THE MOUNTAIN HONEYSUCKLE 



227 



berry, formed by the fusion of the two ovaries ; and 

 as the fruit ripens and becomes globose, the distinction 

 between the two ovaries, from which it originates, is 

 gradually lost. The double berry, however, bears 

 two scars near the apex, marking the position of the 

 calyx of each flower (Text-fig. XXIII.). The 

 bracteoles in this species are 

 small and unimportant. 



Curiously enough, while the 

 formation of a double berry is 

 constant wherever this plant is 

 found in Switzerland, in India, 

 where it also occurs, the berries 

 are always free and not united. 



The fruit of the Mountain 

 Honeysuckle forms an ex- 

 cellent illustration of the 

 botanical axiom, that the ex- 

 iplanation of many features 

 presented by flowers is to 

 i be sought for in the fruit. The flower is merely a 

 stage towards the fruit, and the fruit is only a con- 

 trivance for the distribution of one or more seeds at a 

 distance from the parent plant. In the case of the 

 Mountain Honeysuckle, the idea appears to be, that 

 if the seeds of two flowers are contained within a 

 single berry, they will have a greater chance of being 

 all distributed, should some bird devour the berry, 

 than if two berries containing the same number of 

 seeds were produced. 



Fio. XXIII.— The Fruit of the 

 Mountain Honeysuckle 

 (Lojiic&ra alpi(/ena, Linn.), 

 formed by the complete union 

 of the two berries. 



The scars of the two calyx rings 

 can still be seen. 



