142 THE ROBIN'S PLANTAIN. 



The Florets are very many in each head and of two 

 kinds. In the circumference stand the florets of the ray, 

 surrounding the florets of the disk. The former (1) are dis- 

 tinguished by their ligulate corollas (ligula, a strap), called 

 the ray. This form may be understood by comparing it 

 with the tubular corollas of the disk (3). These have 5 teeth 

 at the top, indicating that the tube is formed by the union 

 of 5 petals.* There are also 5 (or at least 3) teeth at the tip 

 of the ligules, and other marks indicating 5 united petals, 

 not forming a tube, but a strap-shaped corolla a split tube, 

 lengthened and turned to one side. The rays in this species 

 are of a bluish-purple color, and about 50 in number. The 

 ray florets are pistillate ( ? ), the disk florets perfect ( $ ), 

 and both are fertile. The style in all bears 2 manifest 

 exserted stigmas. In the disk, 5 united anthers form a tube 

 around the style ; in the ray no anthers appear. In the 

 figure, (4) displays the stamen tube as if unrolled ; (5), the 

 style with the 2 flattened obtuse stigmas ; (2), the stigmas of 

 the ray. The pappus is composed of many white, scabrous 

 (rough) bristles encircling the corolla and crowning the 

 (inferior) ovary 



The Fruit (7), a sort of achenium, is more properly a 

 cypsela. The 2 stigmas indicate a 2-carpelled ovary. The 

 cypsela, therefore, although 1-seeded, is the product of a 

 double ovary. All other achenia (e. g., Eanunculus) come 

 from simple ovaries. 



The Name of this plant, Erigeron bellidifdlium, is sin- 

 gularly descriptive. The generic title signifies "hoary in 

 Spring" (er, spring, geron, an old man) ; and the specific, 

 " daisy-leaved " (Bellis, Daisy, folium, leaf). 



* The term gamopetalaus (gamos, union) is applied to all flowers with runted 

 petals. The corresponding term polypetalous designates those having the petals 

 distinct, as in the plants heretofore described. 



