The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1906-06-05
INGENUITY Of LIVING PLANTS,
Method by Which They Extract Food
and Resist Enemies.

Tnere are many plants Wnlcn dls-
play an ingenuity in gaining food or
in attacking their enemies which
would seem to indicate surprising
degree Of intelligence. Since plants
are rooted to their places, they are
naturally greatly handicapped, but
many Of them have surprising COM
pensations. There is, for example,
the telegraph plant, of India, which
has method all its own for catch
Ing the sunshine Each of its leaves
is composed of three leaflets. The
larger terminal one erects itself dur
ing the day and turns sharply down
at night. describing complete circles
with O peculiar, Jerking motion like
the second hand of watch. Occa-
then go on again, thus bringing
every part of every leaf to the full
action of the sunlight. Many plants
| shift the position of their leaves as
| the direction of the light changes.
This power Is possessed to a consid-
erable degree by some of our COM
mon house plants.
Should a drop of water or bit of
sand or dirt fall upon the gland
studded leaves of the sundew moth
ing more happens than as If they
had been dropped upon the leaf of
any ordinary plant; but let an Insect
or a bit of meat take the place of
these innutritious substances, and
you shall see the tentacular glands
gradually bend over, and, assisted by
the curling up of the leaf itself, en-
fold the esculent morsel and cover
1t with digestive fluid, which at
once dissolves 1t and adapts 1t to be
assimilated by the Insect eating
plant. But it Is worthy of note that
the instinct of the plant, under GER
tain exceptional circumstances, like
the instinct of insects, sometimes
goes wrong; for the sundew as
eagerly accepts morsels of cheese as
1t does of any other nitrogenous sub
stance, and cheese Is poison to the
Drosera plant. The sundew Is not
the only plant which exercises choice
and discrimination in the selection OF
its food. In and about the sWamps OF
North Carolina, and indeed in many
other parts of the United States, is
found the Dionoea, or Venus fytrap
1t has, as has the Drosera, very small
roots, which, like those belonging tc
the sundew, serve only to give 1t 6
foothold, and supply 1t with mois
ture; and plant captures the foot
necessary to its subsistence.
The leaf In this instance is con
structed like a steel trap, the two
halves swapping together and the
marginal teeth interlocking as dC
the teeth of q trap. Long, sensitive
bristles, generally three in number
, arranged In a triangular order, erec
themselves upon the upper surface
of the trap. Touched ever so slight,
by a lowering or flying insect, the,
transmit an impulse which in an ami
NAL would be called a mandate of 1t
will, to the muscles or the machin
cry that moves the lobes of the trap
and so instantly Is this obeyed tina
these lobes close upon the insect ant
capture 1t Inorganic bodies PLACED
upon the lobes, unless they touch tn,
sensitive filaments, do not caus,
them to close; organic bodies, whel
moistened and placed upon the lea
cause it, after absorption has begun
to take place, to close slowly.
, The lobes may be made to clos,
, over either organic or inorganic sub
stances, but with a difference. Whel
an inorganic substance is place.
upon the leaf and one of the sensi
tive bristles is touched the leaf In
deed shuts up, but in such a name
as to leave a hollow space between
the lobes of the trap, as II the plan
were tasting the substance to see 1
1t were At for food When, on tn
l other hand, an organic substanc
: falls upon the leaf both lobes pres
against 1t and against each othe
with force enough to flatten out
portion of the white of hard boile
egg that they have been made t
close upon. Again, when any innu
tritious substance is caught tn
glands are not excited to secrete tn
= digestive fluid, and the lobes 500
open, freeing the substance an
showing 1t perfectly dry. If the oh
JOSI Sou6hI 10 IoO W uldhC
|. worth the attention of the plant it /
l allowed to escape between the inter
;, locking teeth; but If the quarry b
large enough and of a nutrition
4 character the lobes will remain fiat
tened together over 1t for f1fteer
, twenty-four or even thirty-five days
Norwegian Load Line,