74 THE OAK 
conical growing-point, consisting of embryonic tissue, 
occupies the centre; around this, arranged in a close 
spiral, are several young rudiments of foliage leaves, each 
consisting of meristem, the cells of which are undergoing ~ 
divisions. The youngest leaf is next the apex of the cone 
—1.e. the order of development is acropetal—and each is 
folded with the upper surfaces of each half in contact; two 
extremely minute stipules accompany each leaf. Lower 
down on the cone come the numerous (about thirty) over- 
lapping scales, and between several pairs of the upper of 
these the male inflorescences develop. ‘The female in- 
florescences are developed in the axils of two or three 
of the above-described true leaves in a terminal bud ; 
they are not normally formed in the lateral buds of the 
shoot (see Chapter IX.). 
All the leaves of the shoot may have such buds 
formed in their axils during the summer, but only some 
of them develop in the following spring; it is the buds 
in the axils of the lower leaves of the shoot which 
usually come to nothing. 
The normal course of events is that the bud-scales 
(stipules) become dry, and the protected growing-point, 
with its rudimentary leaves and flowers, passes into a 
dormant condition lasting through the winter ; but itis 
avery common event, especially in a wet autumn follow- 
ing a dry, hot summer, to find the winter buds begin- 
ning to shoot out in August, and not passing into the 
prolonged state of dormancy. Such skoots are known 
as Lammas shoots. In some districts the oak forms 
