18 HINTS ON SOILS AND FERTILIZERS 
intestines. If one has occasion to examine the 
roots of a plant very minutely, he will discover 
that besides the main large roots, there are a 
great number of very small, hair-like, slender 
threads, that are attached to the larger, coarser 
roots. These slender filaments are the real 
food gatherers for the plant. They" have a 
habit of working their way through the soil 
particles, and winding themselves around these 
soil grains. They do not “eat” these soil par¬ 
ticles, as many suppose, but rather, they sim¬ 
ply absorb the moisture contained on the sur¬ 
face of the soil grains, or “soak it up,” as it is 
sometimes expressed. This is simply a process 
of osmosis, commonly known to any school boy. 
The moisture contained on the surface of the 
soil grains is largely composed of water, but 
this water contains a small amount of the ele¬ 
ments that we discussed in our last chapter, 
in solution. That is the important point. Now 
let us see what the plant does with the solu¬ 
tion of minerals and salts in this water. If 
we could trace this solution with the naked eye, 
after it is taken up by the fine rootlets of the 
plant, we would see this solution travel up to¬ 
ward the main roots of the plant. If the plant 
happened to be a root crop, such as a potato 
plant, this main root would be very much en¬ 
larged, especially towards the later stages of 
maturity. But let us continue with our “solu¬ 
tion.” The liquid solution continues its progress 
upwards, through the stem of the plant until 
dt finally reaches the leaves of the plant. Now 
perhaps you are commencing to wonder what 
the plant does with all this water, and such a 
