94 
Keport of the Horticulturist op the 
the stalks, with the ears intact, of each row were weighed, after which 
the ears were husked, assorted and weighed, with the following result: 
Corn — The Influence of Root-pruning the Young Plants. 
ItOOT-PRUNED. 
NOT BOOT-PRUNED. 
Weight of stalks 
with ears. 
Number of mer- 
chantable ears. 
Weight of mer- 
chantable ears. 
Total number of 
ears. 
Total weight. 
Weight of stalks , 
with ears. 
Number of mer- 
chantable ears. 
Weight of mer- 
chantable ears. 
Total number of 
ears. 
Total weight. 
No. of Row. 
1 
lbs. 
38% 
42 
41 
42 
45 
32 
48 
37 
lbs. 
13% 
15% 
13 
17% 
12 
80 
86 
78 
83 
81 
lbs. 
19%. 
22 
20 
23# 
17% 
No. of Row. 
2 
lbs. 
55% 
503^ 
55% 
53% 
64 
55 
56 
64 
lbs. 
26 
21 
22K 
24% 
90 
79 
95 
90 
lbs. 
29% 
25% 
28 
29 
3 
4 
6 
8 
Average .. 
Average .. 
53 le 
59% 
23% 
88% 
28 
40 % 
8l| 
20 20 
From the table it is strikingly evident that the root-pruning in this 
case was injurious. If we calculate the product of merchantable corn 
per acre from the average yields, allowing eighty pounds of the freshly 
husked ears to represent a shelled bushel, it appears that the root- 
pruned portion yielded at the rate of thirty-two bushels and twenty- 
three pounds, and the portion not root-pruned at the rate of fifty-two 
bushels and seventy pounds; in other words, the root-pruning, as per- 
formed, made the difference between a poor and a good crop. The 
season, on the whole, from the time the corn was planted until the 
end of the first week in July, proved exceptionally dry. It should be 
remembered, however, that the pruning was performed at times when 
the soil was not in a dry condition. 
Too much stress must not be placed upon the result of a single trial, 
but the outcome of this experiment is certainly suggestive. 
Is the Location of Roots in the Soil Governed More by Temperature 
or Fertility? 
In 1886, several different garden plants were grown in three-inch 
drain tiles, set full length in the soil, in a vertical position, with the 
bottom open, and the space within filled with fertile soil.* It was 
observed that in every case where the plant made a good growth, the 
roots had penetrated through the tile to the bottom, after which they 
turned upward, growing in this direction until they reached the fertile 
layer of soil near the surface, when they changed their direction again, 
* See Report New York Agricultural Experiment Station, 1886, p. 1(37. 
