PLANT-LIFE GENERATION. 233 



limitation is the source of the Animal 's great- 

 er diversity and higher character. Practical- 

 ly, then, the Plant-world is born and stays 

 hermaphroditic, though with many variations 

 from low to high the highest being the outer 

 appearance or floral realization of the sexual 

 idea. 



Accordingly the Generative Process of 

 Plant-life we shall look at in the following 

 stages: single Generation (asexual), double 

 Generation (sexual), total Generation (the 

 entire line of Plant-life generated in time and 

 at present existent). Thus we may catch a 

 glimpse of the original Plant-norm taking on 

 its millionfold shapes, or perchance the veg- 

 etal prototype clothing itself with reality. 



1. Single Generation of Plant-life. We 

 may repeat once more that vegetal Genera- 

 tion is not centralized, just as little as the 

 whole organism of the Plant is centralized in 

 one organ. Both facts manifest the same 

 basic vegetal character lack of organic 

 unity, be it in the sphere of self-re- 

 production or of self-direction. Each mem- 

 ber can become the center of the whole, which 

 is thus largely decentered. Generation is ac- 

 cordingly, multicentral in the Plant, though 

 confined to the various parts of one organism ; 

 each part under proper conditions is endowed 

 with generative power. That is, Generation 



