348 



THE POPULAE EDUCATOR 



described ; or, if the reader do not happen to possess a flower 

 of this kind, ho may convince himself of the truth of this de- 

 scription by reference to the accompanying diagram (Fig. 121), 

 in which the little central bodies, marked c c c, are the carpels, 

 or female parts of the flower ; the little thread-like things, p p, 

 being the stamens, or male parts of the flower ; the curved lines, 

 mm, representing the position of the corolla, and the lower curved 

 lines, n n, that of the calyx. Hence the meaning of the term hypo- 

 gynous petals will now be evident, for the curved lines, m m, the 

 representatives of their position, are evidently below the little 

 carpels, c c c. Stamens ordinarily numerous; anthers iisually 

 adnate. The general term stamen, the reader already knows, 

 is applied to each of the little threads, p p, together with its 

 appendages ; the anther is the mace-like knot at the upper 

 extremity of the stamen. We have, therefore, to consider the 

 meaning of the term adnate, which is derived from the Latin 

 ad, to, and natus, grown, which, therefore, signifies grown to a 

 thing by its whole surface ; for example, in the buttercup the 

 .anthers adhere to their filaments in the manner represented in 

 the accompanying diagram (Fig. 122). Here the anther consists 

 of the little projections a and b; 

 evidently they are attached to 

 the filament, s, by their whole 

 surface, and not a portion of 

 the same. Carpels one or nu- 

 merous, never combined. This 

 is shown by the figure, c c c, 

 where the numerous carpels are 

 quite unconnected with ono 

 another. 



Ovule reflexed. Let us begin 

 by getting exact ideas respect- 

 ing the ovule; we will then treat 

 about its reflection afterwards. 

 The casual observer of a butter- 

 cup would take the little central 

 protuberances or carpels as they 

 exist in a ripened flower for 

 seeds. They are not seeds, but 

 fruits; verysmall,butstillfruits. 

 If the student possesses a mag- 

 nifying glass, he may, on cutting 

 a ripened carpel or fruit open, 

 find the real seed inside, present- 

 ing an appearance of which Fig. 

 123 is a magnified representation. 



Now, if the fruit be so small, 

 what must the real seed be ? 

 Nevertheless, by the aid of a 

 good magnifying glass, all its 

 various parts may be rendered 

 evident. Fig. 124 is its mag- 

 nified appearance. When the seed of a buttercup is cut open, 

 the observer will perhaps at first see nothing but a mass of 

 white flesh, termed by botanists albumen; but if the seed has 

 been accurately divided from top to bottom, a little thing will 

 be observed at a; this is the embryo, and, small as it seems, 

 this embryo is the portion of the seed which represents the future 

 plant. The albumen of the plant is really only so much food 

 for the young embryo to eat before it has grown big enough to 

 shift for itself. The embryo consists of a radicle, or represen- 

 tative of the root, and two cotyledons or rudimentary leaves. 

 This the reader might have predicted, without finding these 

 cotyledons, from a consideration that the leaves of buttercups 

 are reticulated, not straight-veined, from which circumstance 

 they must belong to the dicotyledonous division of plants. 



Still, we have not arrived at the reason why the ovule is said 

 to bo reflexed ; and, indeed, this determination belongs so com- 

 pletely to microscopic botany, that we should scarcely have 

 explained the meaning of the term, were we not desirous that 

 no expression should appear useless or unmeaning. This reflected 

 state of the ovule the reader will scarcely see even by the aid 

 of glasses. The word, however, which is derived from the Latin 

 re, back, and flecto, to bend, means bent suddenly back upon 

 itself, as represented in Fig. 125. At the base of a horny albu- 

 men. If the reader refers to Fig. 123, he will see that the 

 embryo really rests at the base of the albumen, as described ; 

 and inasmuch as this albumen ia very bard, it is termed horny. 



121. BOTANICAL SECTION OP THE RANUNCULUS. 

 OF THE BUTTERCUP. 

 OP THE BUTTERCUP. 



Thus we have almost got through our analysis of the various 

 terms applied to designate the natural order Ranunculaceaj. 

 The reader will admit each term has had a meaning, and that, 

 when understood, these terms are very expressive. Perhaps he 

 may think that the remarks concerning the manner of adhesion 

 and the number of the petals are all well enough, but he may, 

 at the same time, think that the microscopic examination of the 

 seed and its fruits are a little far-fetched. Nevertheless, the 

 reader will find, when his botanical studies have been a little 

 further prosecuted, that the shape and disposition of the embryo 

 constitute some of the most reliable distinctive marks of various 

 orders. We admit, however, that these microscopic signs are, 

 for the most part, iinavailable to the botanical student, who 

 must content himself with broader characteristics. 



Fruit apocarpous. This is a proper opportunity for making 

 ourselves acquainted with certain general facts in botany, not 

 necessarily connected with the Ranunculacete, but which a mem- 

 ber of that family of plants may serve to illustrate. Eeferring 

 to the carpels, or the central or female parts of the flower, these 

 will be found scarcely to alter in appearance, except in size, 



from the first period of inflores- 

 cence to the last, when the 

 perianth or floral envelopes fall 

 off, and the fruit is developed. 

 This fruit, in point of fact, con- 

 sists of nothing but ripe carpels. 

 Hence, without any other 

 addition, the fruit of Ranuncu- 

 laceas furnishes us with the 

 simplest conditions under which 

 a fruit can exist. All' fruit 

 may bo defined in strict botani- 

 cal language to be the matured 

 carpel ; but in by far the ma- 

 jority of instances of what are 

 popularly called fruits, the real 

 fruit is masked by the attach- 

 ment of other appendages. For 

 example, the carpels, or real 

 fruit, bear a very small propor- 

 tion to the absolute size of an 

 apple or pear. In these by far 

 the greater portion of the fruit, 

 in the ordinary acceptation of 

 the term, consists of a highly 

 developed and succulent calyx. 

 Referring to our buttercup 

 again, the carpels were observed 

 to remain quite distinct ; they 

 never adhere ; hence the fruit 

 of a buttercup is said to be 

 apocarpous (Greek, OTTO, ap'-o, 

 from, in the sense of apart ; and Kapiros, karpos, fruit), or non- 

 adherent. Had the carpels been united, then a syncarpous 

 (Greek, crvv, sune, together, and Kapiros, fruit) fruit would have 

 resulted. 



Several other distinctive signs of the natural order Eanuncu- 

 laceae might be mentioned ; but even fewer than those already 

 enumerated might serve pretty clearly to separate it from all 

 others. These essential characteristics are the hypogynous 

 stamens and apocarpous fruit. If the student meets with any 

 plants having these characteristics, no matter how different the 

 general appearance of such plant may be from the general ap- 

 pearance of the buttercup, no matter whether the size is different, 

 the shape or colour of the flower different, still it is almost sure 

 to be a Ranunculus. But what is the use of this classification ? 

 the reader may ask. Take a supposed case. You are ship- 

 wrecked on some unknown island, or you are a farmer in some 

 unexplored land, and you meet with some gay-looking flowers and 

 tempting-looking herbs; the fruit is apocarpous and the stamens 

 are hypogynous ; take care of such plants, neither eat them nor 

 permit your cattle to eat them. They are, most likely, poisonous, 

 this being a leading physiological characteristic of the tribe ; and 

 and in certain species the poisonous principle is so extremely 

 virulent that death would speedily result from swallowing a small 

 portion. Such knowledge constitutes the really useful part of 

 botany, not a mere classification of plants without reference to 

 the properties of the members falling under each group. 



ADNATE ANTIIEES 



123. FRUIT OP THE BUTTERCUP. 12i. SEED 

 125. REFLEXED OVULE OF THE BUTTERCUP. 



