The Leaf with Little Roads

A green leaf lay on the woodland path after the wind had shaken it from a tree. Puschel knelt beside it and admired the line down its middle. Lots of smaller lines branched off it.

Puschel“A road map! Only the stop for the Nut Bus is missing.”

Flauschi sat beside him. Puschel held the green magnifying glass a little way above the leaf. The lines looked bigger, but there was no bus anywhere.

Flauschi“These lines are called leaf veins. Tiny tubes run inside them. They are a little like routes for water and other things. Of course, no vehicles travel along them.”

Flauschi explained that a tree’s roots take in water from the soil. The water contains tiny things that help the tree grow. These are called minerals. Water reaches the leaf through tubes in the trunk and leaf veins.

Puschel“Then the tree has its water routes built in. Without a garden hose!”

Flauschi“Sugar is sent out from a living green leaf too. The plant makes it using sunlight, water and a part of the air called carbon dioxide. Other parts of the plant can use that sugar.”

Puschel waited for a water drop to rush past. Flauschi smiled and shook her head. They could not see movement inside the tiny tubes this way. And this leaf was already separated from its tree.

Puschel“So I can see the routes, but I cannot watch the bus traffic.”

Flauschi nodded. The veins also helped support a leaf. Together they looked at the little branches in the pattern. Then they left the leaf where it lay. Puschel loved his road map even without a bus stop.