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the: story of the; oak trff 
And with Spring the germ within the acorn, the magic, 
mysterious, living germ begins to grow. The acorn 
bursts into life! You 
have seen onions sprout, 
have you not, when the 
cook left them too long 
in the warm kitchen 
cupboard? Well, the 
acorn sprout curves 
down into the earth, 
feeling for the moisture 
which feeds it. Very 
soon after this first 
shoot has taken hold, 
another shoot grows up 
to the air, feeling in its 
turn for light and for 
the plant food con¬ 
tained in the air. The downward growth is the root, 
and the other is the crown growth, because stem, 
branches and leaves together are called the crown of 
the tree, For a time the growth of both root and 
stem is sustained by food that has been stored in the 
acorn by the mother tree, but soon the tiny root hairs 
along the outside of the roots become strong enough to 
absorb their own moisture. 
