Ck.VJI.1 



Fig. 20 



STEMS. 41 



148. Culm, or straw, (Fig. 20,) is the kind ot stem 

 which you see in grasses and rushes. The bam 

 boo, sugarcane, and various species of reeds, have 

 stems of the culm kind; some of them, particu- 

 larly the bamboo, are known to attain to the 

 height of forty feet. We can imagine something 

 of the appearance which extensive plains of these 

 lofty tropical reeds must present, gracefully 

 bending to the slightest breeze, like our meadow 

 grasses. 



149. Scape. This is a stalk 

 springing from the root, which 

 bears the flower and fruit, but not 

 the leaves ; as the Dandelion, the 

 Cowslip, and the Lily of the Val- 

 ley, (a a Fig. 21). 'Plants with 

 scapes are sometimes called stem- 

 less plants. 



150. Peduncle, or flower stalk. 

 This is a subdivision of the princi- 

 pal stem ; it bears the flower and 



fruit, but not (he leaves. When the peduncle is divided, each 

 sub-division is called a pedicel. 



151. When there is no peduncle or flower stalk, the flowers 

 ire said to be sessile, which means sitting down upon the main 

 stem. 



152. Petiole. Tne petiole or leaf-stalk, is a Kind of*' ai, or 

 fulcrum, supporting the leaf; it is usually green, and appears to 

 be a part of the leaf itself. In most cases, the leaves and 

 flowers are supported by distinct foot stalks, but sometimes one 

 foot-stalk supports both the leaf and flower. 



148. Describe the culm. 



149. What is a scape 7 



150. What is a peduncle, and what is a pedicel? 



151. When are flowers said to be sessile 7 



152. What is the petiole ? 



4* 



