MONOCOTYLEDONS LILIACE^E DIAGRAM 1 7 . 



203 



CLASS OF MONOCOTYLEDONS 



OK PLANTS THE SEED OF WHICH HAS ONLY ONE 

 COTYLEDON. 



Some of the families of monocotyledons have very beautifully 

 coloured flowers, as the lily, the flag "and the tulip ; and other 

 families, such as the grasses, have inconspicuous flowers. These 

 latter are generally the most useful families to man, as among 

 the dicotyledons. 



Lily. 



FAMILY LILIACEJE. 



It includes a great number of ornamental 

 plants like the tulip, the lily, and the hyacinth, 

 and other plants which are used for food or 

 condiments, such as the shalot, leek, garlic, and 

 onion. The aloe also belongs to the liliacero. 

 The fibres of their leaves are all parallel, a 

 character common to all the monocotyledons. 

 The root is a bulb from which a stalk grows up 

 annually and dies in autumn. The liliacea) 

 have no calyx. They have a beautiful corolla 

 with six divisions ; there are six stamens, and 

 the fruit is a capsule with three valves and 

 three divisions. The corolla is inserted below 

 the ovary. 



The tulip is remarkable for its gay colours, 

 but it is of no particular use, nor is the 



lily. 



