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sheath rests, often untill next year. This losing of the 

 blades causes the large masses of driving Zostera in 

 the sea during the autumn ; it is well known to the fishermen, who 

 say that the grasswrack sheds. 



The driving Zostera-bulks are partly thrown up on the 

 coasts, sink partly to the bottom following the currents in such a 

 w r ay that they aggregate in quiet places where they cover 

 the bottom, often over wide areas. They disappear very 

 slowly, as the cell-walls are very resistent. These large masses of 

 dead Zostera are in many places a great hindrance for fishing as 

 well as for fishes. When the summer leaves are lost, the Zostera 

 meanwhile has become other shorter leaves in such a way that 

 it is never leafless. 



The flowering shoots also lose in autumn; the shoot 

 mostly breaks at the base. 



The flowering season begins at the end of June and continues 

 untill autumn, but the latest flowers do not ripe their fruits. In 

 the first days of August the first fruits are ripe, and the 

 best time for collecting ripe fruits is in the last week of August. 

 In some places the flowering shoots are numerous, in others very 

 few. In many of the flowering shoots all or many of the flowers 

 do not set fruits, in others nearly all the flowers give ripe fruits. 



Seedlings have been found, but only very seldom. 

 Without doubt the vegetative propagation -modus is the most 

 common one. 



