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More Letters of Charles Darwin

CHAPTER 1
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In a letter to Mr.Darwin dated March 17th, 1862, Sir J.D.Hooker had discussed a supposed difference between animals and plants, "inasmuch as the individual animal is certainly changed materially by external conditions, the latter (I think) never, except in such a coarse way as stunting or enlarging--e.g.

no increase of cold on the spot, or change of individual plant from hot to cold, will induce said individual plant to get more woolly covering; but I suppose a series of cold seasons would bring about such a change in an individual quadruped, just as rowing will harden hands, etc.") I fancied a bud lived only a year, and you could hardly expect any change in that time; but if you call a tree or plant an individual, you have sporting buds.

Perhaps you mean that the whole tree does not change.

Tulips, in "breaking," change.

Fruit seems certainly affected by the stock.


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