"Now, little girl," said Fred, "while we sit here and watch your plants, let us have a chat about them. Do you know why they were drooping and dying?""I suppose," said Norah, "it was because they were thirsty and wanted water.""Yes," Fred replied, "that"s right. But it was worse than that. They were not only thirsty through the great heat; they were dying, because they were actually being starved in the midst of plenty of food.
"The soil in the flowerpots contained an abundance of food, of exactly the kind they required, but it was useless to the plants till it had been dissolved by water.
"By soaking the pots a few minutes we dissolved some of the substances in the soil, and then the little roots were able to suck up those things in a state of solution.
"You know that the root is the feeding organ of every plant. You will now understand that, but for this solvent power of water, no single plant could live and grow.""I have always noticed," said Norah, "how freshand bright and beautiful the plants in the garden look after a shower of rain.""Yes," said Fred; "they do. But you must remember that it is not the rain itself that does this.