But, on one side of the portal, and rooted almost at the threshold, was a wild rose-bush, covered, in this month of June, with its delicate gems, which might be imagined to offer their fragrance and fragile beauty to the prisoner as he went in, and to the condemned criminal as he came forth to his doom, in token that the deep heart of Nature could pity and be kind to him. What is the meaning of this excerpt? Puritans plant a rosebush near the prison to comfort criminals. The rosebush is more beautiful and fragile than anything else near the prison. The rosebush is nature’s offering to those who must enter or leave the prison. Puritans believe that criminals deserve a view of beauty from their cells.

the relative standard reduction potential of the half-cell in which reduction occurs; more positive than the other half-cell. reduction is a chemical process in which electrons are added to an atom or an ion; it always occurs accompanied by oxidation of the reducing agent.

desert perennials often survive by remaining dormant during dry periods of the year, then springing to life when water becomes available. most annual desert plants germinate only after heavy seasonal rain, then complete their reproductive cycle very quickly.

i'd have to say the answer is probable the second option "the geosphere interacting with the atmosphere"

essentially, one bacterial cell splits into two daugurer cells. bacterial offspring don't need or get care from their parents because they are in a sense their own parents. that said, some bacteria can and do depend on other bacteria especially in harsh environments such as bacterial microfilms in hot water tanks.