Page 17 - Tropical glasshouses
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20 Chenilleplant Acalypha hispida
The chenille pipe cleaners that children play with are reminiscent of the owers that grow on this plant: pinkish-red, drooping tails. The plant is related to the poinsettia and originates from Oceania, but can now be found growing all over
the tropics. Male plants are now rare because it is easy to take cuttings to propagate this plant and because the striking red owers grow only on the female plants.
21 rice Oryza sp.
Rice is a species of grass that thrives in water in the tropical lowlands. In the tropics these plants can grow up to 1.80 metres (6 feet) in height, with leaves 1 metre (3.3 feet) in length. Rice is the most important staple food for almost half the world’s population, particularly in East and Southeast Asia.
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