Botany; Geotropism; Plants -- Irritability and movements
Fragaria (cultivated garden var.): Rosaceae.—A plant growing in a pot
had emitted a long stolon; this was supported by a stick, so that it
projected for the length of several inches horizontally. A glass
filament bearing two minute triangles of paper was affixed to the
terminal bud, which was a little upturned; and its movements were
traced during 21 h., as shown in Fig. 85. In the course of the first 12
h. it moved twice up and twice down in somewhat zigzag lines, and no
doubt travelled in the same manner during the night. On the following
morning after an interval of 20 h. the apex stood a little higher than
it did at first, and this shows that the stolon had not been acted on
within this time by geotropism;[2] nor had its own weight caused it to
bend downwards.
[2] Dr. A. B. Frank states (‘Die Naturliche wagerechte Richtung von
Pflanzentheilen,’ 1870, p. 20) that the stolons of this plant are
acted on by geotropism, but only after a considerable interval of
time.
Fig. 85. Fragaria: circumnutation of stolon, kept in darkness, traced
on vertical glass, from 10.45 A.M. May 18th to 7.45 A.M. on 19th.
On the following morning (19th) the glass filament was detached and
refixed close behind the bud, as it appeared possible that the
circumnutation of the terminal bud and of the adjoining part of the
stolon might be different. The movement was now traced during two
consecutive days (Fig. 86). During the first day the filament travelled
in the course of 14 h. 30 m. five times up and four times down, besides
some lateral movement. On the 20th the course was even more
complicated, and can hardly be followed in the figure; but the filament
moved in 16 h. at least five times up and five times down, with very
little
lateral deflection. The first and last dots made on this second day,
viz., at 7 A.M. and 11 P.M., were close together, showing that the
stolon had not fallen or risen. Nevertheless, by comparing its position
on the morning of the 19th and 21st, it is obvious that the stolon had
sunk; and this may be attributed to slow bending down either from its
own weight or from geotropism.
Fig. 86. Fragaria: circumnutation of the same stolon as in the last
figure, observed in the same manner, and traced from 8 A.M. May 19th to
8 A.M. 21st.
During a part of the 20th an orthogonal tracing was made by applying a
cube of wood to the vertical glass and bringing the apex of the stolon
at successive periods into a line with one edge; a dot being made each
time on the glass. This tracing therefore represented very nearly the
actual amount of movement of the apex; and in the course of 9 h. the
distance of the extreme dots from one another was .45 inch. By the same
method it was ascertained that the apex moved between 7 A.M. on the
20th and 8 A.M. on the 21st a distance of .82 inch.
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