92 SYSTEMATIC POMOLOGY 



familiarity with grapes in order to point these 

 out tersely and accurately in a description. It 

 will be seen at once that the seeds vary as to 

 size, but these differences are often due to local 

 circumstances, and are influenced particularly 

 by the number of seeds in the berry and by pol- 

 lination. Differences of form are much more 

 constant and characteristic. Some varities 

 have the seeds very broad, others comparative- 

 ly long. Many of them are cordate, or heart- 

 shaped, while others are more nearly ovate, or 

 egg-shaped, and still others are almost obovate, 

 or reverse egg-shaped. Some seeds are notched 

 at the top, while others are smoothly rounded. 

 Some have a long beak at the bottom, in 

 others the beak is short and blunt. On the 

 back of every grape seed is a little mark or 

 boss, known as the chalaza, which may also 

 vary considerably in different varieties. In all, 

 or nearly all, our native American grapes it is 

 found near the center of the back of the seed, 

 or even somewhat below the center. In most 

 European varieties, on the other hand, it lies 

 above the middle, somewhere near the top. It 

 also varies in size and shape. This chalaza is 

 connected with the ventral side of the seed by 

 a raphe, funiculus, or cord, which runs up- 



