TOUCH-ME-NOT. 
A pod 
that has ^jj 
snapped 
The touch-me-not, or snap-weed, is a delicate little 
plant that grows in wet places. Its yellow flowers 
are airily poised on 
slender stems, and 
the seed pods are 
very curious. 
If one of them is 
touched, it goes off 
with a suddenness 
that is startling, un- 
one gets used 
to it. 
When the pods 
are ripe they shoot 
the "seeds out in all directions, and if you disturb a 
tangle of touch-me-nots in late summer you can hear 
the seeds popping on all sides. 
There is a violet that shoots the seeds out of its pod, 
and the wild geranium pod slings its seeds to some dis- 
tance by suddenly curling up on its long stalk. 
A good many seed pods have this interesting habit, 
but I doubt if you would discover that some peas and 
beans do this unless you were told. 
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