GROUP V. ANGIOSPERM.E ; DICOTYLEDOXES. 529 



A. nemorosa, ranunculoides, and others, these bracteoles resemble the foliage- 

 leaves, and often bear flowers in their axils; but in A. Pulsatilla, and 

 others, they differ from the foliage- leaves in that they are palmatifid 

 (Fig. 342.4 h) ; in A. Hepatica, in which the scapes spring from the axils of 

 cataphyllary leaves, the three bracteoles are simple and lie so closely 

 under the petaloid calyx that at first they appear to be the calyx of the 

 flower. 



Myosurus minimus (Mouse-tail) has a very long cylindrical receptacle, 

 bearing the indefinite spirally arranged carpels: stamens 4-14; the 5 

 sepals are spurred. Adonis, the Pheasant's Eye, has completely acyclic 

 flowers ; sepals 5, petals 8 or more, not glandular at the base ; stamens and 

 carpels indefinite, arranged in ^ order: A. autumnalis is the species which 

 occurs in England. 



In Ranunculus, the calyx, which is not petaloid, consists of 5 () sepals, 

 and the corolla of 5 imbricate petals which alternate with the sepals and 

 have a nectary at their base : the stamens and carpels are arranged 

 spirally ; anthers extrorse; the ovule is ascending, whereas it is suspended 

 in all the preceding genera. The genus includes water-plants with finely- 

 divided leaves and white flowers, as R. aquatilis, Water Crowfoot, jiuitans, 

 etc. ; and land- or bog-plants, usually with a yellow corolla, as It. acris, 

 the Buttercup, re pens, bulbosua, and scelerattts (all known as Crowfoot), and 

 Lingua and Flammula (the Greater and Lesser Spearworts) ; they are all 

 more or less poisonous. R. Ficaria (the Lesser Celandine) has 3 sepals and 

 usually 8 petals. 



Tribe. 2. Helleborece. Perianth generally consisting of calyx and 

 corolla, the latter being occasionally suppressed ; the petals are glandular 

 at the base : ovaries usually fewer in number than the leaves of the 

 perianth ; ovules numerous, borne on the ventral suture ; fruit usually 

 consists of several follicles. 



(a) With regular, generally actinomorphic, flowers : 



Helleborus, with acyclic flowers ; sepals more or less petaloid in $ ar- 

 rangement; the petals, which are small and tubular, in f or & ; stamens 

 in ^ or 2 r ; ovaries usually 3-5 (Fig. 342 D) ; H. Niger is the Christmas 

 Rose ; H. viridis and fottidus are not rare. Nigella has 5 petaloid sepals 

 and usually 8 (superposed if 5) small glandular petals: its carpels cohere 

 partially or completely, forming a septicidal capsule. Trollius, the Globe- 

 flower, has 5-15 petaloid sepals, and a similar number of small petals 

 which, like the stamens and carpels, are all arranged spirally : T. europaui 

 occurs in sub-alpine regions. Caltha, the Marsh-Marigold, has 5 yellow 

 petaloid sepals, but no corolla : C. palustri* is common in damp places. 

 Eranthis, the Winter Aconite, has a 3-leaved epicalyx, and small petals 

 with long claws. Acttea has a petaloid calyx and an alternating (some- 

 times suppressed) corolla ; it has a single carpel which becomes a baccate 

 fruit : A. spicata, the Baneberry or Herb Christopher, occurs in woods. 

 Aquilegia, the Columbine, has a cyclic flower (Fig. 343) : it has 5 petaloid 

 sepals, and petals with long spurs ; there are several whorls of stamens : 

 A. vulgaris, atrata, Aklei, and others occur wild, or are cultivated as de- 

 corative plants. 



M.B. * * 



