90 AN ISLAND GARDEN 



garden went sixty feet or more under the founda- 

 tion of the house to that same well. 



To quote another writer who has carefully ob- 

 served these things : " Plants have to the full 

 extent of their necessities a power of observation, 

 of discrimination in the selection of their food, a 

 knowledge of where it is to be found, and the 

 power to a considerable extent to obtain it. For 

 instance, if some animal's remains are buried in 

 the garden, say twenty feet from the grapevine, 

 the vine will know it, and the underground part 

 of the vine will at once change its course and 

 make a direct march for this new storehouse of 

 food, and upon reaching it will throw out an in- 

 credible number of roots for its consumption. 

 ... A weeping willow was planted in a dry, 

 gravelly soil on the south side of a house, a 

 situation in every respect unsuited to this tree, 

 which delights in a heavy moist soil ; the result 

 was a slow, stunted growth. After a few years in 

 which it barely lived, it surprised its owner by a 

 vigorous growth which was as astonishing as 

 pleasing, and the cause was looked for. It was 

 found the roots in search of food had traveled 

 under the house a distance of some thirty feet to 

 the well, where they took a downward course till 

 they reached the water that furnished the mois- 

 ture which is essential to the growth of this tree. 



"The movements of the squash vine when 

 pressed by hunger or thirst are truly wonderful. 

 During a severe drought if you place a basin of 

 water at night, say two feet to the left or the 

 right of a strong vine, in the morning it will be 



