The Power of Movement in Plants by Charles Darwin (best fiction books to read TXT) 📕

air to be moister on one side than on the other, it likewise transmits an influence to the upper adjoining part, which bends towards the source of moisture.

When the tip is excited by light (though [page 573]

in the case of radicles this was ascertained in only a single instance) the adjoining part bends from the light; but when excited by gravitation the same part bends towards the centre of gravity. In almost every case we can clearly perceive the final purpose or advantage of the several movements.

Two, or perhaps more, of the exciting causes often act simultaneously on the tip, and one conquers the other, no doubt in accordance with its importance for the life of the plant. The course pursued by the radicle in penetrating the ground must be determined by the tip; hence it has acquired such diverse kinds of sensitiveness. It is hardly an exaggeration to say that the tip of the radicle thus endowed, and having the power of directing the movements of the adjoining parts, acts like the brain of one of the lower animals; the brain being seated within the anterior end of the body, receiving impressions from the sense-organs, and directing the several movements.

 

[page 574]

 

INDEX.

 

ABIES—AMPHICARPOEA.

 

A.

 

Abies communis, effect of killing or injuring the leading shoot, 187

— pectinata, effect of killing or injuring the leading shoot, 187

—, affected by Aecidium elatinum, 188

 

Abronia umbellata, its single, developed cotyledon, 78

—, rudimentary cotyledon, 95

—, rupture of the seed coats, 105

 

Abutilon Darwinii, sleep of leaves and not of cotyledons, 314

—, nocturnal movement of leaves, 323

 

Acacia Farnesiana, state of plant when awake and asleep, 381, 382

—, appearance at night, 395

—, nyctitropic movements of pinnae, 402

—, the axes of the ellipses, 404

— lophantha, character of first leaf, 415

— retinoides, circumnutation of young phyllode, 236

 

Acanthosicyos horrida, nocturnal movement of cotyledon 304

 

Acanthus candelabrum, inequality in the two first leaves, 79

—, petioles not arched, 553

— latifolius, variability in first leaves 79

— mollis, seedling, manner of breaking through the ground, 78, 79

—, circumnutation of young leaf, 249, 269

— spinosus, 79

—, movement of leaves, 249

 

Adenanthera pavonia, nyctitropic movements of leaflets, 374

 

Aecidium elatinum, effect on the lateral branches of the silver fir, 188

 

Aesculus hippocastanum, movements of radicle, 28, 29

—, sensitiveness of apex of radicle, 172-174

 

Albizzia lophantha, nyctitropic movements of leaflets, 383

—, of pinnae, 402

 

Allium cepa, conical protuberance on arched cotyledon, 59

—, circumnutation of basal half of arched cotyledon, 60

—, mode of breaking through ground, 87

—, straightening process, 101

— porrum, movements of flower-stems, 226

 

Alopecurus pratensis, joints affected by apogeotropism, 503

 

Aloysia citriodora, circumnutation of stem, 210

 

Amaranthus, sleep of leaves, 387

— caudatus, nocturnal movement of cotyledons, 307

 

Amorpha fruticosa, sleep of leaflets, 354

 

Ampelopsis tricuspidata, hyponastic movement of hooked tips, 272-275

 

Amphicarpoea monoica, circumnutation and nyctitropic movements of leaves, 365

—, effect of sunshine on leaflets, 445

—, geotropic movements of, 520

[page 575]

 

ANODA—BRASSICA

 

Anoda Wrightii, sleep of cotyledons, 302, 312

—, of leaves, 324

—, downward movement of cotyledons, 444

 

Apheliotropism, or negative heliotropism, 5, 419, 432

 

Apios graveolens, heliotropic movements of hypocotyl, 422-424

— tuberosa, vertical sinking of leaflets at night, 368

 

Apium graveolens, sleep of cotyledons, 305

—, petroselinum, sleep of cotyledons, 304

 

Apogeotropic movements effected by joints or pulvini, 502

 

Apogeotropism, 5, 494; retarded by heliotropism, 501; concluding remarks on, 507

 

Arachis hypogoea, circumnutation of gynophore, 225

—, effects of radiation on leaves, 289, 296

—, movements of leaves, 357

— rate of movement, 404

—, circumnutation of vertically dependent young gynophores, 519

—, downward movement of the same, 519

 

Arching of various organs, importance of, to seedling plants, 87, 88; emergence of hypocotyls or epicotyls in the form of an, 553

 

Asparagus officinalis, circumnutation of plumules, 60-62.

—, effect of lateral light, 484

 

Asplenium trichomanes, movement in the fruiting fronds, 257, n.

 

Astragalus uliginosus, movement of leaflets, 355

 

Avena sativa, movement of cotyledons, 65, 66.

—, sensitiveness of tip of radicle to moist air, 183

—, heliotropic movement and circumnutation of cotyledon, 421, 422

—, sensitiveness of cotyledon to a lateral light, 477

—, young sheath-like cotyledons strongly apogeotropic, 499

 

Avena sativa, movements of oldish cotyledons, 499, 500

 

Averrhoa bilimbi, leaf asleep, 330

—, angular movements when going to sleep, 331-335

—, leaflets exposed to bright sunshine, 447

 

Azalea Indica, circumnutation of stem, 208

 

B.

 

Bary, de, on the effect of the Aecidium on the silver fir, 188

 

Batalin, Prof., on the nyctitropic movements of leaves, 283; on the sleep of leaves of Sida napoea, 322; on Polygonum aviculare, 387; on the effect of sunshine on leaflets of Oxalis acetosella, 447

 

Bauhinia, nyctitropic movements, 373

—, movements of petioles of young seedlings, 401

—, appearance of young plants at night, 402

 

Beta vulgaris, circumnutation of hypocotyl of seedlings, 52

—, movements of cotyledons, 52, 53

—, effect of light, 124

—, nocturnal movement of cotyledons, 307

—, heliotropic movements of, 420

—, transmitted effect of light on hypocotyl, 482

—, apogeotropic movement of hypocotyl, 496

 

Bignonia capreolata, apheliotropic movement of tendrils, 432, 450

 

Bouch� on Melaleuca ericaefolia, 383

 

Brassica napus, circumnutation of flower-stems, 226

 

Brassica oleracea, circumnutation of seedling, 10

—, of radicle, 11

—, geotropic movement of radicle, 11

[page 576]

 

Brassica oleracea, movement of buried and arched hypocotyl, 13, 14, 15

—, conjoint circumnutation of hypocotyl and cotyledons, 16, 17, 18

—, of hypocotyl in darkness, 19

—, of a cotyledon with hypocotyl secured to a stick, 19, 20

—, rate of movement, 20

—, ellipses described by hypocotyls when erect, 105

—, movements of cotyledons, 115

—, — of stem, 202

—, — of leaves at night, 229, 230

—, sleep of cotyledons, 301

—, circumnutation of hypocotyl of seedling plant, 425

—, heliotropic movement and circumnutation of hypocotyls, 426

—, effect of lateral light on hypocotyls, 479-482

—, apogeotropic movement of hypocotyls, 500, 501

 

Brassica rapa, movements of leaves, 230

 

Brongniart, A., on the sleep of Strephium floribundum, 391

 

Bruce, Dr., on the sleep of leaves in Averrhoa, 330

 

Bryophyllum (vel Calanchoe) calycinum, movement of leaves, 237

 

C.

 

Camellia Japonica, circumnutation of leaf, 231, 232

 

Candolle, A. de, on Trapa natans, 95; on sensitiveness of cotyledons, 127

 

Canna Warscewiczii, circumnutation of plumules, 58, 59

—, of leaf, 252

 

Cannabis sativa, movements of leaves, 250

—, nocturnal movements of cotyledons, 307

Cannabis sativa, sinking of the young leaves at night, 444

 

Cassia, nyctitropic movement of leaves, 369

 

Cassia Barclayana, nocturnal movement of leaves, 372

—, slight movement of leaflets, 401

— calliantha, uninjured by exposure at night, 289, n.

—, nyctitropic movement of leaves, 371

— circumnutating movement of leaves, 372

— corymbosa, cotyledons sensitive to contact, 126

—, nyctitropic movement of leaves, 369

— floribunda, use of sleep movements, 289

—, effect of radiation on the leaves at night, 294

—, circumnutating and nyctitropic movement of a terminal leaflet, 372, 373

—, movements of young and older leaves, 400

— florida, cotyledons sensitive to contact, 126

—, sleep of cotyledons, 308

— glauca, cotyledons sensitive to contact, 126

—, sleep of cotyledons, 308

— laevigata, effect of radiation on leaves, 289, n.

— mimosoides, movement of cotyledons. 116

—, sensitiveness of, 126

—, sleep of, 308

—, nyctitropic movement of leaves, 372

—, effect of bright sunshine on cotyledons, 446

— neglecta, movements of, 117

—, effect of light, 124

—, sensitiveness of cotyledons, 126

— nodosa, non-sensitive cotyledons, 126

—, do not rise at night, 308

— pubescens, non-sensitive cotyledons, 126

[page 577]

 

CASSIA—CRINUM

 

Cassia pubescens, uninjured by exposure at night, 293

—, sleep of cotyledons, 308

—, nyctitropic movement of leaves, 371

—, circumnutating movement of leaves, 372

—, nyctitropic movement of petioles, 400

—, diameter of plant at night, 402

— sp. (?) movement of cotyledons, 116

— tora, circumnutation of cotyledons and hypocotyls, 34, 35, 109, 308

—, effect of light, 124, 125

—, sensitiveness to contact, 125

—, heliotropic movement and circumnutation of hypocotyl, 431

—, hypocotyl of seedling slightly heliotropic, 454

—, apogeotropic movement of old hypocotyl, 497

—, movement of hypocotyl of young seedling, 510

 

Caustic (nitrate of silver), effect of, on radicle of bean, 150, 156; on the common pea, 160.

 

Cells, table of the measurement of, in the pulvini of Oxalis corniculata, 120; changes in, 547

 

Centrosema, 365

 

Ceratophyllum demersum, movements of stem, 211

 

Cereus Landbeckii, its rudimentary cotyledons, 97

— speciossimus, circumnutation of stem, 206, 207

 

Cerinthe major, circumnutation of hypocotyl, 49

—, of cotyledons, 49

—, ellipses described by hypocotyls when erect, 107

— effect of darkness, 124

 

Chatin, M., on Pinus Nordmanniana, 389

 

Chenopodium album, sleep of leaves but not of cotyledons, 314, 319

 

Chenopodium album, movement of leaves, 387

 

Chlorophyll injured by bright light, 446

 

Ciesielski, on the sensitiveness of the tip of the radicles, 4, 523

 

Circumnutation, meaning explained, 1; modified, 263-279; and heliotropism, relation between, 435; of paramount importance to every plant, 547

 

Cissus discolor, circumnutation of leaf, 233

 

Citrus aurantium, circumnutation of epicotyl, 28

—, unequal cotyledons, 95

 

Clianthus Dampieri, nocturnal movement of leaves, 297

 

Coboea scandens, circumnutation of, 270

 

Cohn, on the water secreted by Lathraea squamaria, 86, n.; on the movement of leaflets of Oxalis, 447

 

Colutea arborea, nocturnal movement of leaflets, 355

 

Coniferae, circumnutation of, 211

Coronilla rosea, leaflets asleep, 355

 

Corylus avellana, circumnutation of young shoot, emitted from the epicotyl, 55, 56

—, arched epicotyl, 77

 

Cotyledon umbilicus, circumnutation of stolons, 219, 220

 

Cotyledons, rudimentary, 94-98; circumnutation of, 109-112; nocturnal movements, 111, 112; pulvini or joints of, 112-122; disturbed periodic movements by light, 123; sensitiveness of, to contact, 125; nyctitropic movements of, 283, 297; list of cotyledons which rise or sink at night, 300; concluding remarks on their movements, 311

 

Crambe maritima, circumnutation of leaves, 228, 229

 

Crinum Capense, shape of leaves, 253

[page 578]

 

CRINUM—DESMODIUM

 

Crinum Capense, circumnutation of, 254

 

Crotolaria (sp.?), sleep of leaves, 340

 

Cryptogams, circumnutation of, 257-259

 

Cucumis dudaim, movement of cotyledons, 43, 44

—, sleep of cotyledons, 304

 

Cucurbita aurantia, movement of hypocotyl, 42

—, cotyledons vertical at night, 304

—, ovifera, geotropic movement of radicle, 38, 39

—, circumnutation of arched hypocotyl, 39

—, of straight and vertical hypocotyl, 40

—, movements of cotyledons, 41, 42, 115, 124

—, position of radicle, 89

—, rupture of the seed-coats, 102

—, circumnutation of hypocotyl when erect, 107, 108

—, sensitiveness of apex of radicle, 169-171

—, cotyledons vertical at night, 304

—, not affected by apogeotropism, 509

—, tips cauterised transversely, 537

 

Curvature of the radicle, 193

 

Cycas pectinata, circumnutation of young leaf, whilst emerging from the ground, 58

—, first leaf arched, 78

—, circumnutation of terminal leaflets, 252

 

Cyclamen Persicum, movement of cotyledon, 46

—, undeveloped cotyledons, 78, 96

—, circumnutation of peduncle, 225

—, —, of leaf, 246, 247

—, downward apheliotropic movement of a flower-peduncle, 433-435

 

Cyclamen Persicum, burying of the pods, 433

 

Cyperus alternifolius, circumnutation of stem, 212

—, movement of stem, 509

 

Cytisus fragrans, circumnutation of hypocotyl, 37

—, sleep of leaves, 344, 397

—, apogeotropic movement of stem, 494-496

 

D.

 

Dahlia, circumnutation of young leaves, 244-246

 

Dalea alopecuroides, leaflets depressed at night, 354

 

Darkness, effect of, on the movement of leaves, 407

 

Darlingtonia Californica, its leaves or pitchers apheliotropic, 450, n.

 

Darwin, Charles, on Maurandia semperflorens, 225; on the Swedish turnip, 230,