ORDER MONOGYNIA. 225 



LECTURE XXVIII. 



CLASS VIII. OCTANDRIA. CLASS IX. ENNEANDRIA. 



Monoffynia. 



Fig. 112. The eighth class, although not large, contains 

 some beautiful and useful plants. One of the first 

 which we meet with in this class, is the scabish 

 (CEnotJiera), sometimes called evening primrose. 

 Many species of this are common to our country ; 

 I some grow to the height of five feet. The flow- 

 ers are generally of a pale yellow, and in some 

 species they remain closed during the greater 

 part of the day, and open as the sun is near setting. 

 This process of their opening is very curious, the 

 calyx suddenly springs out and turns itself back 

 quite to the stem, and the petals being thus re- 

 leased from the confinement in which they had 

 been held by the calyx, immediately expand ; there are few 

 flowers which thus hail the setting sun, though many salute 

 it at its rising. The flowers of the (Enothera are thickly 

 clustered on a spike, and it is said that " each one after ex- 

 panding once, fades, and never again blossoms."* This sin- 

 gular flower has been observed in dark nights to throw out a 

 light resembling that of phosphorus. The regularity of the 

 parts of this flower renders it a good example of the eighth 

 class ; the different parts of its corolla preserve in their divi- 

 sions the number four, or half the number of stamens. It has 

 4 large yellow petals, the stigma is 4 cleft, capsule 4 celled, 4 

 valved, the seeds are affixed to a 4 sided receptacle. 



The evening primrose belongs to a family of dicotyledonous 

 plants called Onagrse ;f the characters of which are four pe- 

 tals above the calyx ; stamens inserted in the same manner, 

 and equal or double the number of petals ; the fruit a capsule 

 or berry. 



To the same natural family as the (Enothera belongs the 

 willow herb (Epilobium), a very branching plant with red 

 flowers, and feathery seeds. 



The cranberry (Oxycoccus), also belongs to the same family, 

 but having ten stamens, is in the class Decandria ; in this case, 

 a natural affinity is made to yield to the artificial system. The 

 fruit of the cranberry consists of large scarlet berries, which 



* W. Barton. 



t The common name for the evening primrose is, in French, onagref. 



Evening Primrose Willow herb Cranberry. 



