Which plant can move from place to place?
We know plants have life and need air, water and soil to
live. But plants normally cannot move like animals, and stay rooted to the spot
where they grow. But an unusual plant that lives in parts of the American West
and the Near East can actually move from place to place in search of water.
This is a desert plant and is known as the ‘resurrection plant’. Whenever there is enough water around, it
grows just like any other plant, with green fernlike leaves.
But when water is not available, it pulls up its roots and
dries up. But it does not die. It just becomes a ball of brown twigs and looks dead.
This lightweight ball is carried along the ground with the
wind and can live roaming like this for many years until finds water. Then it
stops roaming and sinks its roots into the wet ground and starts growing again.
Which plant produces gum?
The sticky substance we call gum is used to stick papers together. It has many more uses than you had ever imagined.
Almost all different kinds of gums are made from plants.
These are dispersible in cold or hot water to produce viscous mixtures. The adhesiveness,
viscosity and gel-forming tendency of different kinds of gums depends on the
kind of plant material used for them as well as the quality of the solvent (liquid)
used for dissolving them.
Chemically, gum is made of acid molecules combined with sugar
molecules. Gums are used in many food items. The chewing gum all children love
contains gum. Gums are also used in making candy and medicines. They are used
as stabilizers and thickeners in many food items.
Gums are used in making ink, cloth, paper, paints, cosmetics,
etc. Manufacturers of straw items, such as straw hats, and straw baskets, use a
special kind of gum to stiffen the straw.
The trees that give us some of the most useful gums are
found in hot, semi-arid regions on Earth. Many countries in Asia, Africa, and
South America produce good-quality gums.
How long can trees
live?
Some trees can live very long, much longer than any animal or human being on the earth. The California big trees are a kind of Sequoia tree growing in the Sequoia National Park in California.
Some of these huge trees can grow up to a height of 270 feet.
They are very wide and heavy. The biggest of these trees is almost 26 feet
wide.
Trees are the most important part of our environment. But too
many of them are always being cut down by man which is spoiling our climate and
the air we breathe.
If you plant trees and allow them to grow they can live very
long to protect our environment. Some of the big trees growing in parts of
California are probably thousands of years old, according to scientists!
Can a tree have more
than one trunk?
Yes, a tree that is commonly seen in India, called the banyan tree, has an unusual way of growing. The seeds of the fruits of this tree are dropped by birds on the branches of other trees, where they take root and start growing.
Soon the new plant sends its shoots down to the ground. These
shoots go deep inside the soil to take root which gradually thickens until each
one forms a trunk. Then each trunk sends more shoots into the soil to support
its weight. Soon the host tree dies, strangled by the trunks and branches of the
banyan tree.
Some banyan trees develop as many as 300 trunks and thousands
of branches. It is also known as the Indian big tree.
Where is the fastest-growing plant found?
In the jungles of Indonesia, a plant called Krubi is found. This plant is especially important for two of its qualities – firstly it grows very fast, faster than any other plant on earth, and secondly, it forms the biggest group of flowers in the plant kingdom.
The Krubi looks something like an overgrown tulip, with a
long spike growing upward out of its centre. The part that looks like a tulip is
a group of folded leaves and the tall spike has a large number of tiny flowers
on it.
A full-grown krubi can be more than six feet tall. The
biggest ones of these can reach a height of fifteen feet and can be eight feet
wide at its widest point. The point has a short life. It grows so quickly that
within a matter of days, it may sprout from the ground, reach a height of about
ten feet and die!
What are sea fans?
Different types of corals are found in the sea. One variety, known as horn coral gives us flat fan-like structures which are called sea fans. They look pretty and are not of any other particular use except their ornamental appearance.
Sea fans vary in their growth pattern and colour. They wave
gently inside the seawater because of their somewhat flexible build. Like other
corals, sea fans are also the skeletons of the tiny sea animals called coral
polyps.
Besides sea fans, sea whips and sea feathers belong to the same group differing mainly in the skeleton pattern. Sea pens
and sea pansies are also found in similar circumstances but are fleshier.
Some sea pens are short and stout while some others are as
long as 6 feet. Sea pens are also usually luminescent. Sea fans and similar
corals are found in shallow warm sea waters.
What are seaweeds?
Seaweed, as the name suggests is found in seawater. Seaweeds belong to a group of water plants called algae. Algae don’t look like the usual plants we see around us, because they don’t have similar leaves, stems, roots or flowers. They are called plants because they contain chlorophyll which is the most essential distinguishing feature of plants.
Seaweeds are usually brown or red to look at. They don’t look
green because their chlorophyll is hidden by other pigments.
Some of these plants attach themselves to rocks with the help
of their root-like organs.
There are different varieties of seaweed found in oceans.
One of the varieties, help has a good amount of potash in it and is hence used
as fertilizer. They are also a good source of iodine.
Another seaweed called Irish Moss is a source of agar which is used as a food item. Agar is a colourless substance that is used in thickening soups and other foods.