106 BOTANY. 



In describing the pistil of flowers, answer the follow- 

 ing questions: What is the form and position of the stig- 

 ma ? Of the style ? Is the pistil simple or compound ? 

 What is its placentation ? Its dehiscence ? What is the 

 direction of the ovules ? Can you determine the kind of 

 ovule ? 



EXERCISE XLVIII. 

 The Composition of Fruit. 



FRUIT. The ripened ovary, with its contents, is the 

 fruit of plants. Whatever adheres to the ovary also be- 

 comes part of the fruit. 



In studying fruit, observe with care what parts, be- 

 sides the pistil, have been concerned in its formation. In 

 describing flowers, you note whether the pistil is inferior 

 or superior ; is there any reason to suppose that inferior 

 fruit would be most likely to have other parts of the flower 

 besides the pistil united with it ? Did you observe the 

 flowers of the cherry, plum, or peach trees, and those of 

 apple and pear trees when they were in blossom ? and if 

 so, will you compare your recollection of them with the 

 appearances presented by their fruit ? If you have for- 

 gotten their structure, perhaps you have kept a descrip- 

 tion of them, and can refresh your memory. 



Observe the ripe fruit of the cherry. Look at the top 

 of the peduncle for scars left by the parts of the fallen 

 flower. Look for a dot at the top of the fruit, showing 

 the place of the style. Has anything but the pistil en- 

 tered into the formation of this fruit ? Observe the plum, 

 peach, grape, currant, etc., and see if they are like the 

 cherry in these respects. 



Now examine an apple or pear. What do you find at 

 the top of the fruit, opposite the peduncle ? It must be 

 the remains of the calyx-limb, the tube of which you saw 

 united to the pistil when you studied it in flowering-time. 

 Of what, then, does the fruit consist ? Divide an apple or 



