STEMS TT 
which they bear are rudi- 
mentary leaves and buds. 
Bulbs, whether coated 
like those of the onion or 
the hyacinth (Fig. 47), or 
scaly like those of the 
lily, are merely very short 
and stout underground 
stems, covered with closely 
crowded scales or layers 
which represent leaves or 
the bases of leaves (Fig. 48). 
The variously modified 
forms of underground 
stems just discussed, illus- 
Fic. 44.— Roots, Rootstocks, and 
Leaves of Iris. 
trate in a marked way the storage 
of nourishment during the winter 
(or the rainless season, as the case 
may be) to secure rapid growth dur- 
ing the active season. It is inter- |. 4. pootstock of Cala. 
esting to notice that nearly all of dium (Colocasia). 
the early-flowering herbs in temper- ” ‘erminal bud; ©, Duds ar- 
ranged in circles where bases 
ate climates, like the crocus, the of leaves were attached; s, 
scars left by sheathing bases 
snowdrop, the spring-beauty, the  6¢ieaves. 
° 
