THE FOURTH EDITION. 13 



tli6 leaves ; they have their origin at the top of the 

 vagina, or the point where the blade of the leaf first 

 diverges from the stem. 



The curious structure of the flowers of grasses is 

 sufficient to attract notice, independent of their use 

 in distinguishing with certainty the species and 

 varieties. Inflorescence, or the manner in which the 

 flowers are supported and disposed on the culms, 

 affords the most obvious characters of distinction : 

 it is of two kinds, the spike, and the panicle already 

 alluded to. 



The flower consists of five distinct parts, the calyx 

 or outer husks (gluma), the inner husks (corolla), 

 the stamens or male parts (stamina), the pistil or 

 female parts, and the germen or rudiment of the 

 future seed. The calyx, or outer husks, contains the 

 flowers, and afterwards the seed. It is either of one, 

 two, or many valves, and is described accordingly. 

 The corolla, or inner husks, contains the stamens, 

 style, and germen : when the seed is perfected, the 

 husks generally enclose and adhere to it. This and 

 the calyx constitute the chaff* of oats, wheat, &c. 



The stamens are the male parts of the flower. 

 Each consists of three parts, the filament, the anther, 

 and the pollen or flower-dust. The filament is a 

 slender thread which supports the anther. The 

 anther is a cellular body of a linear figure, generally 

 cloven at both ends ; it contains the pollen, which is 

 essential to the production of the perfect seed. The 

 anthers are various in colour, as white, yellow, or 

 blue. 



The pistil is the female part of the flower, and 



