Lifereed (also "Life
Reed" or "Mullog-Reed") is one of the most important plants for the
mullogs.
They use it to construct their humble huts and shacks, cut blowpipes and whistles
from it and store the fruits for a food source for the winter. Lifereed is a common
reed, that abundantly grows in rivers, swamps and lakes.
Mullogs excel at finding
the strongest and healthiest specimens to use.
|
Image description: The sturdy Mullog-Reed found
throughout the Silvermarshes. Picture by
Faugar. |
Appearance.
Above the water, only the
stem of the reed can be seen, but this is only 1/2 of the actual reed. These
stems are quite strong and flexible, which makes them quite hard to break,
but easy to bend. Its color can range from yellow to brown. When the reed stands
in clear and clean water, the stem is yellow, but if the water gets dirtier
and muddier, the stem goes from yellow to light green, to dark green and then
to brown. The stem springs from its roots in the river's soil. Most of these
roots are below the surface and keep the stem firmly into the ground, while
they also extract nutrients from the soil. However,
some of the roots are slightly curved and appear again above the surface. These
roots have little probes, which float around in the
water. These probes extract
nutrients and minerals from the
water. On top of the stem the reed carries a single deep-blue or violet flower.
This flower is part of the reproductive system. But this flower only appears
in spring. In autumn and winter, the plant carries its seeds in a cornshaped
fruit on top of the stem. Filled with a special liquid, it can withstand low
temperatures. In summer, the flower is changed into the fruit.
Lifereed has no real special ablities. Lifereed just has the
ability to adapt its color to the clearness of the water and its incredible
flexibility.

Territory.
Lifereed is a common reed, that abundantly grows in rivers, swamps and lakes.
Can be found all over the Sarvonian continent.

Usages.
Mullogs
are the ones who use Lifereed the
most. They have given it its name, because their lives depend heavily on the
reed. If they don't live in caverns, they build their homes from the reed. And
because it carries fruit in winter, they can harvest and store it.
Humans are
also known to use Lifereed. Farmers cover the roofs of their homes with it.
Citizens can measure the amount of dirt in the city wells and canals. And when
bathed in salt water for a good fortnight, Lifereed is so hard it can be used
to construct simple walls or make simple spears from it. Also, together with
various other ingredients, the flower of Lifereed can be boiled and used as
a cure for a small headache.

Reproduction.
The main part of the reproduction system is the flower. A flower can both receive
and create pollen, but can't fertilize itself. Therefore it has a deep-blue or
violet color and a distinguished odour to attract bees, which then carry the pollen
from flower to flower and thus fertilize the reed. Once a plant has been fertilized,
the flower changes into a crop. First, the flowerleaves curve until they touch
each other and have formed a little knob. In this knob, the seeds are stored. Then
the flowerleaves harden and protective layers will start to cover them. Some of
these layers have veins, in which the anti-freeze liquid will be stored. The crop
is ready when it's approximately a handspan long and two fingers thick.