226 BOTANY FOR BEGINNERS CHAP. 



EXPT. 192. Select a ripe Cherry and examine it. Note 



(i) It is fixed on the top of a stalk the peduncle. 



(ii) Just below the fruit a scar is present ; this is where the stamens 

 were attached. The calyx must have been inferior. 



(iii) Just on the top of the fruit a small spot is present ; this is where 

 the style was fixed. 



(iv) The Cherry must be a true fruit because it is formed from the 

 gyncecium only. 



Cut the fruit across. Note 



(v) The hard stone in the middle ; the hard part is the endocarp. 



(vi) The pulp, or succulent part, which consists of two layers ; the 

 outer of these is the epicarp, and the inner the mesocarp. 



Now break open the stone. Note 



(vii) The seed in the centre ; it is protected from injury by the hard 

 endocarp. 



(viii) Stone fruits like the Cherry, Plum, and Peach are called drupes. 



EXPT. 193. Obtain a ripe Gooseberry and examine it. Note 



(i) At the top of the fruit the dried-up lobes of the calyx occur. This 

 shows that the fruit is inferior. 



(ii) The fruit is succulent, and when ripe the pulp can be forced out. 



Now cut across the middle. Note 



(iii) The fruit is one-celled, and the cavity is filled with juicy pulp 

 containing a number of seeds. 



(iv) All fruits which are syncarpous -and succulent, and do not open to 

 liberate the seeds, are called berries. Thus, the fruits of the Red and 

 Black Currants and Grapes are all true berries. 



EXPT. 194. Obtain a Poppy head from a chemist and examine it. 

 Note 



(i) The external markings on the fruit ; these represent the carpels 

 from which the syncarpous fruit was formed. 



(ii) If the fruit is shaken, seeds fall out through pores which are near 

 the apex. When fruits liberate their seeds by pores, they are said to 

 dehisce by pores. 



Now cut across the fruit. Note 



(iii) The syncarpous fruit is one-celled and contains many seeds. 



(iv) A dry syncarpous fruit which dehisces by pores, valves, or teeth 

 is called a capsule. 



EXPT. 195. Examine an Apple. Note 



(i) The remains of the lobes of the calyx on the top of the fruit: The 

 fruit is inferior. 



Now make a section of the Apple so as to pass through the dried 

 lobes of the calyx and the peduncle. Note 



(ii) The skin, which is peeled off when the Apple is eaten, is the 

 epicarp. 



(iii) The succulent part of the pericarp, which is eaten, is the 

 mesocarp. 



(iv) The core is the endocarp and contains the seeds. 



