Glassvine Species in Treasure Box | World Anvil

Glassvine

This (mostly) harmless climbing plant got its name thanks to the almost translucent colour of its stem which is so reflective and silver-like that it appears as if it was made by the most skilled glassworkers in the world. It can most often be found in caves as the plant thrives in damp environments with little to no light.   While the plant itself is very fragile and it is not hard to get rid of it in mere seconds, should one want to clear it out of the basement walls of their home or underground storage systems, the stem is once again the most interesting portion of this plant. It is incredibly hard to tear it into pieces and for this resilience the plant is very popular among thieves and illicit organizations who use it to tie people up or to make trip wire systems and similar traps against intruders.   There is also a very popular myth surrounding this plant describing how getting rid of this plant might cause earthquakes and landslides. These kinds of folk tales have been disproven many times, however, when harvesting glassvine to make sturdy ropes out of it, it is very important to not uproot the plant - firstly because that way it will in time regrow itself and can be harvested again and secondly because its roots are very sweet and an irresistible treat to giant grey moles. Therefore, if you want to get rid of glassvines for good, it is important to pull out its roots very gently, so you do not pull out of the ground some other hairy and very angry fluffy surprise. If you notice something is tugging on the plant from down below it is best to wait till the next day and let the animals finish their feasts. It will also be easier to get rid of plants with damaged roots than if you try to wrestle moles with your bare hands.   Glassvine blooms once every 3 years and during that time it gets covered in clusters of tiny purple flowers that are ommiting soft light to attract bats which tend to get drunk on their nectar. The plant nor its blooms are toxic to people, they only cause a slight nausea and headaches.

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Apr 10, 2021 22:35 by Amélie I. S. Debruyne

Nice article, that sounds like a very pretty flower!   "when harvesting glassvine to make sturdy ropes out of it, it is very important to not uproot the plant" the root could also help stabilise the soil, couldn't they? And so taking them out may be causing landslides after all XD   " so you do not pull out of the ground some other hairy and very angry fluffy surprise." Lol XD   " It will also be easier to get rid of plants with damaged roots than if you try to wrestle moles with your bare hands." Good advice!   You're talking about the plant growing in basement. How does it get there since it will not be growing anywhere nearby – unless people live near caves. Or could it be bats that are transporting the seeds – do people even bats in their basement in some countries? XD

Apr 10, 2021 22:49

Nice idea to have an almost translucent but sturdy plant. It must be very handy indeed to use as tripwire given its appearence. :) If people cultivate it for making ropes and such do they do that mainly in caves and basements then?

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Apr 15, 2021 15:48 by Michael Chandra

That's a beautiful plant to grow, even if it comes with some annoying visitors!


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