THE AMERICAN BOTANIST. 87 



that a plant has a colored corolla is usually an mdication 

 that it is higher in the scale of life than one without ; but 

 there are other items to be taken into consideration before 

 we can be sure, for some plants that once had a corolla 

 appear to have since lost it. 



In the primitive flower, all the parts of each whorl are 

 believed to have been separate : that is, the pistils or sta- 

 mens were not joined together, and when calyx and corol- 

 la appeared, "these consisted of distinct petals and sepals. 

 The tendency of evolution has been toward a union ot 

 these various organs. A plant with a tubular or gamo- 

 petalous corolla like the morning-glory or the phlox, is 

 higher than one like the Ijuttercup in which the petals are 

 separate. 



It follows, also, that a flower with pistils separate 

 and distinct is far less specialized than one with them 

 united. The modern terms used to indicate these condi- 

 tions are apocarpous for flowers with pistils distinct and 

 syncarpousiov flowers with pistils united. There has also 

 been an evolution in the position of the ovary with regard 

 to the other parts of the flower. In the simplest flowers 

 the stamens, petals and sepals arise from the base of the 

 ovary a condition that is often indicated by the statement 

 that the ovary is "superior," or that the calyx is "infer- 

 ior." More properly the flower is said to be hypogynous, 

 which means that the floral parts are below the ovary. 

 The w"ordper/o-v770MS means around the ovar3^an example 

 of which may be seen in phlox or in any other flower in 

 which the petals and stamens appear to be inserted upon 

 or to spring from the calyx tube. Epigynous flowers are 

 those in which the calyx seems to have grown up around 

 and over the ovary and the petals, sepals and stamens 

 seem to spring from the top of the ovary, as in the apple- 

 blossom. Evolution has been Irom hypogynous toperigy- 

 nous and epigynous flowers, the latter, of course, being 

 the highest. 



In wind pollinated flowers it is usually necessary that 

 much pollen be produced in order that some at least will 



