The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1869-12-10

TranSplanting 1t Night.

ONO Stale Bolrl of Agriculture. and
icel quite sure thai all OF Il readers viii
hc Interested in lis novel suggestions.-
En.l
In Hearth and Home for October 23d
j. short article discussing The benefits OF
tran~p.anting n night. and al the same
time soliciting further Information on
t.r subject.
some sen ye,a. ago, ] had two dangil-
tiers, 0nc'ton and Tie Other seven yeaisoi
age. five wears later. tie Younger eA-
,hlu-cd mortality for Immortality
Width these daughters | spent every
saturday, in ,prin- and Summer. an lie
wood, collecting Vii. flowers amt pidnI>
ior studies in b0tauy. One saturday
evening IN Mas. wn fingered gaianr later
t,ian usu..l lin Tie waot> Ia iaci, tllc san
ST while we iisi yci more tiitl a iilic OF
forest 10 traverse. Du; the moon rose be-
io.e the -tn ST.. 80 il.al The alr Wi> ra.ii-
CT more pieascni ihan III daylight. While
there was ,g;licient iI:rh, 10 see tie
plants. a. va were emerging rom he
woods. tie Youngest daughter !oUnd a
ciuaIp o. Po.eiuoaitiN rcptaiis III G.Goai
and beggcd me 10 take up = iulic!a D!
the roofs lu plant in her ao~Wel-saitlen.
oar boi!ly-UUXes were tuil TO overflow
in.. 50 that Tie only way 10 take q bunch
home was 10 carry Il III The hand. did
50. and planted IL il her garden us soon
n. we came TO the house. she called
l.cr mother 10 see her beautiful blue
flowers in the little iowcr-bed By mool-
liSh:. Her mother admired them very
Ilurh. ana wislledi 10 havca bunch for her
tower-ucd. Next morning before sunrise,
| wcudcd my way TO the woods with Il
sheet oil stout paper III which 10 wrap up
the plants but the sun rose before | was
successful in my search. and after ind
ing them ! suppose the sun shonc ali
over them. roo and all. before | packed
them in the paper: then. then, too. L
shook oil Il considerable portion OF the
soil, that tile entire package might 90.
into a coat-pocket. This last package or
lot of flowers was planted Immediately
upon arriving at home; but they wilted
and dropped long before sunset, while
those planted the previous evening did
not wilt ut all! This phenomenon set
me to thinking"
Mymoiher always selected Il cloudy and
if possible. Il rainy day to transplant
cabbage ;and gave as her reason therefor
that 1.-The sunlight absorbed the moisture
the plants before the roots could
imbibe Il sufficient quantity TO meet the
demand; but that if plants could be
tran splanted twentv-four or more hours
without the sunlight TO absorb moisture.
then they would not wilt, but grow on
without Interruption" This explanation
occurred to me at once; but it was not
satisfactory besides, mother believed in
the doctrine that plants breathed that
is. that they inhaled carbon in daylight
and cxhaled ii at night-a doctrineI
which | abandoned shortly after | conf
menccd the study Of plants or vegetable
physiology. Them. too, mother knew
nothing of the wonderful chemical dis-l
coyeries of Daguerre, by which a shad-I
ow became, so to say, Il ponderous sub
| believed, even when l transplantedl
Polemoniums, that ii. with such
rude aparatus and crude materials as the
is compelled TO employ in his
m%anipulations, he can transtiX Il shadow,
and really transform it into a substance
or rather if the shadow will, according
to its density. cause a thicker or thinner
deposit Of chemicals TO take place on a
metallic or glass p!ate-then why may
not Nature. with her very delicate and
apparatus, and almost e~thereaIly
refined material, separate oxygen, and
transfix the carbon in sunlight, SO that
no carbon is exhaled from the plant in
DAYTIME while at night, when there is
no sunlight, the carbon escapes or is ex-
creted.
The chemist causes a deposit to take
place on n sensitively prepared metallic
plate on the place indicated by the pres
ence or absence OF a shadow. Is the
dagucrrean's or photographers metallic
or glass plate any more sensitive when
chemically prepared to receive the i'm
preston of a shadow than is the root,
rootlet. or spongiole of a plant! If, then
the very tender and sensitive root or
rootlet be exposed to the sunlight [actinic
rays, Of course,) why may not this sun
light cause the exterior of the root or
rootlet to lose its dclicacy and sensitive
ness. and prevent it from performing
the functions Of celebrating food for the
plant from the earth! This loss of SEN
sitiveness and delicacy OF structure is
manifested by the wiltcd and dropping
condition Of the plant; but so soon as
the indurated portion of the root is re-
moved or thrown of, then the root, as
the French express it, functions again.
j offer this as my contribution on this,
10 me, very interesting subject. l have
related : perhaps at great lcngth-the
incident which first directed my attention
- A.. 49, M A.