Elements of agricultural chemistry, in a course of lectures of the Board of Agriculture / [Sir Humphry Davy].

  • Davy, Humphry, Sir, 1778-1829.
Date:
1814
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Elements of agricultural chemistry, in a course of lectures of the Board of Agriculture / [Sir Humphry Davy]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    28/532 (page 10)
    ganized matter; and is thus in its vernal and au- tumnal flow, the cause of the formation of new parts, and of the more perfect evolution of parts al- ready formed. In this part of the enquiry I shall endeavour to connect together into a general view, the observa- tion of the most enlightened philosophers who have studied the physiology of vegetation. Those of Grew, Malpighi, Sennebier, Darwin, and, above all, of Mr. Knight. He is the latest enquirer into these interesting subjects, and his labours have tended most to illustrate this part of the economy of nature. The chemical composition of plants has within the last ten years, been elucidated by the experi- ments of a number of chemical philosophers, both in this, and in other countries; and it forms a beau- tiful part of general chemistry; it is too extensive to be treated of minutely,; but it will be necessary to dwell upon such parts of it, as aflbrd practical inferences. If the organs of plants be submitted to chemical analysis, it is found that their almost infinite diver- sity of form, depends upon difierent arrangements and combinations of a very few of the elements; seldom more than seven or eight belong to them, and three constitute the greatest part of their orga- nized matter; and according to the manner in .which these elements are disposed, arise the differ-