THK FLORAL ENVELOPES IN GRAMINE.E AND CYPERACEiE. 



07 



C, pvatcox. — TliG ochrea is here a short, tubuhir, closely- fitting 

 sheath, truncate, cloven on the anterior side (Tab. 13, fig. 11). In 

 this species I have met with an instance of a fertile spike becoming 

 barren at the top, bearing a scale in the axis of which was a nut 

 only, in the place of the three stamens, the utriculus being 

 altogether suppressed ; the stigmas were perfect and three in 

 number. I have observed two similar instances in this species. 

 The scales bearing the nut were in both cases situate adjacent to the 

 usual barren scales of the male flowers. 



Tab. B. — The figs, here show the ochreas and the development 

 of the secondary axis in the lower flowers of the female spike, in 

 the inflorescence of Carex pracox. 



12 



10 



Fig. 8. — a, folded leaf, tubular below, produced on the secondary axis of a 

 fertile Hower, near the base of the female spike, the utriculus being removed ; 

 6, the bract turned back and partially removed ; c, the nut. 



Fig. 9. — The folded leaf of fig, 8 a, removed; front and profile view. 



Fig. 10. — Setiform growth of the secondary axis in another flower near the 

 base of the female spike. In this instance the setiform growth was not accom- 

 panied by any leaf development. 



Fig. 11. — Ochrese on the peduncles of the female spikes. 



Fig. 12. — This fig. represents the base of the male spike of C. prcecox ; the 

 first bract, d, being turned back, shows a utriculus, b, the secondary axis of which 

 is developed and bears bracts a. The stigmas, c, protrude from the utriculus. 

 If in this specimen the secondary axis had developed more fully it would have 

 become an upper spike of female flowers, whereas, in this instance, there wa8 

 but one femde spike. 



A second specimen of this species confirmed the above view, as the lowermost 

 bract in the position of d, fig. 12, bore a very small spike of feuiale flowers, 

 which might have escaped attention without close examination. The ^pike 

 issued, as above, from a utriculus, the stigmas of which protruded from its moutli, 

 pushed rather on one side by the growth of the secondary branch. 



It may be noted here that the upper bracts of the male spike 

 are " surrounding," the last but one surrounding the last and 

 terminal bract most completely. The position of the three filaments 



