Botany; Geotropism; Plants -- Irritability and movements
Phaseolus multiflorus: Sensitiveness of the apex of the
Radicle.—Fifty-nine radicles were tried with squares
of various sizes of the same card-like paper, also with bits of thin
glass and rough cinders, affixed with shellac to one side of the apex.
Rather large drops of the dissolved shellac were also placed on them
and allowed to set into hard beads. The specimens were subjected to
various temperatures between 60° and 72° F., more commonly at about the
latter. But out of this considerable number of trials only 5 radicles
were plainly bent, and 8 others slightly or even doubtfully, from the
attached objects; the remaining 46 not being at all affected. It is
therefore clear that the tips of the radicles of this Phaseolus are
much less sensitive to contact than are those of the bean or pea. We
thought that they might be sensitive to harder pressure, but after
several trials we could not devise any method for pressing harder on
one side of the apex than on the other, without at the same time
offering mechanical resistance to its growth. We therefore tried other
irritants.
The tips of 13 radicles, dried with blotting-paper, were thrice touched
or just rubbed on one side with dry nitrate of silver. They were rubbed
thrice, because we supposed from the foregoing trials, that the tips
were not highly sensitive. After 24 h. the tips were found greatly
blackened; 6 were blackened equally all round, so that no curvature to
any one side could be expected; 6 were much blackened on one side for a
length of about 1/10th of an inch, and this length became curved at
right angles towards the blackened surface, the curvature afterwards
increasing in several instances until little hooks were formed. It was
manifest that the blackened side was so much injured that it could not
grow, whilst the opposite side continued to grow. One alone out of
these 13 radicles became curved from the blackened side, the
curvature extending for some little distance above the apex.
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