Fergus County argus., 1906-09-21

seeds and Suspended Animation
II has often been observed that any
sudden change in the superficial char
acter OF the soil is rapidly followed
by an alteration in the nature Of the
plants growing thereon, new species
appearing where the ground has hither.
to been q stranger to them. Very
many farmers, f0resters, and scientific
men-among others the French bot.
anist Poisson-are inclined to attri.
butte this phenomenon to the retention
Of seeds, bulbs, or spores of former
growth of vegetation in a Quiescept
state, these seeds and growth retain
ing their powers of termination even
after several other successive crops
of plants have grown above them.
Most botanists, however, have doubt
ed the possibility of seeds retaining
heir terminating properties for so
long a time, and have explained the
sudden appearance of strange plants
In different places by natural means
OF seed transmission, as. for instance.
by birds, bees, currents OF air, and
the like. A remarkable fact was once
obsberved by Tn. v. Heldreich at the
mountain called LauriOn in Attica. At
soil and rubble which had been undis-
turbed for ages. there suddenly sprang
up plant unknown heretofore in that
region, viz, glaucium or horned pop
py, accompanied by rich growth of
the fly.catcher or (silene juvenalis)
Del, a plant quite stranger to Attica.
This mystery of plant life has. so
far, been a vexed problem, and several
hov toA
solutiong. A French scientist (M.
F1iche) has recently made some ex-
haustive studies in this connection,
and has observed some interesting
phenomena which have occurred with
specimens of a southern European
plant called wolfs-milk or cypress
spurge (Euphorbia lathyris L.. This
plant is not Indigenous in France; a
few years ago, however, some Nancy
botanists were astonished to find large
quantities of this plant in full BIOS
som in a district where it had never
before been seen, namely, in a two
year old clearing in the large forest
OF Hane in the canton of Petite NAL
pierre. Two years later the plants
had entirely disappeared. Thick
growths were found, however, a short
distance off in another two-year old
clearing, but only few specimens
were encountered in another clearing
which was little over three years old.
FIiche does not doubt but the gradual
disappearance of the plants is due TO
the influence Of steady forest growth,
and not to any inferior seed or pecul-
lar terminating powers thereof. In or
der to determine this point he made
several special clearings on the spot,
and the result of his experiments was
fully to confirm his theory. AS the
part of the forest where the plants
grew was very remote, and seldom Wis
tied by human beings, there was no
question of the seeds having been car
ried there either intentionally or acci-
dentally.
At this spot, over forty years ago,
the remains of large Gallo-Roman iron
works were found. Now Puinius states
that the Romans used the (Euphorbia
lathyris) for medical purposes; Fliche
is consequently convinced that the
plants were originally introduced by
the persons living at the works, that
the seeds lay hidden in the ground
when the forest invaded the territory
in the course of it's growth, and that
they did not awaken from their long
slumber and again seek the surface
till the axe of the modern woodman
cleared the ground and paved the way
for their resurrection. This opens up
quite a new field for the student of
Natures mysteries, and doubtless. as
time progresses, some close observer
will discover more precise data with
which to supplement these brief par
ticulars.