134 GOLDEtf 



XXXIV. GOLDEN ALEXANDERS. 



Description. The humid river-banks, the meadows be- 

 hind them, and even the sunny hills above them, are fre- 

 quently bedecked in June or May, with bright yellow umbels, 

 which, with little discrimination, the country people call 

 Golden Alexanders. We will suppose that our young bot- 

 anists return from their morning rambles equipped with 

 these plants complete root, leaf, flower and fruit. 



FIG. XXXIV. Carum aureum : 2, a flower ; 3, a fruit with its thread-like ribs and 

 elongated styles ; 4, a cross-section of the same ; 5, a fruit of Couium : 6, its cross- 

 section ; 7, cross-section of a fruit of Fennel : 8, the same split into its merocarps 

 suspended on the carpophore ; 9, a fruit of Parsnip, showing the vittae, etc. 



Analysis. THE LEAF KEGION. After the lesson on the 

 Cicely, the student will see in this plant striking analogies, 

 with special differences. Both are to be carefully noted. 

 The root is perennial, axial, branching, more woody than 

 fleshy, from which annually arises a plant glabrous (smooth) 

 and polished. The stems throughout are jointed, branching, 

 with long, hollow internodes as in Cicely. The leaves are 

 ternate and biternate, the lower on long petioles and some- 



