Compass Plants

plants whose leaves are arranged in the meridional plane, or from north to south. At noon the leaves turn their edges toward the sunlight. As a result they do not suffer from overheating by the sun’s rays or from excessive loss of water. At the same time, the intensity of photosynthesis does not diminish. Compass plants are usually found in steppes, semideserts, and other places with strong insolation. In the USSR one of the most widespread compass plants is the species Lactuca serriola; in Australia, the eucalyptus; and in North America, the species Silphium laciniatum.