368 THE STORY-BOOK OF SCIENCE 



have blossoms, never anything that can be likened to 

 leaves, never any roots. They attach themselves to 

 rocks by a stickiness at their base, without being able 

 to draw nourishment from them. They feed on 

 water and not on the soil. Some resemble sticky 

 thongs, folded ribbons, long manes ; others take the 

 form of little tufted buds, soft top-knots, wavy 

 plumes; still others are slashed in strips, rolled in 

 spirals, or shaped like coarse, slimy threads. Some 

 are olive-green, or pale rose-color; others are honey- 

 yellow, or bright red. These odd plants are called 

 seaweeds/' 



