THE MALLOWS 



147 



249. Flower of cotton. Not< 



the stamens; also the in 

 volucre or "square" 

 the bud. 



mi 



that separate 

 from the torus when the fruit is 

 ripe. Do all of the ovaries de 

 velop, or are some crowded out 

 in the struggle for exis- 

 tence? 



299. The calyx in 

 such flowers is often 

 reinforced by bracts, 

 which look like an extra 

 calyx. These bracts form 

 an involucre. An invo- 

 lucre is a circle or whorl 

 of bracts standing just 

 below a flower or a 

 flower-cluster. The umbel 

 of -wild carrot (Fig. 194) 

 has an involucre below 

 it. A large family of 

 plants known as the 



298. Mallow Flowers.— The 

 flowers of the mallow family are 

 well represented in single holly- 

 hocks (Figs. 222, 223) and in the 

 little plant (Fig. 248) known as 

 "cheeses." A peculiar structure 

 is the part formed by the united 

 filaments, the inclosed styles and 

 the ring of ovaries at the bottom 

 of the style-tube. The flower is 

 5-merous. Count the ovaries. 

 They sit on the torus, but are 

 united in the center by the base 

 of the style-tube, which forms 

 cone-shaped body s^P a 



■/$. 



250. A lady's-slipper, to illustrate the 

 orchid family. 



