The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1897-08-14
HOW SEEDS SCATTER.

The study of the various manners in
which plants disseminate themselves
over the globe would take lifetime.
1t Is one of the fascinating branches of
botany. One remarkable feature is
that different plants belonging to the
same family have entirely different
methods. The oxals or wood sorrel
scatters the seeds by rupture and ever
sion of the valves of the seed pods
which turn inside out
IN geranlum proper, or the cranes
DILL four carpets adheres till ripe to
long, beak-like receptacle. Suddenly
each is released and throws the seed
quite distance.
In the nearly related ''stork's bill"
or erodium, the very long ends of the
carpets are spirally twisted, and beard
ed besides. These tails are extremely
sensitive to hypometric conditions, and
when a carpet falls upon the earth by
alternate changes from wet to- dry it
actually corkscrews itself into the
ground. The same geranium family
presents also the balsams, or touch-me-
nots. The botanical name, impatiens,
as well as the vernacular titles, refer
alike to the impulsive character Of the
capsules. The tense, fully ripened pod
bursts elastically into five valves, thus
dispensing the seed.
So much for single family of plants.
Our gardens and forests offer many
other interesting examples, while the
account of travellers TEEN with illus
trations.
In recent number of the bulletin of
the Torrey botanical club Prof. Byron
D. Halsted points out that the pods of
the we'll known Chinese wistaria are
most effective catapults, expelling their
seeds with pistol like explosion and
scattering them far and wide. Every
one knows that our common witch ha-
eel, hammamelis virginiana-acts SIM
llarly. Each cell of the woody capsule
contains one large bony and shining
seed wedged into cell too narrow to
contain it. The seed is finally elected
with tremendous force and consider
able noise. If one carries home a
fruiting branch of witch hazel and for
gets about it he is alarmed some night
by a violent commandment
Even more surprising is the propul-
sive action of the sand box-hura Gre
pitans-of the West Indies. On one oc-
casion an English traveller. CARRYING
some of these fruit home in a steamer
had them explode in his trunk and with
difficulty proved that he was not dv-
namiter. The squirting cucumber
elects it's seed in fountain like let Of
mucilaginous water.
Natures object in most cases seems
to be not necessarily wide distribution
but the removal of the offspring to a
greater or less distance from the par-
ent. 1t is mistake to consider down.
tufted seeds in all cases to be widely
borne. Much of the thistle down float
ing in the summer air will be found to
have dropped its burden. A. new
chance and better conditions; is sought
for. The struggle of life is rigorous,
unending, cruel; but the emigrant has
new opportunity offered him.
Sir Emerson Tennent,. in his "Cev
lon,' says that the water pink, or snin-
ifex squarrosus, has it's seeds contained
in a globular head, composed of a Sc
ries of spine-like processes. When the
seeds are ready for dispersion. these
heads become detached from the nlant
and roll along the shore, propelled by
the wind, and with extreme velocitv'
The ball, as it rolls, drops it's seed
which at once terminate and strike
root. Moreover-an important nro-
vision for this useful PLAINTIFF ball
will float, giving it an additional chance
for wide change of location.
Readers of Darwin will recall his ar
count of the manner in which wadjny
birds convey seed in mud attached TO
their feet. He found an amazing num-
Der of different kinds: of seeds on the
feet of one bird and caused them to
grow. Seeds are likewise borne the
world over by the operations of com
merce. Adherent to bales of cotton
or wool, sticking to the fleece or fur Of
animals or to the very clothing of man.
they span oceans and traverse CONT
uents. ,-. .E-a. .-#~ -H