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| Water-loving plants thrive in sodden summer | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: 25 Aug 2012, 10:44 PM (191 Views) | |
| Audi-Tek | 25 Aug 2012, 10:44 PM Post #1 |
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Water-loving plants thrive in sodden summer. Plants that thrive near water have enjoyed the soggy summer. Photograph: James Dobson/ NTPL.n this thoroughly sodden summer, it's small wonder that water-loving plants have had a good time. Bulrushes are standing tall and proud alongside rivers, ponds and lakes, their strong stems supporting plump brown seedheads at the top, rather like sausages held high on a long stick. These can produce over 200,000 tiny fluffy white seeds that eventually burst out like candyfloss and blow away on a breeze. Bulrushes survive in waterlogged soils using stems filled with air channels that behave like snorkels, allowing air to pass to the roots. Purple loosestrife, also known as red sally, is another striking tall plant often seen in wetlands and riverbanks. Its spears of purple flowers are still in bloom, and they are excellent for bees and butterflies to feed on. Teasel, too, is in bloom with small flowers that form a lilac haze over the conical flower heads. Teasel is probably best known for its fierce armoury of prickles and spines, designed to ward off the unwanted attentions of plant-eating wildlife. There is intriguing evidence that teasel may indulge in a touch of carnivory: where the leaves clasp the plant's stem they form little tanks that fill with rainwater and readily catch and drown small insects. This can help defend the plant against small bugs, but one study also found that feeding dead maggots to the leaf bases boosts the yield of seeds, suggesting that the plant at least dabbles in meat-eating for added nutrition. Source ..... ![]() |
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| jessie | 25 Aug 2012, 10:53 PM Post #2 |
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Administrator
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That's interesting to know , surprising anything is surviving all this rain |
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Plants that thrive near water have enjoyed the soggy summer. Photograph: James Dobson/ NTPL.



3:12 PM Jul 11