38 THE NATURE-STUDY OF PLANTS 
the Bindweed and Black Bryony grow up or through 
a hedge; while the Hop combines both methods, for it 
makes doubly sure of its hold upon the support around 
which it twines by the two-pronged hooks which 
make the stems rough to the touch whether we pass 
our fingers up or down them. 
Again, the White Bryony has its tendrils for 
attaining the same object, and there are many common 
plants, such as the Sweet Violet and the Enchanter’s- 
nightshade, which produce runners above ground 
and underground respectively, and the Bramble that 
sends out long arching stems which root at the tip 
and bear firstly leaves and then flowers. Thus, 
instead of being crowded out they find convenient 
rooting places and thrive and increase there. The 
Bramble is particularly interesting because it not only 
has the arching and rooting stems, but also big bullying 
leaves which help to anchor it in the hedge, as well as 
grappling hooks, and I commend it to my readers’ 
notice as one of the most interesting aggressive and 
successful plants that one can come across in a day’s 
tramp. It has more than once got into my own 
garden despite the six-foot wall over which it managed 
to send a rooting shoot. 
The last device that I propose noticing is one 
that will perhaps cause a little surprise, for I refer to 
the flowers of our woodlands that bloom in the spring. 
The difference between a wood in summer and in 
the winter and early spring is immense. In summer 
when the fields are green it is shady, if not dark or 
gloomy, and the plants that have learnt the art of 
thriving in deep shade are comparatively few. When 
the trees are bare, there is, on the contrary, light 
enough for Mistress Flora’s business. We have but 
