BOTANY FOR BEGINNERS. 



Ch. XIV 



Fig. 56. 333. A spike, (Fig. 



56, a) is an assemblage 

 of flowers arising from 

 the sides of a common 

 stem ; the flowers ar<? 

 sessile, or with ve^y 

 short peduncles, as the 

 Grasses and the Mul- 

 lein. A spike is gen- 

 erally erect. The low- 

 est llowers usually bios 

 som and fade before 

 the upper ones expand. 

 When the flowers in a 

 spike are crowded very 

 close, an ear is formed, 

 as in Indian corn. 



334. An umbel (Fig. 

 56, b} presents several 

 flower-stalks of nearly 

 equal length, spreading 

 out from a common 

 centre, like the rays of 

 an umbrella, bearing 



flowers or their summits ; as Fennel and Carrot. 



335. A cyme (Fig. 56, c) resembles an umbel in having its 



common stalks aL spring from one centre, but differs in having 



those stalks irregularly sub-divided ; as the Snow-ball and 



Elder. 



333. What is a spike 7 



334. What is an umbel 1 



335. What is a cvme 1 



