Fig. 252. Weak, narrow-leaved grasses grow in the cat-tail forest.
Every distinct or separate area has its own plant society. There is one association for the hard-tramped dooryard,—knot-weed and broad-leaved plantain with interspersed grass and dandelions; one for the fence-row,—briars and choke-cherries and hiding weeds; one for the dry open field,—wire-grass and mullein and scattered docks; one for the slattern roadside,—sweet clover, ragweed, burdock; one for the meadow swale,—smartweed and pitchforks; one for the barnyard,—rank pigweeds and sprawling barn-grass; one for the dripping rock-cliff,—delicate bluebells and hanging ferns and grasses. Indefinitely might these categories be extended. We all know the plant societies, but we have not considered them.
In every plant society there is one dominant note. It is the individuality of one kind of plant which grows most abundantly or overtops the others. Certain plant-forms come to mind when one thinks of willows, others when he thinks of an apple orchard, still others when he thinks of a beech forest. The farmer may associate "pussly" with cabbages and beets, but not with wheat and oats. He associates cockle with wheat, but not with oats or corn. We all associate dandelions with grassy areas, but not with burdock or forests.
Fig. 253. The wild grape covers the treetop, and the children play in the bower. The grape is searching for light.
It is impossible to open one's eyes out-of-doors, outside the paved streets of cities, without seeing a plant society. A lawn is a plant society. It may contain only grass, or it may contain weeds hidden away in the sward. What weeds remain in the lawn? Only those which can withstand the mowing. What are they? Let a bit of lawn grow as it will for a month, and see what there is in it. A swale, a dry hillside, a forest of beech, a forest of oak, a forest of hemlock or pine, a weedy yard, a tangled fence-row, a brook-side, a deep quiet swamp, a lake shore, a railroad, a river bank, a meadow, a pasture, a dusty roadway,—each has its characteristic plants. Even in the winter, one may see these societies,—the tall plants still asserting themselves, others of less aspiring stature, and others snuggling just under the snow ([Fig. 251]).
Often these societies are in the nature of overgrowth and undergrowth—one society living beneath another. Of such are forest societies. Few woods are so dark that some plants do not grow on the ground, unless they are evergreen or coniferous woods. Even in humbler communities, the overgrowth and undergrowth are usually apparent if one looks closely. Separate the cat-tails in the dense swamp and see the weak and narrow-leaved grasses growing between ([Fig. 252]). Note the clover, young grasses, and other plants between the grass in the meadow: the farmer says that his meadow has good "bottom."
Some plants even grow on top of other plants. It is their way of getting light. Of such are the climbers. Note the mantle which the wild grape throws over the trees ([Fig. 253]). Often the supporting tree is smothered and killed.
