94 SUMMER FLOWERS. 



We come next to a group of Calyciflores having this diver- 

 sity of structure from the preceding the petals and stamens, 

 instead of being perigynous, are what is called epigynous, or, 

 in other words, they appear to grow from the top of the ovary. 

 We must describe a few illustrations of the group. 



The Onagraceous family, known among the British Calyci- 

 flores with an inferior ovary, by the parts of the flower being 

 all in twos or fours, is very well illustrated by the Great Wil- 

 low Herb,* a handsome perennial, found by the side of ditches 

 and watercourses : a common plant, having stout branched 

 hairy stems, three to five feet high, furnished with lanceolate 

 leaves clasping the stem at the base, and toothed along the 

 margin. The flowers grow from the axils of the upper leaves, 

 and are stalked, the calyx and corolla being elevated on a long 

 slender quadrangular ovary w r hich looks like a thickened stalk. 

 The calyx is divided into four small teeth, and the corolla con- 

 sists of four broad deeply-notched petals, forming a large hand- 

 some flower of a pinkish rose-colour, within which are eight 

 stamens and a deeply four-lobed stigma, all these growing at 

 the apex of the long narrow four-angled ovary, which becomes 

 a hairy four-celled four-valved capsule, containing numerous 

 small seeds, each crowned by a tuft of hair. 



The Mare's-tail f represents a small group of insignificant 

 plants, sometimes considered as a separate group, called Halo- 

 ragaceous plants, and sometimes regarded as a subdivision of 

 the Onagraceous or Evening Primrose family. It is a water 

 plant, found in shallow ponds and ditches, and has erect annual 

 simple stems springing from a perennial rootstock. These 

 stems are furnished with whorls of from eight to twelve linear 

 entire leaves, in the axils of which grow the minute flowers, 



* Epilolium Ursutum Plate 12 C. 

 t Hippuris vulgaris Plate 12 B. 



