730 



THE SUBDIVISIONS OF THE VEGETABLE KINGDOM. 



produced. With the exception of the Juncacece the flowers are conspicuous and 

 brightly coloured. 



Juncacece. — Plants of grass-like habit with inconspicuous glumaceous perianth, 

 six stamens, and superior ovary, which is 3- or 1 -celled. Pollination by wind. 

 Pollen-grains united into tetrads. Two well-known genera represented in this 

 country are Jiincus (with about 190 species), which includes the Rushes, and 

 Luzula, the Woodrush. In all there are some 250 species of Juncacese. 



Liliacece. — Herbaceous plants with bulbs, rhizomes, and corms, conspicuous 



Fig. il3.—Asphodelus ramosun at Paestum (Southern Italy). 



flowers with petaloid perianth, stamens 6, carpels 3, united, ovary 3-celled superior. 

 Pollination by insects. Fruits are capsules or berries. 



A number of tribes may be distinguished: (1) Colchicacece having usually 

 extrorse anthers, septicidal capsules, and distinct styles. They include Veratrum, 

 Colchicum aidumnale, the Meadow Saffron (fig. 412 ^), which sends up its flowers in 

 autumn, its leaves and ripening capsule next spring. Bulbococlium (fig. 412^) is 

 frequent in cultivation. The Bog Asphodel (Narthecium) also belongs to this 

 tribe. (2) Asphodeloidece include forms generally with rhizomes, rarely bulbs; 

 anthers introrse, fruits capsular. Examples are Asphodelus, e.g. A. ramosus 

 (fig. 413), which covers considerable tracts of country in southern Europe, forming 

 regular plantations, and was supposed to carpet the Elysian fields; Paradisea 



