Fisherman & farmer. [volume] (Edenton, N.C.) 1887-19??, 1900-04-27
THE BOERs' FLY TRAP.
a Plant That Suffers with Indigestion
-Professor Macfarlane Talks Of
His Botanical Curiosities.

Here Is the American form of that
remarkable plant which the South Afri-
can Dutch use for catching flies"
Professor J. NJ. Macfarlane, Of the
University Of Pennsylvania, who made
the remark quoted, was making tour
of inspection of the greenhouses just
back Of the Botanical Laboratory. AS
he spoke he reached out and touched
an odd looking potted plant which
Sprouted tendrilS in place Of ordinary
leaves. Each tendril emitted colorless
viscous fluid, which hung on the points
like beads of sweat on a mans brow.
Wien Professor Macfarlane touched
one Of the beads it clung to his finger
like thin mucilage: the tendrils, too,
Immediately bent inward towards a
common centre with a strange clutch
ing motion. Then, finding nothing to
clutch, they resumed their former posi-
ton
This is a sensitive plant" continued
Professor Macfarlane. This particular
species grows in New Jersey.It is small,
as you see, but in the Transvaal the
plants grow quite. large, and the Beers
hang it up in their houses to catch the
many insect pests that inhabit the re-
gion. It becomes full of insects after a
while. The owner then takes It out to a
trough or pail and rinses it off. The i'm
prisoned flies, most Of them dead, OF
course, are released by q good shaking
in the water, and the fly catcher Is
ready for use again. There now is lit
tie midge just caught in one Of the
fronds.''
It was true. A little green fly floated
down through the air, attracted un-
doubtedly by the shining beads OF
liquor. It hovered above them a mo-
ment and then settled on one. Instant
ly 1t was struggling and trying to jerk
away it's legs, held tenaciously by the
treacherQus juice. Perhaps it might
have succeeded, but the tendrils reach
ed up and closed in on it from all sides
much as one would imagine the death
dealing spikes of the Iron Maiden"
closed in on the helpless criminal of the
middle ages. In a moment the midge
was dead.
'"These plants will go on catching
flies like that until there is almost no
room for more insects" remarked Pro-
fessOr Macfarlane. "A curious result Of
this is that the plant suffers with In
digestion, and has to be treated ac-
cordingly if it is to be brought back to
it's usual standard"
He walked over to another plant and
pinched it on the tip of the topmost
leaf. This plant was shaped like a
miniature palm. each stem carrying a
leaf composed of rows of grass-llke
blades. Almost as soon as he touched
them the first pair Of blades snapped
together, then the next pair followed
suit, then the next pair, and 80 on down
the length Of the frond. When they
had all come together the whole frond
suddenly bent at right angles near the
main trunk of the plant and dropped
downward. AS soon as it dropped the
nerve force which had been anlmatlng
1t was communicated to the frond near
est to it, and that one repeated the gen.
eral performance of the first. And SO 1t
went until nearly the whole plant had
closed up in a manner like an umbrel-
la. Fifteen minutes afterward, when
the irritating effects of the pinch had
thoroughly disappeared, the plant went
through q series of movements the re-
verse Of those just mentioned; in other
words it slowly opened Professor Mac
farlane then picked up a long tubular
glass jar and held it up to the light. 1t
was filled with tendrils and roots.
Last October" he said, II filled this
jar with water, and then, having snip
ped off a single leaf Of one Of our sensl-
tive plants, placed it on the surface of
the water. The plant was one that
grows on land, that is, it was not an
aquatic species. Here-iS the result. Is 1t
not remarkable?'
He lifted the leaf from the jar and
the tendril-like roots trailed after it.
When he held the leaf at arms length
the roots nearly touched the floor. They
were four feet long.
''Those roots,' said Professor Mac
Farlane, grew down to that length in
five months; that is over three-Quar-
ters of a foot a month. Something of
prodigy, is it not %