210 ROSACEA 



oldest poetry. The classic poet could predict the future crop from its 

 bloom. 



' ' Mark well the flowering Almond in the wood : 



If odorous blooms the bearing branches load, 



The glebe will answer to the sylvan reign, 



Great heats will follow, and large crops of grain ; 



But if a wood of leaves o'ershade the tree, 



Such and so barren will the harvest be." 



The bitter oil of almonds is well known to be poisonous ; but in the 

 ordinary form of this, as in many of the seeds of this group, the prussic acid 

 exists in so small a proportion to the sugar, mucilage, and other harmless 

 materials which compose them, that they may be safely used in cookery. 

 Some of our best confectionary and liqueurs are flavoured by these kernels. 

 The poisonous properties of the seeds or leaves are thought by chemists not 

 to exist ready formed in these parts of the plant, but to be developed only 

 when they are broken up, and principles of a different kind seated in distinct 

 cells are brought into contact with one another, or with water. 



1. Plum and Cherry (Prunvs). — Nut of the drupe smooth, or slightly 

 seamed. Name from the Greek ^noune, a plum; Cdrasus, a name given to 

 one division of the genus, is from Cerasus, a city of Pontus. 



Sub-Order 11. Meadow-sweet Group (Spircece). 



This division contains a small number of herbaceous or shrubby plants ; 

 they bear their seeds in dry erect capsules, opening at the side, termed 

 follicles. Several species, as the herbaceous Meadow-sweets, make attractive 

 garden plants. The so-called S'pircca japonica does not belong to this family, 

 but to the saxifrages, its proper name being Asfilbe japonica. 



2. Meadow-sweet and Dropwort {Spinia). — Calyx 5-cleft ; stamens 

 numerous ; follicles from 3 to 12, bearing few seeds. Name of Greek origin. 



Sub-Order III. Strawberry Group {Dryadece). 



In this division there is considerable variation in the form of the fruit. 

 In all cases the calyx is permanent, and contains a nvunber of nut-like seeds, 

 with or without aAvns, placed on a pulpy, spongy, or dry receptacle ; in the 

 Bramble each grain is enveloped in pulp, the fruit being a collection of little 

 drupes. In Agrimony alone there are but two seeds, which are enclosed in 

 a bristly, hai'dened calyx. This division is composed chiefly of herbs ; but 

 a few shrubs are found in it. They are all free from any unwholesome 

 properties, and our Strawberries, Raspberries, and Blackberries are common 

 instances. 



3. Mountain Avens (I)ryas). — Calyx in 8 — 10 equal divisions, which 

 are all in one row; petals 8 — 10; styles finally becoming feathery; tails 

 not hooked at the extremity. Name from the Greek drys, an oak, from 

 some imagined similarity in the leaves of the two plants. 



4. AvENS {Ghim). — Calyx 10-cleft, in 2 rows, the outer divisions smaller; 

 petals 5 ; styles finally becoming jointed ; awns hooked at the extremity. 

 Name from the Greek gem, to taste. 



5. CiNQUEFOiL (PofentlUa). — Calyx 10-cleft, in 2 rows, the outer divisions 

 smaller ; petals 5 ; seeds without awns, on a dry receptacle. Name from the 



