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HOME OF THE MITE 



of fk)wers fall in and get drowned in this water ; their bodies 

 may be seen floating about in it, and probably when these 

 decay, their decay -products are of some use to the plant. | 



This curious contrivance is only a development of a very 

 common arrangement. In most leaves you will find that 

 rain-water is intended to run in a particular direction. 

 Inhere are little grooves and canals down which it is sup- 

 posed to go, and dry, thirsty hairs may be found so arranged 

 as to intercept part of it. Thus in summer the plants are 

 not confined entirely to the water from the ground, but 

 are also refreshed by the rain from above. 



But if you look closely along these little channels, and 

 especially at the base of the leaf where they join the stem, 

 you will find that dust particles washed down by the rain 

 collect and form little streaks and patches. The air is full 

 oi all sorts of dust particles which are made up of every 

 conceivable substance. Many of these minute grains of dust 

 will be dissolved in the water, and help to supply the plant 

 with food. Nor is that all, for if you take a hand-lens and 

 examine these dust particles very closely, you will very 

 probably find small animalcula moving about. They are 

 not pretty ; in fact they are quite horrible to look at. 

 These are tiny mites which live in these places. Their 

 office is probably to eat up everything eatable (including 

 eggs of insects and spores of fungi), and their excreta as well 

 as their own bodies will probably be dissolved in the water 

 and go to help the plants. 



The most certain place to find them is on the leaves of 

 the lime and other trees in August. On the under side of 

 the leaf little bushes of hairs can be found just where the 

 veins fork. It is necessary to take a pin and stir up these 

 hairs to frighten them out, but when this has been done, the 



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