On 27/05/2016 08:55, Jeff Layman wrote:
Maybe a little OT, but has anyone seen seedling behaviour like this:
http://tinypic.com/r/wt8w7a/9

These are seedlings of Plum Mango (Bouea macrophylla), grown from seeds
obtained from fruit bought at that well-known purveyor of exotic seeds,
Marks & Spencer. What is strange to me is that the leaves hang down
vertically. I have never seen this before with any seedling.

The youngest one, extreme right, germinated a week ago, and when it
first appeared I am pretty sure the leaves were almost horizontal, but
within a few hours had dropped to the position shown. The oldest
seedling (about a month old) now has green, rather than brownish leaves,
but these still show no sign of moving to a horizontal position. I would
have though that a horizontal leaf position would be sought by all
seedlings as that is the most efficient fr photosynthesis.



It could be any of the other suggestions, but is it also possible that
this is a way for the young plant to direct rainwater to its root zone,
so that it thrives. The canopy of many plants becomes their own
'umbrella' and deflects rainwater so that it waters the outer root zone,
which is fine in natural habitat where roots can spread, but creates a
problem when we confine that plant to a pot. A young plant, and
especially a seedling, needs water at its new, developing root system.

--
Spider
On high ground in SE London
Gardening on heavy clay