AUTUMN PLANTS 



too, they are sticky or prickly and are very disagreeable. 

 Some of your plants will have small leaves, or else few 

 leaves; and you may find some with no leaves at all. The 

 stems may be hairy like the leaves, and are likely to be 

 hard and woody. If you collect your plants along the sea 

 shore, or in a very dry or sandy region, you will have some 

 with very thick, fleshy leaves or stems. Find out what 

 you can about the taste of your plants. Are any of them 

 poisonous ? Do animals eat them ? You are sure to notice 

 the odors. You could learn to know many California 

 autumn plants by the sense of smell alone. 



Now we want to think out the uses of these qualities. 

 What dangers do they help the plant to meet ? At this 

 time of the year, when plants are so scarce, they are in 

 special danger of being eaten by insects and grazing 

 animals. So it is easy to see the use of poisonous or harm- 

 ful qualities, of bitter taste or disagreeable milky juice. 

 The strong odors, of course, give warning of unpleasant 

 taste. Sticky and hairy leaves are not pleasant to the 

 tongue, and sometimes prickles are very cruel weapons 

 indeed. At the end of this chapter are drawings of some 

 common plant hairs tinder the microscope. Number 6 is 

 one of the little bristles of our common cactus, or prickly 

 pear. Do you wonder that it is so much trouble to get 

 them out of your flesh? It is not strange that animals 

 learn to avoid the plants. 



Another danger that summer brings to plants in the 

 drier parts of the state, is the intense light, for it injures 

 the chlorophyll unless a screen is provided. So here is 

 another use for the thick skins and hairs that give the 

 plants their gray color. Perhaps you know how gray our 

 desert plants are. Another danger is dust. Plants, like 

 animals, breathe and can be suffocated. The hairs of 

 plants help to keep the dust from their pores, just as your 

 lashes protect your eyes. 



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