FLOWERLESS PLANTS. 51 
mother the earth. This will also explain the 
appearance of a number of plants on a lump of 
earth which has been brought up to the surface 
from a depth of several feet. The seeds were 
long since imbedded in the lump, but could not 
struggle into life because of the depth at which 
they were buried, and the consequent exclusion 
of air. Finally, this will also lead us to under- 
stand the best mode of conveying seeds from 
place to place. For example, it has been found 
that the only way to bring many seeds from 
distant regions to our own country, is to pack 
them in boxes full of clay rammed hard in. In 
this manner the seeds of the Mango, from the 
West Indies, and those of the beautiful Araucaria 
Pines from Chile, have been successfully brought 
home to England. 
A large number of plants, however, produce 
no true seed, nor are produced by true seeds 
themselves. These belong to that division of 
the vegetable kingdom which contains the flower- 
less plants. 
Any one who has noticed the slimy, green 
covering, which frequently paints our stuccoed 
walls, with a dark and dirty hue, has seen plants, 
