Scary & Weird & Bizarre Plants - Oh My!

Most people think that bananas grow on trees, but surprise - the banana plant is actually an herb. In fact, the banana plant is the largest plant in the world to grow without a woody stem.

A spiral of thick leaves forms the stem, or "trunk," of the plant and since the banana plant is really a shoot it only bears fruit once. Once the fruit is picked, the shoot is cut back and a new one emerges to produce more fruit. A single banana plant can yield more than 150 bananas.

Okay, so the banana plant is certainly prolific, but what's so scary about it? Well, the plant grows so rapidly that it can add a full inch to it's height overnight. And...plantation workers claim they can actually hear the plants growing at night! This may seem quite off topic and in fact, it is, but what the heck - I thought I'd have some fun while I was still in a festive mood from Halloween. So, here goes...

Animal, Mineral or Vegetable?

This plant may be smaller than a breadbox, but scientists have had a difficult time classifying it. In fact, scientists one thought that the slime mold was an animal. The confusion is understandable however, when you consider that this plant can crawl!

Slime mold is composed of tiny cells that resemble single-celled amoebas in that they can propel themselves with a whipping motion of their tails, or flagella. These animal-like cells join together to form a shapeless mass and viola! - slime mold is born.

Slime mold may sound like something that clings to the dark crevasses of the shower stall, but it's actually a very "neat" plant. Slime mold creeps over rotting plant material digesting any bacteria and fungi in its path. They come in every different color and, as a community, they can take the shape of anything from a birdcage to an umbrella. But, the curious will need a microscope to observe them firsthand.

The slime mold is also highly adaptable. If you put two slime molds side by side, they will form a single organism. If you were to divide a single slime mold in half, both parts would become individual slime molds!

Gone Fishin'

The Zoophagus insidians is a water-loving fungus that actually catches its food. This plant has several short branches that run along its main stem. These branches, called hyphae, are very attractive to a group of tiny water animals called rotifers, who try to take a nibble as they swim by. But, the ill-fated rotifers become hooked on the hyphae like a fish on a line and cannot escape. The fungus then squirts a sticky substance over its prey like a "net" and proceeds with the business of digestion.

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