DIV. ii ANGIOSPERMAE 749 



Orchids are cultivated in greenhouses on account of the beauty of their flowers, 

 e.g. Cattleya, Laelia, Vanda, Dendrobium, etc. 



Fossil Angiosperms ( 13 ) 



The first undoubted Angiosperms appear in the Upper Cretaceous. They are 

 represented by numerous species which, like the recent forms, can be divided 

 into Monocotyledons and Dicotyledons. The most ancient forms are known only 

 as leaves, so that their determination is a matter of difficulty. They agree essen- 

 tially with living Angiosperms, and since they show no similarities to Gymnosperms 

 or Pteridophytes, do not aid in bridging over the gap between the Angiosperms 

 and these groups. 



The Angiosperms of the Eocene and the Oligocene can be determined with greater 

 certainty ; even in Northern Europe representatives of existing tropical and sub- 

 tropical families occurred, e.g. Palmae, Dracaena, Smilax among Monocotyledons, 

 numerous Querciflorae (esp. Quercus), Lauraceae (Cimiamomum, etc.), Leguminosae, 

 etc., among Dicotyledons. From the Miocene onwards the specific forms are in 

 part identical with those now living, and in the Quaternary strata all the remains 

 are of existing species. The general character of the Tertiary flora in Europe was, 

 however, very different from that of the present day. It had the aspect of the 

 flora of a much warmer region and (as in the case of the Gymnosperms) contained 

 forms which now exist only in distant regions. 



