SECT. I. ORGANOGRAPHY AND GLOSSOLOGY. 



83 



mon definition or notion of Inflorescence, we either in- 

 clude only a certain aggregation of branches, all of which 

 terminate in flowers, or else we include one or more of 

 those branches, whose terminal buds still continue to 

 develop as leaf-buds, without ever becoming flower- 

 buds. It has been supposed, indeed, that there are two 

 distinct modes of inflorescence, in one of which the 

 terminal bud does, and in the other it does not, become 

 a flower. But this depends merely upon the vague 

 manner in which we include under our definitions of in- 

 florescence, a greater or less number of buds of different 

 orders of development. If we admit a bud which does 

 not terminate in a flower, to be the primary bud in- 

 cluded in the inflorescence, then we have what has 

 been termed the " Indefinite inflorescence," because the 

 main axis continues to develop indefinitely, whilst the 

 lateral buds alone terminate in flowers. But if the main 

 axis, of what we choose to include within the inflo- 

 rescence, terminate in a flower, then the " Terminal 

 inflorescence" is the result. There are numerous modi- 

 fications of both these kinds of inflorescence, which either 

 depend upon the disposition of the leaves or bracteae, in 

 whose axils the flower-buds originate, or else upon the 

 partial abortion, or peculiar de- 

 velopment, of some or of all the 

 secondary, tertiary &c. buds ; 

 and also upon other circum- 

 stances. 



(88.) The Terminal Inflores- 

 cence. The principal axis in- 

 cluded in this inflorescence, ter- 

 minates in a flower-bud, and the 

 secondary buds are developed in 

 the axil of each leaf or brae tea, 

 situated at the base of that 

 portion of the branch which 

 becomes a peduncle, and must 

 therefore be placed immediately a 

 between a leaf and aflower (fig. 790- 

 G 2 



secon d- 



