“They have neither leaf marks on them, nor buds,” said Frank, “I think they must be roots.”
“They are roots,” said Uncle George, “but they are food supplies all the same.
“There are other underground stems that grow quickly. Good examples of these are mint, couch grass, and sand sedge. The underground stems of these plants grow so fast that they are always occupying new ground. They have therefore no need to store up a food supply like their slower growing neighbours the primrose, potato, anemone, iris, and many others.”
Exercises on Lesson XI.
1. Dig up a primrose plant, and make a rough sketch showing underground stem, roots, and leaves. 2. An underground stem may be of use to a plant in three different ways. Can you name them? 3. There are two distinct kinds of underground stems—those that grow quickly and those that grow slowly. Name three of each kind, and tell how they differ in shape. 4. Compare a potato with a horse-chestnut twig. Supposing your twig to be swollen out with plant-food, what parts of it do the “eyes” of the potato represent? What do the {scars/marks} near the “eyes” represent?
XII.—CATERPILLARS.
“We found these upon the dead-nettle.” As he spoke, Frank opened a small cardboard box and showed his uncle half a dozen large, hairy caterpillars.
Larva Cage.
“Splendid,” said Uncle George. “We will just put these into the cage.”