
which prevail in the district? What is the difference between the 
soil and subsoil? What particular effects, if any, did you note of 
the action of water in the making of soils? What are the effects of 
water in the transportation of soils? What effects of lichens, mosses, 
