312 THE ELOEAL WOELD AND GAEDEN GUIDE. 



longitudinal openings, but in the Heath order, to which belong the- 

 azaleas, rhododendrons, and ericas of gardens, the anthers open by 

 pores, generally situated at the apex. 



In the barberry, each lobe opens by the valve, which rolls up- 

 from the base to the apex, ■while in some of the laurel tribe there 

 are two, each separating valves for each anther lobe, or four in all. 

 If from the anthers themselves we pass to their contents, we shall 

 find ourselves transported to a fairyland peopled with objects of 

 the most elegant and interesting forms ; and although the pollen' 

 dust of some flowers is extremely minute, and requires a high power 

 for examination, yet, with a gcod Stanhope lens, we shall be able to 

 advance a considerable distance into this enchanted region. 



Among the more remarkable forms assumed by the pollen grains 

 we may mention those of the passion-flower, ipomcea, sunflower, and 

 chickory. In the first-named plant the grains are nearly globular, 

 covered with an elegant network, and opening for several opercula r 

 or lids, to allow the protrusion of tbe pollen tubes. In the sun- 

 flower, the grains are also spherical, but are studded with pine like 

 processes ; and in tbe chickory, the granules are polyhedral, having 

 as many as fourteen facets. In the phlox, the figure is triangular, 

 each angle being terminated by a ball, and in nearly every plant, 

 something remarkable will delight the eye of the beholder. 



The central column or style and stigma of most plants will 

 amply repay the trouble of microscopic examination. AVhat a 

 beauliful object it presents, for instance, in the well-known peri- 

 winkle, in the violet tribe, and in the common aster ! In the last 

 named plant, the style is terminated by two processes or horns, 

 covered with hairs, the stigma itself being on the inner side of the 

 fork, where it may be easily seen by the aid of tbe lens. The aste- 

 roid section of the composite flowers, and indeed most of the plants 

 of tbe order, are remarkable for their long style, which projects far 

 above the anthers, and were it not for the collecting hairs, as they 

 are termed by botanists, by which its branches are crowned, and 

 which, during their development, carry up the pollen, and retain it 

 until the stigma is fit for its reception, it is difficult to imagine how 

 the youDg ovules could be fertilized. But in nature, every emer- 

 gency is provided for. 



The nectary or honey-pore, situated at the base of the petal of 

 some plants, is a curious organ, which may be viewed to advantage 

 in the common fritillary, in the allied genus CyclobotJira, and also- 

 in the beautiful Nemophilas, where the nectary assumes the form of a 

 fringed scale. 



The hairs of plants equally claim observation, some being forked, 

 others toothed or branched, and a few are beaded, of which those at 

 the base of the stamens of the common spiderwort (Tradescantia)< 

 are an interesting example. 



Although apparently very humble organs, hairs perform a most 

 important office in the vegetable economy ; the absorption of fluid 

 by the leaves being, in a great degree, effected by their agency ; and 

 they are further supposed to act as so many conducting points, upon- 

 the electricity of the surrounding atmosphere. 



