24 



The South Australian Naturalist. 



The leaves also have withered before the flowers open. The 

 seedling makes its appearance about the end of October, and in 

 a few weeks the plants is several inches high, w^ith a number of 

 fairly thick leaves placed alternately on the stem. The stem 

 becomes much swollen with its store of food and sap. When 

 the buds begin to appear in late November the roots die. As 

 the flowering time advances the sap rises, and its position can be 

 observed in the thickened part of the stem. When the stem dies 

 it becomes stiff, and so keeps the plant erect. The flowers are 

 arranged on a long racene, with a short space between them. 

 The lowest flower is the first to open and the top flower last. All 

 the flowers turn and face the same way, although they are placed 

 at different positions around the stem. This adaptation for our 

 dry summer is a wonderful provision of Nature. It makes no 

 difference to the development of the flowers if the plant is picked 

 in very early bud and placed on a shelf or gummed to a wall 

 indoors. It need not be placed in water, but will in time bring 

 all its flowers to maturity. 



I carried out the following experiment with four plants 

 gummed to a wall : — 



Lobelia gihhosa. 



(1) The position of the sap could easily be observed by the swollen 

 part of the stem, at the centre of which the measurements were 



taken every few days. 



