XXL] BOTANY. 81 



sometimes grow out and form additional partitions in 

 the cavity of the fruit. 



127. The simplest classification of fruits is into : 

 r. pods; these are dry, and their pericarp splits open 

 along denned lines, or parts into separate pieces called 

 valves (pea Fig. 61, wallflower Fig. 67); such are 

 dehiscent fruits, their seeds fall out of the pericarp 

 after it splits open. 2. Dry fruits that do not open by 

 valves and are hence called indehiscent ; the seeds 

 of such do not fall out, but germinate within the peri- 

 carp, the embryo either throwing off the pericarp 

 (maple), or its cotyledons remaining within it (acorn) ; 

 of these there are two kinds, the nut, which is large 

 and hard, and the achene, which is small and usually 

 has a thin pericarp. 3. Indehiscent fleshy fruits, that 

 either rot on the ground and thus set the seeds free, 

 or are eaten by birds, which digest the flesh and reject 

 the seeds (apple, holly, mistletoe, gooseberry). The 

 chief kinds of these are the berry, which has a soft 

 pericarp, and the drupe, of which the inner walls of 

 the pericarp are hard and bony, or stony. 



128. The above classification teaches nothing of the 

 real nature of the fruit ; the following does, and in- 

 cludes the chief kinds accessible to the student, who 

 by learning all will obtain a better knowledge of fruits 

 than he could by any other means. He should be 

 careful to observe whether the fruit is inferior or 

 superior (Par. 84 d], and further, in the cases of fruits 

 that are composed of many combined dehiscent carpels, 

 he should observe whether they split between the 

 carpels (septicidal), or down their backs (ioculicidal) ; 

 or by the carpels parting from their axes (septi- 

 fragal). 



