THE ROMANCE OF SEED-SOWING. 141 



In Bitter-cress {Cardamine hirstita), a very common weed 

 on dry, open banks, the pod, at the proper moment, when the 

 seeds are ripe, suddenly rolls its two side-walls outwards and 

 upwards, and the seeds, lightly attached to a central delicate 

 membrane, are scattered six or seven feet away from the 

 plant. Even a puff of wind is sufficient to effect this purpose. 

 Wallflower acts similarly, but with less force, as may be seen 

 in any garden. 



Among our wild Geraniums there are many interesting cases. 

 Herb Robert, which everyone knows, has five seed-vessels arrang- 

 ed around a central elongated column. Each vessel is prolonged 

 upwards into a thin rod, which is at first attached to the column, 

 but is slowly separated from it ; the flower, which after blossom- 

 ing turns downwards, now becomes erect, the rods become 

 highly elastic, and presently separate from the column with great 

 force, often scattering themselves and their attached vessels to 

 as great a distance as twenty feet. We may find scores of these 

 flowers in the woodlands, each of them with the erect central 

 column alone remaining, perfectly bare, and w^e must look for 

 some time to find the scattered seed-vessels far away. 



In another. Geranium dissectiim, or Jagged Crane's-bill, the 

 rods remain clinging to the column together with the five vessels, 

 the seeds only being thrown off. Curiously enough, the vessels 

 split open on the side turned towards the central column, and it 

 would almost seem as if this were useless, but the plant has its 

 fashion of overcoming this difficulty. Just before the vessel 

 splits, the rod curls outwards, placing the vessel horizontally, and 

 so at right angles to the column. The vessel gradually opens as 

 the rod curls still more upwards, a delicate fringe of hairs keeping 

 the seed safely meantime, until, when the rod has gone far enough 

 to place the vessel nearly upside down, the hairs give way, and 

 the seed is ejected. In this species, therefore, we should find the 

 column, not bare, but surrounded at its top by the five curled-up 

 rods, each carrying its empty vessel with the inner face split and 

 looking upwards. 



In Dog Violet ( Viola ca?iina), the capsule is raised on a 

 long stem, and at maturity opens by three valves, each holding a 

 row of four or five seeds. The walls of the open valves now 



