Re: Propagation/Germination
- Subject: Re: Propagation/Germination
- From: R* S*
- Date: Thu, 19 Jul 2001 04:27:16 -0700
Tony & Moira Ryan wrote:
> When botanists endeavoured to dry out the
> herbarium pages they were astonished to find the moisture had germinated
> a lot of old legume specimens, many having been held in the collection
> for more than 100 years.
I had the occasion several years ago, to observe the growth (I missed the actual
germination) of a legume seed that had to have been buried in the earth for slightly
more than 100 years. I was digging a hole beneath the basement of my house for a
sump pump. About a week after the hole had been dug in the clay, there appeared the
sprout of the pinnate leaf of what I took to be a legume, growing out of the
earthwall of the whole. I am certain it was not brought in on my shovel. I was
amazed, because the soil would have been wet at various times in the past. It was
about one foot below the floor of the basement, which was put in slightly over 100
years ago. I transplanted it, hoping to see what it would grow into, but it
unfortunealty died several weeks later, so I never learned what it was. Had I not
seen it growing, I would not have believed it possible.
Richard Staaarkeson
Berkeley, California
