RESTREPIA 



RESUKKECTION PLA NTS 



1507 



Dayana, Kc'idili. f. 

 tufts: Ivs. ix.uiulish, 

 petals tilit.a-m, i-tav 

 sepals iuiiti.'(l into 

 Itrowu. LV'sla Kica. 



Slegans, Karst. Tuftrd. cpil'liyt 



1-1'.; in. Ion;;, c-Uiptir: po.llllirlrs l 



A SI 

 aruti 



brc 



Kill I'laiit iiri'owiny' in ilonsr 



cur.latr: il,,i-sars,pal and 



ininir, Niolrt-Prown ; lowi-r 



I, l.iliil l.la.l.-, vollnu- and 



1 '--li in. loiii; ; dorsal 

 stroakod vurplo, with a ta 

 clubbed at tin- tip and yo 

 into au obloMi;, einai-;;in 

 otto 



in. lii-l 

 " in pair 



■: Ivs. 

 s: Hs. 

 white, 



20S9. Rose ol Jericho 

 in the dry state. 



lal 



1 as Ion- as itself, whicdi is 



low; l.alrral sepals roiniate 



le, einieaxe blade, >"ellow", 



1 purple: petals like tiie dor- 



epal, l>nt sl'readiir^^ :ind oid\" 



If tlie size; lip lialf the si;',o o'f 



e connate Inbral sepals and of 



I- same coloi- hut e(l:;'ed with red. 



iiezuela. I;.31. ohhC,! F.S. 7:7-1:). 



I ri . — \:- ..'I'l IlElXKIelL H 



V ^^ K.;-r^„»',Vf; EESUERECTION PLANTS 



^;Te;lt eliriositiis, hocause they seera 

 to "eonie to life " after bein;;' ;i]iliur- 

 ently dead. The eoniniune'sl ones, 

 shown in Fi::rs. I^lt.s|)-'J2. ;ire nieni- 

 bers ..d' tie.' niust;ird faniil}- and the 

 olub moss f;iniily. ( )tliers ai'o As- 

 tel'isrus, a ei.ini[iosite, and i\b'sein- 

 l.)ry:Mnhenuuu, of tbe ti,^'-m;iriL:ohl 

 f;imily. These are eleseribi.d In luw. 

 I. The Rose of Jericho is properly .1 *((^s■/f;7/c'( /Ji<ro- 

 chuntica , Linn., which name means " Resurrection Plant 

 from .Jericho," Thei'lanf is a native of the sandy dcsei'ts 

 from Arabia. ;ind Syri:i to Algeria. It is air ammal and 

 grows about h inches hidi. ."soon :ifter flowcrini; the 

 le;ives fall i:)ff and the i)ranches become woody and 

 roll up into .a ball, reminding one of wicker-work or 

 lattice. Inside the l>a!l are the seeds, or, in botanical 

 l;niL;-uai:e, the fruits, which are borne in a protected 

 ]^osition near the tips of the inrellcd br;incbes. The 

 pilants are then uprooted by the ^vinds and are blown 

 abotit on the deserts. These balls were thoug-ht by many 

 to he "the roUin,:? thiu.cc befcire the whirlwind "nrentioued 

 in Isaiah, and were br<.>u^dit to Enrojie !iy the crusaders. 

 The shape of these balls might lie f:ineifully compared 

 to that of an unopiened rose. When the winter rains 

 descend or when tlie lialls are blown into tbe IMedifer- 

 ranean the branches at once open l);ick and stretch out 

 straight, the fruits open, and the seeds germinate very 

 quickly, "often in the fruit," according to Warming. 

 The dead plants do not, of course, "come to life," but 

 they retain their hygroscopic properties for many years. 

 They may be dried and wetted alternately many times. 

 The vitality of the seed is doubtless consiilerabb-, but it 

 is a question whether there is any good scientific record 

 on this point. The balls are often sold by fakirs and 

 dealers in novelties and attempts are often nuide to 

 grow the plants at hoine. 



Botanically, Anastafica is highly distinct liy reason of 

 its short and' broad fruit or silicle, which has 2 ear-like 

 appendages at the top. The silicle is divided by a 

 transverse partition into 2 cells, each of which contains 

 a seed. There is only one species. The genus belongs 

 to the Arahis tribe of the Crucifer£e, but is exceptional in 

 not having a long, slemb-r silicle. The growing plant 

 has obovate Ivs.. the lower ones entire, upper ones 



2090. Rose of Jericho as it opens after being moistened, 



toothed, and the fls. are small, white and boriie in 

 spikes in midsummer. Excellent jiictures of Resur- 

 rection Plants may be found in Kerner and Oliver's 



"Natural I-Iistory of Plants," fogcthcr nutli reliable 

 accounts of the behavior of the various kinds. See also 

 P.M. 4400. G. 0.1872:1068. (-in. 4, p. 1 1 1, Tlies.' plants 

 ]i;i\'e much folk-lore. 



2. The Pird's-nest Jl.iss, ,^c]a:ji ,i, I l,i hpiihiplnjlhi, is 

 a native of Biexieo antl reaches into western Texas, 



^S^ 





2091. Bird's Nest Moss dried into a tipht ball. 



Many Selagiiiellas will curl up if allowc'd to dry, and 

 several of the Mexican sjiecies ihi so in their native 

 jdaces during the dry season, Init ibis s]iecies is said to 

 make a tighter mass than any other. When placed in 

 liikew uni ^\ it( 1 th ft ml h sen ii li 11 b u k into a flat 

 posit! 11 111! 1 1 int m \ 1 1 in „i n mil glow, and 

 it is lis J s 1 1 th r it n 1 di 1 i 1 lem, d an in- 

 dehii iL niiiiil 1 t til ^ 1 _ii II s 11. 1 iiitiful 



moss hi I 1 I ml ^A I if 1 1 r t 1 tl 1 i\ es are 

 realh thi 1 1 n lies, md th fine le i\ s m s ih-like. 

 See (tu 17 1 400 F 1S71 \ 144 



;'. 1 s/ M 1^ I i ill I s 1 mi mill if the ( I mjiosite 

 familv, Is lis I illed K se I f ,1( iieho, his the same 

 range rs N' 1 mil v is I 1 louglit to Europe by the 

 crusaders Tin 1 raiiel si n it ii 11 up but the in- 



f 'I 1 ' , 



2092. Bird's Nest Moss, as it opens out flat soon 

 after being moistened, 



volucre closes over the head of fruit during the dry sea- 

 son, and is loosened by moisture when the seeds escape. 

 The genus is referred byBentham and Hooker to Odrm- 

 tospermum. See Fig 'lo'X\. 



4, Several species of IMesemliryanthemum are known 

 to be hygroscopic. According to Kerner and Oliver, 

 "the capsular fruits of these plants reniain closed in 

 dry weather: Init the niomenf they are moistened the 

 valves covering the ventral sutures of the fruit-loculi 

 ojieii back, dehiscence takes place along the ventral 

 sutures, and the seeds, hitherto retained in a double 

 shroud, are washed out of the loculi by the rain." It is 

 doubtful whether these capsules are offered in the trade. 



W. 31. 



Anastatica is occasionally grown for curiosity or for 

 botanical purposes, but the plant is anything but orna- 

 mental. The undersi.gned has often grown it for classes 

 in botany, sowing the seed in February in pots and 

 keeping the plants in pots all summer. Bottom heat is 

 not necessary at any stage, at least in America. The 



