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102 THE BOOK OF NATURE STUDY 



by being crowded together. The upper branches are short, and 

 form a dense head, while the lower ones are in tufts spaced out 

 on the stem, each tuft consisting of five or six branches of which 

 some stand out, while the others hang down close to the stem 

 (Fig. 19, A). The plant has no true roots (this applies to all mosses, 

 as well as liverworts and lichens) and, except in the earliest 

 stages of its growth, is also devoid of the rooting hairs possessed 

 by other mosses. Its hanging branches draw up water by capillary 



attraction, and the 

 water is stored in the 

 cells of the leaves. 

 The whitish colour of 

 dry plants (the stems 

 and leaves are often 

 reddish) is due to the 

 " ISHL ^JVo^Peo/r"^ /1\^ ^\ presence of air, as is 



lh58PT 00^ * h wn b y ^g the 



. _ _ feJ!==^WtUj^m Plant into hot water; 



air - bubbles escape, 

 and the fresh green 

 colour reappears, un- 

 less the plant has 

 been kept dry for 

 some time and is 

 With a lens 

 can see a net- 

 work of green lines in 

 the leaf. These lines 

 consist of green food- 

 making cells, and 

 each mesh of the network is occupied by a large water-storing 

 cell which has holes to let the water in, and fibres to prevent 

 the cell from collapsing when empty (Fig. 20). 



The spores are produced in spherical black spore-cases or 

 capsules, each supported on a stalk. The capsules are chiefly 

 found at the top of the plant, and the Sphagnum cushions are 

 often seen studded with the pin-like fruits. The capsule opens by 

 throwing off a small circular lid at the top, to let the spores escape. 



dead. 

 you 



FlG. 20. Portion of leaf of a Bog Moss, highly magnified, 

 showing the narrow green cells and the large water- 

 storing cells. 



