114 THE OPEN BOOK OF NATURE 
“ March 31.—Heads nearly upright. Stalks quite 
stiff. 
“ April 5.—Heads now covered with seeds, and 
appear like dandelion “clocks.” Stalks stiff and 
upright. Seeds carried away by wind. Leaves 
increasing in numbers and size. 
“April 6.—Observed that leaves appear in clumps; 
they are stalked, but the plant shows no stem or 
branches. Dug about plant, and found stem and 
branches in form of underground runners, rooting 
at places.” 
These are not all the observations I made, but 
they are some of the most important. You will now 
see what you are to do with your plant-pets : watch 
them from day to day, and make notes of their 
doings in your notebooks. 
But after you have made a complete set of obser- 
vations, the time arrives when you must seek an 
explanation of the facts you have noticed, and it is 
just here that you reach the most delightful part 
of your study. You ask yourself, What am I to 
think about this peculiar pet of mine ? what are the 
reasons for its remarkable ways? The following 
questions and answers in respect to the notes on the 
Coltsfoot will give you an idea as to how facts may 
be explained : 
Why should the flower-stalks of Coltsfoot be at 
first so short and thick ? Because they need stout- 
ness and strength to enable them to push their 
heads through the ground, and, further, they provide 
much substance for future growth. 
Why are the heads at first turned downwards ? 
Because they break through the ground in that 
