150 The Flowering Plants of Western India. 



The flowers are composed either 1 of tubular florets only, 2 of 

 strap-shaped florets only, 3 of tubular and strap- shaped mixed. 

 Jussieu classified the genera on this principle, which is I think 

 certainly the simplest for beginners. But this arrangement has 

 gone out of date, and Hooker has adopted De Candolle's, modi- 

 fied by Cassini, in which the shape of the styles is made the 

 determining feature. This arrangement is, I believe, not easy 

 even for scientific botanists, and for the unscientific it is scarcely 

 possible. I have therefore not attempted to describe this 

 feature, nor to give HSs description of the florets as honio- 

 gamous or heterogamous ; and I fear that thus cut short the 

 tribal distinctions here given will not be found of any great use. 



It is not possible to allot H.'s genera to Jussieu's tribes, 

 mentioned above, but I believe that it is correct to say that in 

 what follows 



Tribes 1 and 2 have florets all tubular : no rays. 



Tribe 9 the same, but with flowers of the thistle type. 



Tribe 10, florets all strap-shaped ; no disk : flowers of the 

 dandelion type. 



The remaining six tribes have flowers with or without rays. 

 There is, however, a difficulty to beginners, that a flower may be 

 called rayed when it has only 3 or 4 (perhaps minute) florets 

 differing from the rest, and so to an ordinary observer would 

 appear not rayed. 



The peculiarities of the involucre usually afford generic 

 distinctions. This generally clasps the flower like a calyx, and 

 is often (as in the thistles) very conspicuous. I have called 

 the segments of the involucre bracts, and bracts of the ordinary 

 sort when present, which is not often, floral leaves. 



The number of plants of this order with which we have to 

 do is small in proportion to the whole number ; a gratifying 

 circumstance when we remember the small average of beauty, 

 and the frequent difficulty of recognition. There are few 

 attractive plants among those wild in W. India. The dahlias, 

 zinnias and sunflowers are foreigners. 



" Nearly all the composite (and cruciferse), wild or culti- 

 vated, are used as salad in the East." Hooker. " They have 

 all more or less bitterness, which is sometimes associated with 

 astringent, acrid, and narcotic qualities." Sal/our. 



TRIBES 1 and 2. VERNONIE^I and EUPATORIE^. Florets all 

 tubular and hermaphrodite, corolla never yellow (occasionally 

 orange). 



