iv.l 



BASIL. 



39 



which is free and inferior ; five colierent petals form a gamo- 

 petalous corolla, which is irregular and two-lipped {pila- 

 biate). The number of stamens falls short of the petals, there 

 being but four ; so that we may conclude one stamen is sup- 

 pressed, since in Rose Periwinkle, and in most plants with 

 regular gamopetalous corollas, the number of stamens equals 

 the number of petals cohering to form the corolla. It is 

 worth noting that a tendency to irregularity in gamopetalous 

 corollas is often accompanied by a tendency to suppression 

 of one or more stamens. In some species we find the 



fiu 25. Vertical section of Flower of Basil. 



missing stamen imperfectly developed, confirming the cor- 

 rectness of this view. The four stamens are not equal in 

 length, one pair being rather longer than the other. On 

 this account they are said to be didynamous. Observe, 



