538 



THE NATURE BOOK 



happens to come in contact with anything, 

 however shghtly, the sensitiveness causes 

 it to press harder against the object and 

 gradually to twist itself round. In this 

 way the plant is gradually raised and 

 forces its way up to the tops of the 

 hedges, where it has access to plenty of 

 light and air. The flowers are of greenish 

 white hue, arranged in loose bunches ; 

 there are no petals ; for economy's sake, 

 the sepals have arrayed themselves to 

 resemble these. In late summer and early 

 autumn, the carpels, or seed vessels, are 

 very conspicuous, for the styles (the 

 stems of the stigmas or female portions) 

 grow into long, feathery awns ; hence the 



name of " Old Man's Beard." This is a 

 provision of Nature to assist in the dis- 

 persal of the seed, as the wind readily 

 catches and spreads them in all directions. 

 The stems are very woody and tough, and 

 sometimes grow to an immense size 

 and spread many yards in length ; the 

 leaves are pinnate, generally with five 

 leaflets ; these leaves were at one time 

 dried and used as fodder for cattle. 



This plant is found most commonly 

 growing in chalky districts, although 

 it is by no means restricted to this kind 

 of soil ; the fragrant flowers may be 

 found from July to September. 



H. PUREFOY FiTZGeRALD. 



CLEMATIS IN FRUIT. 



