Blossom and Seed 193 



The American aloe, for instance, which was sup- 

 posed to blossom only once in a hundred years, though 

 it does not wait quite so long as this, does actually 

 wait five or six years in its own country, and from fifty 

 to seventy in ours, before it attempts to send up a 

 flower-spike. But when it does begin, it grows with 

 such tremendous energy — at the rate of a foot a day 

 even in our conservatories — that one can well under- 

 stand its need of a large store of food ready for im- 

 mediate use, since it would be impossible for leaves 

 and roots to collect, manufacture, and supply it as fast 

 as it is wanted. 



The aloe does not, however, always die of its effort, 

 and may live to blossom again, some years later ; but 

 the Talipot palm, though it attains a great age, spends 

 its whole life in accumulating food for its progeny; 

 and having once blossomed, it is quite exhausted and 

 perishes. 



Blossoming, then, is a serious matter for all plants, 

 and not to be undertaken without due preparation. 

 But it is a curious fact that the size of a plant's blos- 

 soms is often quite independent of the size of the plant 

 itself. Many a forest-tree, for instance, bears flowers 

 which are quite minute and insignificant ; others, as 

 some of the palms, bear spikes of blossom several feet 

 in length and leaves in proportion. As a rule, how- 

 ever, trees have small leaves, small dull blossoms, and 

 small seeds for their size ; but they bear all three in 

 large numbers. A diminutive cactus, only a few inches 

 high, on the other hand, may boast a glorious crimson 

 flower, measuring two or three inches across; but, 

 then, it has to be satisfied with one or perhaps two. 

 The beautiful night-flowering cactus attains some size, 



13 



