INTRODUCTION 1✦

CHAPTER I.✦

THE ORGANIC CONSTITUENTS OF PLANTS.

Carbon ... Carbonic Acid ... Hydrogen ... Nitrogen ... Nitric Acid ... Ammonia ... Oxygen ... Sources whence obtained ... The Atmosphere ... The Soil ... Source of the Inorganic Constituents of Plants ... Manner in which the Constituents of Plants are absorbed 8

CHAPTER II.✦

THE PROXIMATE CONSTITUENTS OF PLANTS.

The Saccharine and Amylaceous Constituents ... Cellulose ... Incrusting Matter ... Starch ... Lichen Starch ... Inuline ... Gum ... Dextrine ... Sugar ... Mucilage ... Pectine and Pectic Acid ... Oily or Fatty Matters ... Margaric, Stearic, and Oleic Acids ... Wax ... Nitrogenous or Albuminous Constituents of Plants and Animals ... Albumen ... Fibrine ... Casein ... Diastase 40

CHAPTER III.✦

THE CHANGES WHICH TAKE PLACE IN THE FOOD OF PLANTS DURING THEIR GROWTH.

Changes occurring during Germination ... Changes during the After-Growth of the Plant ... Decomposition of Carbonic Acid ... Decomposition of Water ... Decomposition of Ammonia ... Decomposition of Nitric Acid 54

CHAPTER IV.✦

THE INORGANIC CONSTITUENTS OF PLANTS.

The Amount of Inorganic Matters in Different Plants ... The Relative Proportions of Ash in the Different Parts of Plants ... Influence of the Nature of the Soil on the Proportion of Mineral Matters in the Plant ... The Composition of the Ashes of Plants ... Classification of Different Plants 63