The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1896-03-27
Rowing Seeds,


Did you ever watch the seeds fall
from the sugar maple, or the silver ma
ple-trees often planted in the streets
of our cities: The fruit is two-secded,
each seed being provided with flat
tened projection or wing which spreads
out like fan. The pair are joined
the wings approaching a right angle
with each other. When the fall from
the tree You may see these wings re-
volve like the blades of the screw of a
steamship; and they pillow their way
through the ocean of air, often for long
distances, until they reach the earth.
white ash. and on September days
While away few moments observing
the fruit leave the tree The seeds,
while hanging in what we called in our
childhood punches of keys" arc sim
gle. but, like those of the maple, form
=, samara. that is: they have wing
llke appendage. In this instance the
IS then prolonged like the blade of an
oar; AS soon as it leaves the "bunch
OF Keys the wing revolves in the cur
rent or air. reminding of the action of
an oar i'll sculling. In this way, by au-
tomatic sculllng, many a seed is carried
1ar beyond the area ruled over by the
parent ash tree. and the young plants,
tC thelr progenitor of it's nourishment.
Inc elm has a similar provision. only in
atS Us case the wing extends equally on all
Sldes OF the seed and when set free to
seek ITS fortune the adventurer ilicks mn
ana down, on this side and ON that
IN the oldest hayward fashion. until If
hlds resting place.
VI the many pleasures which await thp
observing eye, the methods of TRANSPORT
hN- r,n &l
.s'Ii's. Inc poppy is provided with a
sort OF pepper dredger, the holes of
"hlch are just under the can. As tho
"ind rattles the dry stalk, or some ami
nlai pushes against it, the small bla ok
grams are thrown broadcast around. The
vloiet with its threc-valved pod dries up.
inside out as it were, thus scattering is
seeds with force enough to throw Them
10 some distance. In the south of Flu.
rope grows the squirting cucumber, from
winch we get the drug elaterium. Ry
the action OF the juice on the tissue of
the chamber containing the seeds i,
stfons pressure is set up, and often the
slightest touch will cause an explosion,
IKE mat OF i soda-water bottle, and
OF Old, often falling at a distance of
twenty feet.
Another plant acts more leisurcly. In
stead of flying, or clinging to some ami
mai, or being shot out from it's parent,
1T deliberately sets itself to walk to its
future home. 1t is an ally of the missile.
toe and has a viscid berry Wherever
the seed falls it adheres and there ger
inmates. When the radole has become
about an inch long it developers a flat
tened disk at its extremity, and then
curves about until the disk touches some
neighboring surface. Should it find the
locality Il suitable one. it proceeds at
once to grow. If not, it lifts itself up,
tears the yiscid berry from its hold,
twists itself in Il new direction. depos-
its the berry again. lifts up the disk and
tries new spot, repeating the process
until its wants arc satisfied. This
strange plant is an arceuthohium and is
parasitic on jumpers. \ relative of it,
characteristic on beech trees, is provid-
cd with four long hattcned appendages
by which it anchors itself to the branches
until its sucking disk has Il good hold
There is no need to dwell on the arti-
flee Of conccaling seeds in Il tempting and
succulrnt fruit, but the morality of as
suming Il disguise may be questioned.
Yet such is the plan of Scorpiurus,
which has seeds 50 like caterpillar or
Il centipede that bird may be forgiven
for being deceived into swallowing one
in expectation of u dainty morsel-New
York Post.