The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1908-06-25

o ovar the one that does, the same
ho,ds ,r,e in plants that produce two
or more ears of corn each.
From this We conclude that these
oar functions found in each OF these
organs exist separate and dls'lhc'
from each other, that the ear CROWN
in one is not influenced in the Ieas'
Nv tbe ear growth in the others. l
am not here speaking of the plant as
monoeceous one, simply Of ear
growth.
Now let US see what makes TINS
ear growth. First, does the food sup
nIied by the root of the plant require
being digested as in animal life be-
fore il can be assimilated by the a
functions and, second, do the organs
from which the roots eminate, thus
prepare the food? We think II Is
conceded that the food must first be
digested or fermented before it can
he assimilated by the plant and,
second, We think not, for if they dld
the ear of corn growing from the con
cave organ nearest the ground would
be in a position to take from the TOO
supply in its upward passage all 1t
could assimilate, and as a result we
should find the largest ear here and
the smallest, if any, above. The re-
verse OF this being true, we conclude
that the food assimilated by the a
functions must be fermented in the
organ from which the ear eminates.
This being true, it is necessary to
know what causes this fermentation.
In a sprout in a kernel of corn it re-
uuires two things to ferment the food
before the young plant can use 1t.
The first is water, the second heat,
Either one of these separately, Will
retard growth and kill the plant but
when properly united they promote
growth. Now in all these organs we
find water containing elements OF food
but not sufficient heat to ferment them,
this element must be taken rom the
atmosphere, namely: carbonic acid.
This is taken from the air by the
leaves through their stomattas situat-
ed on the under side of the leaf and
through the leaf to the organ from
which the leaf eminates; here it is
turned into carbon and the heat thus
generated ferments the food. This
applies alike to all the organs on plants
that have the ear producing func-
ton, hence we conclude that if it re-
uuires this carbon to properly pre-
pare the food for this ear growth
should this supply of carbon at any
time be cut off from one of these or
gans there could be no further ear
growth made in that organ, and as
each of these organs have made some
ear growth the least below, the great
est above, it is evident that the lower
leaves have sustained the greatest in
jury and do not supply a sufficient
amount of carbon to produce an ear
of corn and supply less than the leaves
above it. Infering that the lower
leaves are effected first by the intense
heat reflected back from the ground,
%evaporating the water passing through
| .larn Iaax,nc fnctnr than fhaSD Loaf
organs supply it, causing the pores
in the leaves to become clogged there
by stopping circulation. 1t requires
far less heat than this to injure the
minute capilliaries and stamattas on
| the leaves, and to the extent of this
injury we may largely attribute the
full growth ear of corn, the small
ear of corn or no ear whatever, since
the plant that produces n ear OF
corn and six blanks, and the n that
produces seven blanks can, through
pollenation, transmit this weakness or
tendency to other plants, and this
weakness or non-heat resisting qualit'
les is found to exist in the capilliar-
les and stomattas of the leaves,
through which carbonic acid must
pass to the joint or ear organ to be
used in the fermentation Of its food,
and since all the organs are possessed
of kinetic energy and manufacture
the proteids therein used for ear
growth.
We conclude that the remedy for
the average farmer would be found in
the selection of seeds from plants that
grew two or more ears, and for the
breeder to breed back into the plant
a heat condition of hardness to the
end that more Of these ear organs
may perform the function for which
nature intended them.
l have before me three ears of corn
grown by a single plant in the year
1907 two of which measures each ten
inches in length and the other one
nine inches, the combined weight OF