XIX 



SYNOPSIS 



NATURAL ORDERS OF BRITISH PLANTS. 



THIS Synopsis has been prepared for the purpose of facilitating 

 the discovery of the ORDER to which an unknown British Plant 

 belongs. It must be used with caution, as a very slight error will 

 totally mislead, and often the character used is not quite 

 determinable, or is inconstant in some degree : I therefore am 

 very far from advising the use of this Synopsis. The student 

 must always commence with the pair of characters numbered 1 

 in the left-hand margin ; and having determined with which of 

 these his plant agrees, proceed similarly with the group of 

 characters referred to by the number on the right-hand side of 

 the page, and so on. 



For instance, having gathered a Hawthorn, he finds it to agree 

 with the second character of number 1, the Jlrst of number 3, 

 the second of number 4, the third of number 29, and thejirst of 

 number 30. It therefore belongs to ORDER xxvi. ROSACEJE and 

 Suborder POME^:. Then turning to the body of the Manual 

 (p. 104), he will examine the specimen by the characters given 

 for that Order and its Suborder. Finding it to agree with them, 

 a perusal of the generic definitions placed under POME^J will 

 show that it is a Cratcegus. After a little experience in the 

 examination of plants, the eye becomes so familiar with the 

 principal Orders as to render this process unnecessary, except 

 in doubtful cases. 



