An actively
growing vine shoot in Portugal's Alentejo. The grapevine is a freeloader, and
rather spend
energy and time growing a self-supporting trunk, it hitches a ride on trees in
its native habitat, and trellis
systems in vineyards. A vitaltool for this growth habit is the tendril, which
upon contact will grasp hold of
it - a response termed thigmotropism. Of course, vines can (and do) grow
unsupported (termed bush vines).
(All photographs are ŠJamie Goode and must not be republished in any form without permission.)