616 



PART III. — THE CLASSIFICATION OF PLANTS. 



Order 1. Sapindace^e. Flowers usually irregular, obliquely zy- 

 gomorphic or asymmetric, in that the two petals of one side are 

 larger and of somewhat different form to the three others; of 

 these, one, Avhich lies in the plane of symmetry, is sometimes want- 

 ing: two or three of the antisepalous stamens are usually sup- 

 pressed, so that the number is eight or seven ; they are inserted 

 within the disc : the ovary is trilocular ; ovales two in each 

 local us : seed without endosperm. 



^sculus has opposite, palmately compound, exstipulate leaves ; the flowers 

 are in terminal scorpioid racemes ; the fruit has a loculicidal dehiscence : jy. 

 Hippocastanum is the Horse-Chestnut, derived from Asia ; jE. carnea, M. 

 Favia, and otber species are frequently cultiv<ated. A great number of genera 

 and species grow in warm climates ; they have generally scattered pinnate 

 leaves : often climbers with branch-tendrils. The fleshy fruit of Sapindus 

 Saponaria makes a lather with water like soap. 



Fig, 417.— Floral dia- 

 gram of -^sculus : but 

 the missing stamens 

 should be represented 

 as antisepalous. 



Fig. 418.— Fruit of A. ylatanoides, dividing into 

 two mericarps m ; s pedicel ; Jl wings (nat. size). 



Order 2. Aceracej;. Flowers regular: stamens commonly eight, 

 in consequence of the suppression of the two median ones, variously 

 insei'ted : disc annular, rarely absent, extrastaminal or intra- 

 staminal : ovary bilocular ; ovules two in each loculus ; when ripe 

 the fruit splits into two one-seeded winged mericarps (samaras) 

 (Fig. 418): leaves opposite, palmately lobed, sometimes compound, 

 exstipulate : flowers in terminal racemes, sometimes in corymbs, 

 with an apical flower : seed without endosperm. 



The principal species of Acer, the Maple, are A. Pseudoplatanus, the Sycamore, 

 having leaves with crenate margins, flowers in elongated pendulous racemes, 

 blooming after the unfolding of the leaves, and parallel-winged fruits ; A. 

 platanoides , having leaves with serrate margins, flowers in short erect racemes 



