ROSETTE PLANTS 191 



rosette. This plan of architecture is by no means 

 confined to Alpine species. Our British Whitlow- 

 grass {Draba verna, Linn.), a Lowland species, is a 

 typical rosette plant. This habit is, however, more 

 common in the Alpine zone than in the Lowlands. 

 We have already noticed some typical Alpine rosette 

 plants in Chapters II. and III. 



Within the Alpine zone, as has been already 

 pointed out, a large number of species tend to become 

 marked geophytes — that is to say, the stem is buried 

 as deeply as possible in the soil, and the upper 

 portion is reduced. The consequence is that the 

 spaces (internodes) between the points of attachment 

 of the leaves to the stem (nodes) are shortened. Thus 

 the great feature of a rosette plant is, in botanical 

 jargon, the suppression of the internodes of the stem. 

 We can actually see this condensation of the inter- 

 nodes if we compare specimens of the Bavarian 

 Gentian {Gentiana bavarica) from the lower and higher 

 Alpine regions. At the lower level, this plant is not 

 a rosette plant. Quite long spaces or internodes 

 occur between the lower leaves. From higher 

 habitats, however, the internodes will be found to 

 become shorter and shorter, and finally an imbricated 

 or overlapping rosette results. 



It may be doubted whether the flora of the Higher 

 Alpine region is so rich in rosette plants as the lower. 

 Probably there are actually fewer above 8,000 feet 

 than below. Some of the typical Alpine rosette 

 species, as we have seen, take to cushion building, so 



