Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1899-04-24
MOVEMENT IN PLANTS

Trees are living things like our
selves, and this gives them special in
terest for us. Living things have what
we call organs, or instruments by
means of which the life or life princi
pal acts and performs it's work. Sc
the trees have many such organs as
we have, and thereby resemble us
They have organs by which they take
in food they have lungs by which they
breathe, and they have organs of di
gestion and circulatory apparatus
by which their food is prepared and
carried to all parts of them and causes
them to grow and reach their perfec.
ton
The tree cannot move about from
place to place as we and most animals
| DO. But they are none the less alive
although they remain in the same
| place all the time. There are many
plants also that have a limited power
| or motion. There are what we call
the climbing plants. which climb
trees or walls just as truly as boys
often do. Most plants love the light
and sunshine, and these climbing
plants seem to climb up for the pur-
pose of getting out of the shade of 9TH
er plants and securing to themselves
the needed light. SO they lay hold of
any upright object near them, a stick
or a tree, and winding around 1t, or
fastening their tendrils to it, climb I'D.
Here there is motion all the time, and
1t can be seen very easily, especially
when such climber as the morning
glory fastens upon short support.
When 1t gets to the top of this 1t Is
not satisfied, but wants to go higher;
so you may see II reaching out side
ways and feeling around to find n new
support and it will sweep entirely
around n circle, from right to left or
from left to right, in order to find
something to lay hold of by which 1t
may rise still farther.
Then there are plants, like the vir-
gina creeper and the Japanese and
/ English ivies, which climb walls or
other objects by means of tendrils.
which they stretch out like arms. and
which sometimes have at their ends
little disks like the suckers which
boys make out Of leather and with
which they lift stones and other
things. The Nenus's fiytrap shows
motion in different way. 1t has at
the end Of Its leaves all expansion like
two leaves of a book ready to fold to-
gether, or like the shells of q clam.
Around the margin of these leaves are
bristles with other more delicate ones
In the centre. When an insect alights
on the open leaves and touches the
centre briStles, the leaves shut to-
gether 80 quickly that it Is caught and
held there until It dies. Other plants
show motion in different ways. The
locust tree and some others fold I'D
their leaves at night as though prepar-
Ing to sleep, and spread them open
again In the morning. In all trees, al
so, there Is in the roots Il constant
movement, at least during the growing
season of the year. At the very be-
ginning of its life the root as 1t sprouts
from the seed insists upon going down
ward into the earth. Turn the sprout-
ing acorn so that Its root or radcle
shall point upward, and very soon it
will turn and double upon itself, If
necessary, in order to take a down.
ward course and though you turn it
again and again, it will persist In its
determination and die II necessary
rather than give up the struggle. So
when tree is established and grow
Ing, though its stem must remain in
the same place, its roots are all the
while pushing out in various direc-
tons, winding around obstacles of
one kind or another in pursuit of mois.
ture and nourishment and making
their way steadily on so that nothing
will so well describe the character of
that part of the tree which is under
ground az to say it is in state of mo-
; tion. Darwin, the eminent naturalist,
goes so far as to claim that all the
growing parts Of plants above as well
as below ground, manifest voluntary
motion, describing circles or circular
spirals continually, "circumnutating,"
as he calls this movement "If we
look he says, "for instance. at n
great acacia tree, we may feel assured
that every one of the innumerable
growing shoots is constantly describ.
ing small ellipses as is each petiole.
subpetole and leaflet."
The action of the life principle In the
: trees also often manifest astonishing
!, , force. Darwin found that the trans
! verse growth Of the radicle of n
, sprouting bean was able to displace a
weight OF 3 pounds four ounces in one
. Ease and 8 pounds ounces in another.
One can hardly walk where trees arc
growing among rocks without seeing
), instances OF the splitting asunder of
|, great masses of them by the growth
Of the tree roots which have gained
entrance into their crevices when
small. and in growing have expanded
with irresistible force. So, also, it is
. common thing to see the walls of
buildings disturbed and much injured
by the roots of trees growing near
!, them. Experiments made by Profess
i sor Clark, at Amherst College, led him
J TO think that the force exerted by n
squash in growing was equal to about
: 5000 pounds.
i Darwin. speaking OF the motion of
Il the root-tps of plants, says:
ut is hardly an exaggeration to saw
that the tip of the radicle, thus en-
lowed and having the power of direct
ng the movements of the adjoining
parts. acts like the brain of one Of the