'270 DECOMPOSITE ORGANS. CHAP. I. 



SECTION III. 



The Flower-stalk and Flower. 



THE Flower-stalk,, or peduncle supporting the 

 flower, which is a prolongation of the stem or 

 branch, or rather a partial stem attached to it, if 

 carefully dissected with the assistance of a good 

 glass will be found to consist of the following 



Composed several parts : J st, An Epidermis, or external en- 

 velope. 2dly, A Parenchyma, or soft and pulpy 

 ' mass - 3dI 7> Bundles of longitudinal threads or 

 jibres, originating in the stem or branch, and passing 

 throughout the whole extent of the parenchyma. 



Asexem- The several organs of the flower are merely pro- 



plified in . 



longations of the component parts of the flower- 

 stalk, though each organ does not always contain 

 the whole of such component parts, or at least not 

 under the same modifications. The epidermis, how- 

 ever, and parenchyma are common to them all ; 

 but the longitudinal threads or fibres are seldom 

 if ever to be found except in the calyx or corolla. 



The calyx, In the Calyx the epidermis is thicker on the ex- 

 terior surface than on the interior surface ; and the 

 threads or fibres which in the peduncle formed but 

 a few bundles, are subdivided into a variety of ra- 

 mifications constituting a thin and flat network, of 

 which the meshes are filled up with parenchyma. 



Corolla, The Corolla, though much more delicate in its 

 texture than the calyx, exhibits by dissection the 



