A BIT OF GROUNDSEL. 105 



perfect forest of silvery fruit-trees, the stalks of which twist in 

 drying, the spores being discharged by the action. This parasite 

 is very common on Groundsel in July and August. The other 

 fungus, Trichobasis senecionis^ is not so frequently met with. It is 

 found as a reddish rust occupying all the under-surface of the leaf. 

 This description by no means exhausts all that could be got 

 out of a " bit of Groundsel." Let anyone try it, and the excla- 

 mation is sure to be, " The half was not told me." The writer 

 has endeavoured to show something of what may be found to 

 study with the microscope in a common wayside weed. 



EXPLANATION OF PLATES XL AND XII. 



Plate XL 



Fig. 1. — Seed of Groundsel before fertilisation. 

 ,, 2. — Seed qf same after fertilisation. 

 ,, 3. — Seed of same, x 20 diam. 

 ,, 4. — Hair of pappus, x 20 diam. 

 ,, 5. — Short and long hairs from seed, x 100 diam. 

 ,, 6. — Pollen, X 400 diam. 

 ,, 7. — Pollen, with tube partly grown. 



,, 8. — Heads of flowers before (5) and after (a) fertilisation. 

 ,, 9. — Stigmas and part of corolla, x 100 diam. 

 10. — Stamens and part of style, x 100 diam. 



5) 



Drawn by H. W. Lett. 



Plate XIL 



Fig. 1. — Part of longitudinal section of stem of groundsel: — (a) 

 epidermal tissue ; (6) ground tissue; (c) fibro- vascular tissue, 

 X 50 diam. 



,j 2. — Transverse section of stem of same, x 20 diam., showing 

 ruptured cells in centre, and arrangement of fibro-vascular 

 bundles. 



