3i8 THE STORY OF PLANT LIFE 



adaptations to resist drought. Smilax and Gloriosa 

 are climbing plants. 



The root is fibrous. The rootstock may be 

 bulbous, creeping, clustered. The leaves are radical, 

 with scapes, or there may be leafy flowering stems as 

 in Asparagus. 



The inflorescence is usually racemose. There are 

 usually no bracteoles. If they are present the 

 inflorescence may be cymose in part, forming a 

 bostryx. In some types, as in the Garlic, the cyme 

 takes the form of an apparent umbel. Several types 

 such as Fritillaria possess solitary terminal flowers. 

 The flowers are complete, rarely unisexual. They 

 are regular, pentacyclic, the parts in threes (or two, 

 four, or five), and hypogynous. The perianth is 

 inferior, six-partite, in two whorls of three, free or 

 united, petaloid or sometimes sepaloid, overlapping 

 or valvate in bud. The stamens are usually six, but 

 in Ruscus there are only three. They are hypogynous 

 or inserted on the perianth. The anther-stalks vary 

 in length, and are long or short. The anthers open 

 inwards, and are oblong or linear. The ovary is 

 three-celled, free, usually superior, but sometimes 

 inferior or half-inferior. When three-locular the 

 placentae areaxile, when one-locular parietal. There 

 are one or three styles, or the stigma may be sessile. 

 The latter is simple or three-lobed. There are three 

 ovules or many, in two rows in each cell, anatropous. 

 The fruit is a capsule or berry (Asparagus, etc.), 

 three- or one- to two-celled. The seeds are one or 



