
88 A TEXTBOOK OF GENERAL BOTANY 
may have the shape of ordinary foliage leaves and differ from 
them largely in being white or brightly colored, as in the case 
of the poinsettia (Fig. 80). 
In other cases the leaves 
(bracts) have a shape very 
different from that of fo- 
liage leaves (Fig. 81). In 
many cases it is not the 
flowers themselves but the 
bracts that are showy. 
Reproduction (seed func- 
tion). Many plants can be 
propagated by means of leaf 
cuttings ; this form of prop- 
agation 1s commonly prac- 
ticed in the case of begonias. 
Some plants reproduce reg- 
ularly in their wild state by 
means of leaves. Striking 
examples are afforded by the so-called walking ferns and by 
Bryophyllum. The walking ferns have long leaves the tips of 

Fie. 81. Bright-colored bracts surround- 
ing the small flowers of Bougainvillea 
spectabilis. (X 4) 

Fig. 82. A walking fern (Adiantum caudatum). (x 4) 
which reach the ground, strike root, and grow into new plants 
(Fig. 82). The leaves of Bryophyllum have small notches in 
their margins. When these leaves fall or are removed from the 
