SPRING CROCUSES 



69 



corm itself? It bears roots, and leaves, and flowers. 

 Clearly it must be the stem, a stem which is very 

 short, thick and fleshy, but as much a stem as a 

 cabbage-stalk is. You know the prostrate stem of 



X12 



fs 



X24. 



FIG. 16. Shoot of crocus, laid open to show the flower within. Also the pistil 

 removed from the same flower ; pt, protective tunics, three in number ; 

 _fl, foliage-leaves, turned down, so as not to interfere with the view of the flower ; 

 /y, flower-sheath or bract ; fs\ sheaths of other flowers ; /, petals ; a, anthers 

 of the stamens ; st, style, with three stigmas ; o, ovary. 



an Iris or a Solomon's Seal. Imagine it set upright 

 and reduced in length to a mere button, from which 

 leaf after leaf springs. The flowers are borne on 

 the low, cup-like summit, and there are eyes or buds, 

 as we shall shortly see. 



