62 BOARD OF AGRICULTURE. 



gramineae or grasses embrace most of the grains cultivated and 

 used by man, as Indian corn, wheat, rye, barley and rice, all 

 of •which will be at once recognized as having leaves and stems 

 very similar in shape and structure to most of the plants popu- 

 larly called grasses. 



Botanists having arranged Indian corn in the order g^raminece^ 

 or the grass family, and specify it as Zea mays. The genus 

 zea comprises in fact but one species, the common or cultivated 

 maize, and is distinguished by its simple leaves. The zea caragua 

 or stone maize has sometimes been regarded as a distinct species, 

 but I think with little reason. It was introduced from Chili, 

 Zea Ilirta, the hairy maize, having its leaves and husks hairy, 

 and its spikelets sessile or seated close on the male flower, 

 instead of being pediculated or on footstalks, like the common 

 maize, came from California. Zea Erythrolepis, or red husked 

 corn, with grains compressed, and glumes red, and Zea Cryp- 

 tosper?na, or covered maize, each grain being inclosed in a 

 husk, and the whole ear included in a general husk, as usual, 

 are other varieties. The last comes from Oregon and is found 

 also in South America. It is the same as mais tunicata, or 

 cloaked maize, which is found growing wild in Paraguay. 



Zea comes from a Greek word meaning to live, because of 

 the great amount of nutritive matter that it contains ; mays is 

 the Haytien name. 



Indian corn or maize, in the artificial arrangement of Lin- 

 naeus belongs to the order Triandria Dig-ynia, having three 

 stamens and two styles, or, as we have seen, in the natural 

 arrangement of Jussieu, to the order Graminem. It is endoge- 

 nous or growing from within. Its fertile and sterile organs 

 are arranged on distinct parts of the same plant, the former on 

 the side of the stalk and proceeding from the joints, the latter, 

 terminal, or on a panicle at the top, called the tassel. The 

 stem or stalk is seen in Fig. 2, while the male or sterile flower 

 is shown in Fig. 3, and the fertile or female flower, in Fig 4. 



The cylindrical stem, column or stalk, as shown in the figure, 

 rises from joint to joint, clasped by the sheath of the leaf, and 

 at the apex, is seen the tassel, separating into several spikes on 

 which the sterile flowers are arranged. These contain the sta- 

 mens each on a little stalk or filament supporting an anther or 

 bag filled with fine pollen or powder. 



