466 



EXOGENOUS OR DICOTYLEDONOUS PLANTS. 



side. Drupe baccate. Embryo large in sparing albumen. Con- 

 sists only of the genus Nyssa. The Black Gum-tree, &c., is re- 

 markable for the toughness of the interlaced fibres, so that it is 

 very difficult to split the timber. The acid berries give the name 

 of Sour Gum to Nyssa capitata. 



869. Ord, LoranthaceSB (the Mistletoe Family), consists of shrubby 

 plants, with articulated branches, and opposite coriaceous and dull 

 greenish entire leaves, parasitic on trees. The floral envelopes 

 are various. In Mistletoe (which is dioecious) the anthers are ses- 

 sile and adnate to the face of the sepals, one to each. The ovary 

 is one-celled, with a single suspended ovule, consisting of a nucleus 

 without integuments. Fruit a one-seeded berry. Embryo small, 

 in fleshy albumen. Ex. Loranthus ; Viscum, the Mistletoe, from 

 the glutinous berries of which birdlime is made. The bark is as- 

 tringent. 



870. Ord, UlmaceSB (the Elm Family). Trees or shrubs, with a 

 watery juice, and alternate rough leaves, furnished with deciduous 



stipules. Flowers in axillary clusters or fascicles, rarely solitary, 



FIG. 1012. Flower of the Slippery Elm. 1013. Calyx laid open and the ovary divided verti- 

 cally. 1014. Fruit, the cell laid open to show the single seed. 1015. The latter magnified. 

 1016. Its embryo. 



FIG. 1017. Branch of Celtis Americana, in flower. 1018. Enlarged flower, divided vertical- 

 ly. 1019. Drupe, the flesh divided to show the stone. 1020. The coiled embryo. 



