Calculation of the Primary Trajectories of Plumed Seeds in Steady Winds With Variable Convection

SUMMARY The aerial paths described by plumed seeds shed from motionless plants and moving in steady horizontal winds with vertical convection currents are discussed and formulae established for calculating them both roughly and fairly accurately. Most of the formulae are simple and of practical use to botanists. Example calculations show the effect of release height, convection velocity, and the terminal velocity of fall of the seed in still air, and the various trajectory shapes concocted can be used to account for seed behaviour as observed and reported in the literature. It is also shown how, under certain conditions, some approximate calculations can be very much in error.