The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1906-03-04

lb31, a thunu0r storm passed over tne lat-
tor country. Mingled with the rain theru
came tho sand Of tho African desert and
the seeds OF the locust tree. Tho familiar
dnndelion La ono of tho greatest wind
travellers. Each secd, surrnounted by "A
littlo delicate parachute. Ia admirably
adapted for an aerial voynge. Crossing
rivers. seas and mountain ranges. II has
tTavcrsed tho wide world.
With the adventurous Peary 1t has on.
tered the Arctic regions, and with the
sailor 1t has crossed the line, appearing
III both Northern and Southern hemis.
pheres.
pheres.
Tho roso OF Jericho utilizes the wind in
peculiar way In seeking fresh woods
and pastures new" for It's offspring. It
Is an annual and as Its seeds ripen the
leaves wtier and the branches dry up
and curl inward, n ball Is thus formed
inside OF which are the seed pods. This
Is soon loosened from the sandy soil
md becomes the plnything OF the wind.
In tho deserts Of Syria and Egypt many
or these balls may be seen drifting about.
When tho rain comes they uncoll and
the seeds may germnnto.
The wind Witch" of the Russian
steppes is n plant which travels In n
similar way This Is sort Of thistle.
which. after Towering, curis up into "
ball. Then the stem rots or and the
plants start Off on the wings OF the
WIND. There they go, careenlng over
tho plains, outstrlpping the swiftest
horsenan. Now they rise suddenly into
the air, hopping and dancing along tho
erratic and fantastic courses. sometimes
they hook on to each other and 10 spin
ming off together. A dozen moro join
them. and the mass rolls lightly along
before the brisk east wind. Some day,
at tho gentle invitation OF the rain,
they VIII uncofl and the seeds grow.
CRACKING OF THEPoDs.
AS you wander by the crur,ps OF furze
and broom in August and September a
little sharp crack! crack resounds on
every side 1t Is the bursting open Of the
Seed-pods and the scattering OF the seeds.
Each pod, in fact, Is n little gun, and the
seeds arc the bullets. Tho oontraotlon of
the pods by drying is the firing OF tho
gun. The outside OF each division OF the
POD contracts most and tends to curl out
ward In time this force overoomes that
which keeps tho divisions OF the nod to-
sether and they spring apart. The seeds
are thus shot out.
Cranes bills. or nativs wild eeranums.
ADOPT tho principle OF the sling. You can
Illustrate the method thus: Hold stone
in each hand. the arms being held down
to the sides. Raise the arms sharply and
az the same time open the hands. The
stones Fly out TO some distance,
This is precisely how the genanfun
scatters Its seeds, only II has five rms
instead OF two. Examine a ripe head of
seeds. The five seeds are arranged at
the cases Of five arms round n central
axis. The outsldes OF these arms con-
tract more quickly as they dry than the
insides. and this gives them a tendency
to curl outward. This is restrained by
the detachments at the bases until tho
force is sufficient to break them. Then
the arm flies suddenly out and throws
away the seed. Selecting n seed at the
right stage and giving 1t a little assist
ance. you may see the singing away of
the seed yourself.
The seed of the dandeloin may blow
anywhere ana not infrequently reaches
places where the young plant cannot
grow, In other plants, however there
are special provisions for getting the
seed into suitable place The man.
grove Is one OF the most interesting NJ
these. 1t grows In salt water swanps
and swallow sea water, and the Young
plants require to be rooted in the mud
II the seeds simply fell and ftoated on
the water they might be carried out TO
sea and perish.
To meet this difficulty tho seed begins
10 grow while still on the tree. /. sends
out It's embryo root In the form Of
thick, solid spike, eight or ten inches
eng and pointing vertically downward.
When the seed falls it's weight carries it
10 the bottom of the shallow water. and
The spike is driven firmly into the mud.
The ylnpf hos
simply to go on growing.
TWO interesting examples occur in the
British flora. The pretty little Ivy leayed
'oadflaX, which grows on old walls wants
20 lodge Its seeds in the hollows and cav
ties OF the mortar. But 1t must needs
keep Its flowers on the outside to bask r.,
me sunshine and spread banquet for
me bee. SO as soon as the flowers give
place to seeds the flower stalks turn right
back and carry the seedpods inside so
hat they may shed their seeds into the
wall. And then there Is that pretty
water buttercup. or crowfoot, whose
white flowers star the ponds in spring,
Inc seeds must be sown in the mud at
ne bottom of the pond So as soon as
inc towering is over the stalks turn
tight over and carry tho seeds down into
The required terminating place.
The mangrove Is not the only plant In
which the problem of dispersal is solved
by the seeds beginning to grow on the
parent tree. In East Africa there Ia
tree known "a the Nyilsa, the seeds Of |
which terminate on the parent plant. |
Here 1t IS the seed leaves which grow
irst instead of the root These form
sort OF parachute. by means of which the
'oung plants are waited through the air
% suitable spots.
some plants prefer to do their travel
ne by sea. IL they are good sailors
hat Is, II they can font and stand long
immersion In salt water-this is a very
Effective way OF reaching the ends OF
he earth. Thus the seeds OF a Wes,
indian plant have been picked up in tho |
iebridcs, having travelled there on the |
iulf Stream. They have even been
picked up on the bleak shores OF spitz-
bergen. In these cases the locality has
proved unfavcrable. but they show how
ar plants may travel this way.
Cocoarlut palms fringe tho shores In |
tropical regions, Blown from tho trees,
the cocoanuts float about in the waters.
And when, through the labors OF tho
coral polype, or the exertions OF the sub
marine volcano. a new island rises In