Studies on carotene in relation to animal nutrition: Part II. The development and distribution of carotene in the plant and the carotene content of some common feeding stuffs

Abstract

1. Under artificial conditions of plant growth, the relative development of carotene is very poor. The absence of sunlight appears to be the main cause.2. Under field conditions, the maturity of a plant plays an active part in determining the carotene content, which gradually decreases with age. This phenomenon is less discernible among the legumes. The nitrogen content generally runs parallel to the carotene.3. The species of the plant seems to be a determining factor in the capacity of the plant for carotene formation.4. A study of the distribution of the carotene in different parts of the same plant shows that the leaves of grasses contain 3·1–11·0 times more carotene than the stems. The earheads and stems have almost equal amounts. With the growth of berseem and lucerne, the ratio of carotene in leaf to carotene in stem shows a tendency to increase, suggesting that the deterioration in the stem is comparatively more rapid than in the leaves when the plant becomes older.