THE PLANT AS A PARENT 61 



these seize hold of any passing animal as it plunges 

 through the forest, becoming deeply embedded in 

 the flesh, and the victim will perhaps travel 

 several miles before it can divest itself of its 

 painful burden. Even more formidable still is 

 the seed vessel of the South African Grapple Plant 

 (Harpagophyton procumbens}. These roll about 

 over the dry plains, and as they are provided with 

 a large number of curved hooks, readily attach 

 themselves to the coats of animals. Indeed, it is 

 said that they have even been known to cause 

 the death of lions. Finding some of the seeds 

 attached to its skin, the animal endeavours to 

 tear the cruel hooks away, with the result that 

 it gets one of the vessels hopelessly entangled in 

 its mouth, and so perishes in a most miserable 

 feshion. 



Many of our British plants produce seeds 

 provided with hooks, although these are nothing 

 like as formidable as the two foreign species 

 described above. Indeed, the seed vessels of the 

 Agrimony, the Cleavers, and the Burdock are 

 really objects of great beauty. That the processes 

 serve their purpose admirably is well known to 

 anybody who has taken a walk in a field at seed- 

 ing time. One's garments become quite thickly 

 covered with the seeds, which hold on with great 



