304 



NATURAL HISTORY OF PLAINTS. 



upwards and inwards, and is capped by a somewhat liood-sliaped 

 protuberance from the elongated funicle. All the carpels, at first 

 free, later become buried in the deep layer of the floral receptacle, 

 which, thickening as it grows older, rises up in the intervals between 

 the ovaries, surrounding them, and later even the styles, as high up 

 as the bases of their capitate stigmas, but not contracting any 

 adhesion with them ; so that the stigmas are alone visible on top 



Tnmlourissa quadrifuln . 



Fig. 350. 

 Drupe (f). 



Fig. 3t9. 

 Longitudinal section of fruit (i). 



Fig. 351. 



Lonf^itudinal section 



of drupe. 



of the narrow canals traversed l:»y the styles. The multiple fruit, 

 in general appearance like tlie female flower, has more or less fleshy 

 or woody walls.' Its receptacle is hollowed out into a number oi' 

 cavities, each of which contains an ovary in its original position, but 

 now transformed into a more or less compressed di'upe (figs. 350, 

 351). The mesocarp and stone are not very thick, and enclose a 

 suspended seed, containing within its membranous coats* a very 



' These outer forms, it must be renienibcrcd, 

 only belong to the imlusium formed by the 

 hypertro])hied floral recci)tacle. To free the true 

 fruits, often described by older botanists as the 

 BccdH, it is, however, necessary that there should be 

 gome solution of contiiuiity in this indusium ; in 

 fact, ft sort of dehiscence due both to the centri- 

 fugal ])ressure exerted by the growing drnj) s on 

 the walls of the receptaele, and to the tcndincy 

 of the recejjtaeular sac to spread out and become 

 less concave (Adaniiuuui, ix. 127). Its edges 

 separate and even become inverted, wliile tlie 

 sniterior table (representing the interior I'liidermis 



and neighbouring layers of the receptacle) be- 

 comes cleft and ])iished up irregularly ; after- 

 wards the uneiiual lii)8 of tiiese clefts are reflexM 

 outwards. The true fruit, the drnjjcs, then ap- 

 pear in large nnnd)ers on the surface, as the 

 seeds of a iMMnegramite might do if it burst when 

 ripe ; the whole now presenting a bright red 

 colour due to the fleshy jtart of tbe pericarjK, 



^ 'J'liey bec<«ne tliicker and slightly crust a- 

 ceous over the whole region of the raphe, so that 

 when ripe this may easily come ofl'from the seed 

 like a narrow fillet. 



