Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 40, Number 48, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 February 1908 — Plant Like a Camel. [ARTICLE]

Plant Like a Camel.

The nearest thing to a camel among plants is a curious specimen of the cucumber family which bears the name of. the Ibercillea soborae. This plant, like the camel, is a native of the desert and it has to go without water longer than the animal. As the rainy season in the desert comes "Ymly once a year nature provides the I. S. with a reservoir to store up enough moisture to last it between times. The organ in which the water is stored is located at the base of the stem. It is covered with a sort of mackintosh envelope, through which the water can neither escape nor evaporate. This water holder rests on the sand throughout the entire period of drought, but when the rain comes it springs into activity.