292 



GYMNOSPERMS 



Fig. 294. — Cupressus 

 macrocarpa: ovulate cone; 

 natural size. 



Between the extremes there arc cones of all sizes; of the more or 

 less elongated type, like Pinus, of the more or less globular type, like 

 Cupressus; and of the berry-like type, as in 

 Juniper us; and, besides, there are the ovulate 

 structures, generally small, of the taxads and 

 some of the podocarps, which are responsible 

 for the appellation, "conifers without cones." 

 Structure of the ovulate strobilus. — In the 

 Abietaceae the ovulate structures are more or 

 less elongated cones; in the Taxodiaceae the 

 cones range from the elon- 

 gated type , as in Sciadopitys 

 and Sequoia, to the spher- 

 ical type, as in Taxodium; 

 in the Cupressaceae and 

 Araucariaceae the spherical type dominates; in 

 the Podocarpaceae such strobiU as are called 

 cones are sHghtly elongated, as in 

 Microcachrys and Saxagothea; while 

 such structures as those of Podo- 

 carpus, Dacrydium, and all of the 

 Taxaceae, make the designation 

 "conifers without cones" seem ap- 

 propriate. However, even in these cases, we believe 

 the ovuUferous structures can be interpreted as very 

 much reduced cones. 



If one could interpret the ovulate cone of Pinus, 



the rest of the order would not make much trouble. 



It seems safe to interpret the so-called "bract" as the 



homologue of the sporophyll of the staminate cone; 



but the structure which bears the ovule is not so easy to 



interpret. The appearance of the much discussed and 



variously interpreted structure is shown in fig. 297. 



At this stage the cone bears striking resemblance 



to the cone of Lycopodium, the debatable structure resembUng the 



young sporangium of the lycopod. But, in a conifer, this structure is 



certainly not an ovule. Generally, it seems to be axillary; but oc- 



FiG. 295. — Junip- 

 erus communis: 

 berry-like ovulate 

 cones; natural size. 



Fig. 296. — 

 Torreya laxifo- 

 lia: plumlike 

 ovule. 



