THE PEOMISE OF THE PLANT THAT IS TO BE 



485 



FIG. 600. ROSE OF JERICHO 

 (Anastatica). 



Fruiting branch. 



The capsules of the African Grapnel- 

 plant (Harpagophytum procumbens} are pro- 

 vided with claw-like spines of a particularly 

 powerful kind, which grasp the hoofs of 

 unwary animals in the Orange River region 

 where the plant abounds, causing them 

 the greatest pain ; nor is there relief 

 from the torment till the capsule splits 

 up to release the seeds. 



Thus far our atten- 

 tion has been mainly 



confined to dehiscent 



fruits ; we will now speak 



a little of those which 



never open spontane- 

 ously, or, in other words, 



are indehiscent. It will 



be seen as we proceed 



that the provisions for 



dispersion, in the way of hairs, curved bristles, and 



hooked spines on the one hand, and of wings, plumes, 



etc., on the other, are far more common in indehiscent 



than in dehiscent fruits ; and the reason is obvious. The 



pericarp, which releases its seeds spontaneously at the 



time of ripening, has 



done its work when de- 



hiscence has taken place, 



and the seeds are left, 



so to speak, to their own 



resources. The broken, 



empty seed-case has no 



further use. But in the 



case of an indehiscent 



fruit, where pericarp and 



seed do not part com- 

 pany on the ripening of the latter, a con- 

 trivance of some kind to assist dispersion is 

 clearly a valuable provision. 



Take a stone-fruit, such as the plum, by 

 way of illustration (fig. 608). A plum is a 

 fleshy, indehiscent fruit called a drupe, with 

 a stony endocarp, which invests the " ker- 

 nel" or seed (fig.^607). (This may be ac- FlG 602 _ HONESTY (Lunaria annua). 



cepted as a definition of a drupe.) Now, suiquas of elliptical shape. 



FIG. 601. GUM 

 ARABIC-TREE 



( Acacia arabica). 

 A lomentum. 



