18 



THE GENUS P^EONIA. 



[part I. 



THE GENUS P^ONIA. 



The flowers of the Peony bear considerable 

 resemblance to those of the buttercup, but every 

 part is on an enlarged scale ; and there are some ^ 

 important differences — one of which is, thatthe> 

 Peony retains its calyx till the seeds are ripe, 

 while in all the kinds of Ranunculus the calyx 



Fig. 6.— Flowbr OF the male Peony, with detached carpel 



AND STAMEN. 



drops with the corolla. The carpels of the 

 Peony are also many-seeded, while those of the 

 Ranunculus contain only one seed in each. In 

 the male Peony (P. corallina) there are five 

 petals and five sepals, (see a in Ji^. 6,) with nu- 

 merous stamens, forming a ring round four 

 large woolly carpels in the centre of the flower. 

 The stamens (c) are adnate, like those of the 

 Ranunculus ; and the carpels (b) are each ter- 

 minated by a thick, fleshy, hooked stigma. These 



