[Illustration: SEA LILY.]

These plants of the rock and cliff are not so proud. They have very long
and very thin roots, admirably suited to pierce the grit, and explore
the cracks in the rock, to find the moisture they need. Besides this,
they have fleshy leaves which help them to keep alive. The Stone-crop
and the Penny-wort are well-known plants of this kind. They grow where
you would least expect to find a living plant. Neither heat nor thirst
seems to kill them. Mother Nature has found many a wonderful way of
helping her children to live.


EXERCISES

1. Why do plants which grow in sand have such long roots?

2. In what way are the grasses growing on the sand so useful?

3. Give the names of four flowering plants of the shore.

4. Where would you look for the Stone-crop and Penny-wort?

5. Why do these two plants have such thin roots?




LESSON VII.