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Plant study

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by Pit Gutzmann

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Mountain face in pre-alpine lime stone

The Rhine valley and its peaks north of Chur consists mainly of lime stone. The peak Falknis next to the highway stop "Heidiland" is a nice example of it. Typical are its sharp edges. They are the result of water that has been dissolving the lime stone over the course of millennia.

The riddle of the grass

Spring meadows are full of riddles: “In cocksfoot and many other species, the leaves emerge pointing vertically upwards. How do the grasses manage to bring their leaves elegantly and intactly into the horizontal position? Answer: they incorporate a joint. This is probably already laid down when the leaf is forming in the stalk. But how do the cells of the joint differ from the other leaf cells? Are they larger? Smaller? Do they swell more than the other leaf cells? Perhaps a microscopic examination could provide clarity here.”

Outdoor dripstone cave

2022 on the west coast of Thailand: “The limestone towers around Krabi and Ao Nang have to be understood as ‘outdoor dripstone caves’. The stone is dissolved by rainwater. The plants that cover the upper part of the towers help with this. The calcareous water then runs down the outside of the tower. The water evaporates, the lime precipitates and builds up the spectacular dripstone balconies.” “The process is as follows: 1) At the beginning, the towers are not yet overgrown. Rain washes out the stone. Below, the sea water erodes the stone. 2) The plant growth produces acid, which accelerates the decomposition of the rock. The dissolved limestone runs down with the water. In the lower part of the towers, dripstones are formed. 3) The dripstones grow into mighty columns that can even reach the ground or the sea. Unanswered questions: The water washes out many caves on the outside, but these disappear after a few metres into narrow crevices. The question is wh...

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