the scientific name of lotus is Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn, and it belongs to Nelumbo of Nymphaeaceae.

Nelumbo Adans. is one of the earliest species in angiosperms. According to the fossils studied by paleobotanists, 135 million years ago, lotus plants were distributed in many water areas in the northern hemisphere. At that time, in the late period of the sharp decline of giant reptile dinosaurs, it grew on the earth much earlier than the appearance of human ancestors (2 million years ago). According to Paleobotany (1965) by A.H. Christophevich of the former Soviet Union, lotus fossils were found in the Cretaceous in the Arctic of North America and the amur river Stream in Asia (i.e. Heilongjiang), and in the Oligocene and Miocene strata in Europe and East Asia (Sakhalin Island) and Japan. In those days, the temperature on the earth was warmer than it is now, and there were about 11~12 species of lotus plants distributed in five continents. With the advent of the post-glacial Ice Age, the global temperature dropped, which made many plants extinct, while others were forced to drift away, completely breaking the original geographical distribution. Due to this disaster, two species of Nelumbo survived, and their distribution range was reduced. Chinese lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) is distributed in Asia and northern Oceania, and N.lutea, which drifted to North America. Paleobotanists also pointed out that the lotus fossils from Pleistocene to Holocene (2 million years ago) excavated in Hokkaido and Kyoto, Japan, are similar to modern Chinese lotus; The lotus leaf fossils excavated in Qaidam Basin, China, are similar to modern Chinese lotus. In the 1971s, China Petroleum Exploration and Development Planning and Research Institute of the Ministry of Petrochemical Industry and Nanjing Institute of Geology and Paleontology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences recorded in the book "Early Tertiary Sporopollen in Coastal Areas of Bohai Sea" that two species of lotus pollen fossils were found in Panshan, Liaoning Province, Beidagang, Tianjin, Kenli, Guangrao, Shandong Province and Cangzhou, Hebei Province. Fossils of lotus plants have also been found in the strata of Changchang basin in Qiongshan, Hainan Island, China, in the Tertiary tropical plant geographical area. At present, the original wild lotus is still distributed in the lakes and swamps of Fuyuan, Hulin, Tongjiang and Shangzhi counties in Heilongjiang Province. The above shows that the lotus is an ancient plant before the ice age, and it belongs to the representatives of relict plant, such as melasequoiagly plostroboides, Ginkgo biloba, Liriodendron chinese in China, Sequoia sempervirens, etc., which were not swallowed by the ice age glaciers and survived.

the mystery of waterproof and self-cleaning of lotus leaves

There are countless micron-sized wax papillae structures attached to the surface of lotus leaves. When observing these papillae with electron microscope, we can see that many nano-particles with similar structure are attached to the surface of each micron-sized papillae, which scientists call the micro-nano double structure of lotus leaf. It is these tiny double structures that make the contact area between the surface of lotus leaf and water droplets or dust very limited, so the phenomenon that water droplets roll on the leaf surface and take away dust occurs. And water does not stay on the surface of the lotus leaf.

the scientific explanation of three broken lotus roots

when it comes to lotus, it is natural to mention lotus roots. Dutch belongs to Nymphaeaceae, a perennial herb, which is planted in shallow ponds. Its stem is born in mud and metamorphoses into a rhizome, that is, lotus root, also called lotus root. Lotus root grows horizontally in the mud and absorbs nutrients by the fibrous roots on the basal stems. Lotus root is a favorite food since ancient times because it is fleshy, crisp and slightly sweet, contains a lot of starch and is rich in nutrition.

When we break the lotus root, we can observe that countless long white lotus roots are connected between the broken lotus roots. Why is there such a phenomenon?

It is necessary to observe the structure of lotus root. It turns out that the tissues that plants need to grow and transport water and nutrients are called ducts and tracheids. These tissues extend in all directions in plants, and are as unimpeded in leaves, stems, flowers, fruits and other organs as blood vessels in animals.

The inner wall of the vessel of a plant will be particularly thickened in certain parts, forming various textures, some of which are annular, some are trapezoidal and some are net-shaped. However, the thickened part of the catheter wall of lotus root is continuously spiral, which is called spiral catheter. When the lotus root is broken, the thickened spiral part of the inner wall of the catheter is separated and becomes a spiral filament with a diameter of only 3 ~ 5 microns. These filaments are much like stretched springs, and will not be broken within the elastic limit, and can generally be stretched to about 11 cm.

Lotus root silk exists not only in lotus root, but also in lotus stalks and lotus leaves, but it is more slender. If you pick a lotus stalk, try to break it into sections as much as possible, and lift it like a long series of small green "lanterns". It is this kind of filament that connects these small green "lanterns". This kind of filament looks like one. If you look at it under a microscope, you will find that it is actually composed of 3 ~ 8 thinner filaments, just like a cotton yarn is composed of countless cotton fibers.

The delicate and lingering lotus root silk has long attracted the attention of the ancients. In Meng Jiao's poem Qufu in the Tang Dynasty, there is a sentence that "my heart is in the lotus root, although it is broken, it is still linked". Later, people used the idiom "breaking the silk" to describe that although the relationship is broken, the love affair is still connected.

4,111-year-old ancient lotus germination mystery

Ms. Shen is a botanist at the University of California, Los Angeles, USA. Her laboratory cultivates all kinds of plants, but what she treasures most are two ancient lotus trees-both of which are about 511 years old.

"Ordinary flowers can only live for a few years." Ms. Shen said, "These two ancient lotus trees are very different. Their seeds have been baptized for hundreds of years, and now they have sprouted and blossomed."

Gu Lian woke up after a thousand years' sleep

Several years ago, Ms. Shen went to Beijing to visit the China Institute of Botany; When she returned to America, her colleagues in Beijing gave her seven lotus seeds. "It is said that these seeds were excavated from lake sediments in the northeast. I know that they are very old, but I don't know the exact number." Ms. Shen said, "I didn't pay enough attention to them at that time, but my lab colleague John Sassen found their value."

John Sassen used a carbon isotope tester to identify the age of ancient lotus seeds, and found that they were actually left over 1,211 years ago! What's even more surprising is that when Ms. Shen cut off the shells of the seeds with a blade and soaked them in the culture solution, it didn't take long for them to germinate!

Unfortunately, these seeds have a short survival time after germination, but they have been listed as the oldest seeds that can germinate in the world.

can a thousand-year-old seed germinate? ! This aroused Ms. Shen's great interest, and she decided to return to China again to find these mysterious lives. At that time, Ms. Shen was already a well-known scholar in the international botany field, and many scientists were willing to help her complete this research work.

The road to science is not smooth

The second batch of ancient lotus seeds that Ms. Shen brought to the United States has 21 seeds, all aged between 211 and 511. In 1997, Ms. Shen studied lotus cultivation technology in Germany. Through "minor operation", the first seed germinated, but it only survived for less than 3 months.

"In the next three years, I cultivated three other seeds at the California Institute of Botany, but they didn't bloom-obviously, I used the wrong method." Ms. Shen recalled the past and said, "It seems very lucky that these two seeds have blossomed. These are the two trees you see now, one of which is 418 years old and the other is 466 years old."

Although ancient lotus flowers have blossomed, they are different from modern lotus flowers and can't fully adapt to the modern environment. "I am trying my best to make them thrive."

According to Ms. Shen, there should be special reasons for the longevity of lotus. If the inherent mechanism of longevity of lotus can be found, human beings will benefit a lot, such as solving the problem of grain storage, reducing the number of hungry people in the world and possibly prolonging human life.

The key question is: What is the secret of longevity of lotus? Ms. Shen said that it may be related to the radiation of the soil.

Gaiman harbert is a chemist, and he works with Ms. Shen. Harbert found that the soil around the seeds of ancient lotus could emit slight radiation. "Although the intensity of radiation is very low, the effect after hundreds of years is quite amazing." Ms. Shen explained, "This may be the reason why ancient lotus seeds have survived to this day."

It is reported that Ms. Shen has 15 seeds left, which she intends to provide to other scientists, so that the research project can be carried out worldwide. "Lotus emerges from the mud without being stained, so it represents a special meaning in Buddhism." Ms. Shen said, "Now we have to find out the secret of lotus longevity and benefit all mankind."

how can the ancient lotus blossom after sleeping for thousands of years in the ground?

This is related to the structure of lotus seeds. The outer seed coat of the lotus seed is hard and dense, like a small "sealed bag". Keeping the seed sealed inside can prevent the infiltration of water and air outside and the loss of water and air inside the seed, so the life activity of the lotus seed is extremely weak, which is equivalent to a dormant state. This is an important reason why ancient lotus seeds still have vitality.

In addition, it is also related to the environment where ancient lotus seeds are buried. These ancient lotus seeds are buried in a peat layer about 31-61 cm deep, and peat has good water absorption and moisture resistance; In addition, the peat layer is covered with thick soil, so the ancient lotus seeds are almost in a closed environment. In such an environment, ancient lotus seeds do not have the conditions to take root and sprout, so they can preserve their vitality.

The reason why the five lotus plants grow and reproduce particularly fast

VI. Scientific and technological inventions from lotus plants

Since 1971s, William Barttelot, director of the Institute of Botany of Bonn University, Germany, and his team have studied the surface structures of more than 11,111 plants through electron microscope. This study finally revealed an interesting phenomenon: pouring a few drops of glue on the lotus leaves, the glue will not stick to the leaves, but will roll down without leaving a trace. The leaves covered with a very thin layer of wax crystals are clean, which is the characteristic of waterproof leaves. This phenomenon aroused Barttelot's curiosity and made the assumption that there was a causal relationship between water resistance and pollution resistance. After hard work, he invented a new technology to produce materials with completely waterproof surface and self-cleaning function. This is a new technology with a wide range of uses, which makes people no longer worry about the cleaning of the top and surface of buildings, nor do they have to worry about the cleaning of cars, planes and various means of transportation.

lotus, also known as lotus and Nymphaeaceae, is a perennial aquatic perennial herb. Its underground stem is called lotus root, which is edible, its leaves are used as medicine, and lotus seeds are excellent supplements, and its flowers are available for viewing. The ancients called lotus flowers whiplash, water hibiscus, Shuizhi, Shuiyun, Shuidan, Shuihua, etc. Xike and Yuhuan are their elegant names, the unopened buds are called cymbals, and the blooming flowers are called whiplash, which is one of the top ten famous flowers in China.

according to the description in the China Lotus Variety Atlas, the bowl lily means that it can bloom normally in a flowerpot with a diameter of less than 26 cm, and it must meet the following three indicators: the average flower diameter is less than 1.2 cm, the average height of vertical leaves is less than 33 cm, and the average diameter of vertical leaves is less than 24 cm.

Bowl lotus is cultivated with lotus root as seed, and it goes through germination, leaf spreading, flowering, fruiting, long lotus root and dormancy in a growth cycle. The period from the germination of seed lotus root to long summer and Xiaoman is the stage of germination and excavation. After the vernal equinox, when the temperature rises above 11 degrees Celsius, the lotus buds on the seed lotus begin to sprout. After Qingming, when the temperature reaches above 15 degrees Celsius, floating time begins to grow, and lotus roots are whipped. When the temperature reaches above 21 degrees Celsius, the main whip draws out leaves and has a strong root system, which enhances the ability of absorbing fertilizer.

it is a vigorous growth stage from the growth of vertical leaves to their appearance. At the end of June, the plum rain season, with more rain, high humidity and high temperature, is most suitable for the growth of lotus root, and at this time it enters the vigorous growth period. After that, a vertical leaf will grow every 5-7 days, and one leaf is higher than the other. The main whip and the side whip also grow rapidly, and new side whips are constantly born and are budding. At this stage, we should guard against strong winds and avoid breaking leaves and hurting roots.

cultivation containers

at present, many varieties of water lily are still too tall, so only a few varieties can be planted in vegetable bowls and soup bowls sold in the market. At present, there is no flowerpot specially designed for growing the bowl lotus in the market, and the common plain-fired flowerpots (namely clay pots and earthen pots) are easy to seep, so they are not suitable as bowl lotus cultivation containers. Glaze pots, porcelain pots and purple sand pots are not easy to seep, so they can be used as pots for bowl lotus cultivation. However, this kind of basin generally has a bottom hole, which can be blocked with cement and sand or rubber gasket when it is selected. The shape and color of the flowerpot should be coordinated with the bowl lotus to make it seamless. Square and round pots can be selected. The diameter of the flowerpot is about 21 cm and the depth is about 15 cm. First-time gardeners can enlarge it appropriately, so it is easy to bloom.

The cultivation site

receives 7-8 hours of light every day, which can promote the buds to grow and bloom continuously. Bowl lotus should not be maintained in the shade, and it should not be cultivated indoors like indoor foliage plants. Insufficient light, lotus leaves grow in vain and become green, so you can't get pregnant. When cultivating bowl lotus in the courtyard, the flowerpot must be placed on the outer edge of the balcony with sufficient sunlight or facing south. In the flowering season, if you need to put it indoors for viewing, you can take early entry and late exit, or late entry and early exit, and you should still keep a certain amount of light every day. Bowl lotus needs plenty of light, but it should not be sunny after rain.

the water lily is an aquatic flower, which needs a lot of water in the growth process, but it is afraid that the leaves will sink in heavy water, so the site should be convenient for water intake and drainage. Bowl lotus is afraid of strong wind, so the venue should be leeward as far as possible.

Cultivation soil

Bowl lotus requires pond mud or paddy mud rich in humus as cultivation soil, and industrial polluted soil should not be used. The viscosity of yellow mud is high, so the dosage should be appropriate. Too sticky will affect the elongation of lotus root whip and the expansion of lotus root. Sandy soil is loose and not sticky enough, and it is easy to be damaged by wind, which hinders the growth of root system. Generally, it is appropriate to mix yellow mud and sandy soil at a ratio of 7: 3. If there is no sandy soil, yellow sand can be added, but the proportion is slightly smaller. In the suburbs of the city, the garden soil of vegetable fields can be directly selected; In the city, you can also use the overnight soil of changing pots with flowers in spring and half of yellow mud as cultivation soil.

Use about 21g of decomposed dried chicken manure or other fertilizers in each pot, and mix them with the pot soil to make the base fertilizer. Remove impurities and gravel, remove bugs and earthworms from the soil, and then put them into the pot. The soil layer generally accounts for about 3/5 of the whole basin volume.

Zhao Jiarong experiment of Wuhan Institute of Botany, China Academy of Sciences showed that the formula of dry pond mud 111 parts, bean cake water 2 parts, plant ash water 6 parts, pig's and cow's hoof water 2 parts, rotten hair water 2 parts and bone meal 1 parts can achieve good results.

cultivation temperature

the lotus is a warm-loving plant, which requires strict temperature. Generally, it begins to sprout at 8-11 degrees Celsius, and the lotus root whip begins to elongate at 14 degrees Celsius. When sowing early, the temperature should be above 1.5 degrees Celsius, otherwise the slow growth of seedlings will cause rotten seedlings in the downstream areas. Before mid-April, open sowing and seedling raising are generally not used, mainly because the temperature can not meet the needs of seed germination and seedling growth. With the increase of temperature, the continuous scorching sun and high temperature (above 41 degrees Celsius) is not conducive to the growth and development of the bowl lotus. 22-35 degrees Celsius is the most suitable temperature for the growth and development of water lily. When the temperature is 18-21 degrees Celsius, the leaves will start to sprout, and it will take more than 22 degrees Celsius to bloom.