IJ O T A N Y. 



67 





tal. 



cfary. 



ney. 



liens, 

 iment. 



X. 



s. I 2-J 



>er. 



Cli, 



those flowers which contain honey have usually one 

 or two coloured spots, whi h hi? calls Macula r/idi- 

 : and these he considers as guides to the bees 

 when in search ot t;:od. 



The petal is, in nil probability, a more important 

 organ than we have hitherto hern able to prove. It 

 forms carbonic acid gas, but docs not decompose it 

 as leaves do. Darwin called it the lungs of the sta- 

 mens and pistils, hiv.nv it abounds in air-vessels. 

 'Pie corolla is sometimes wanting; so that it is not 

 in aii cases essential to the existence of the flower. 

 The term of its duration is very various, according 

 to the habit* ot the plant to which it belongs. Dr 

 Smith remarks, that he has " observed it to be much 

 more durable 1:1 double flowers than in single ones of 

 the same species, as anemones and poppies ; because," 

 he adds, " as I conceive, of its not having performed 

 its natural (unctions, the stamens and pistils of such 

 flowers being obliterated and changed to petals ; 

 hence the vital principle of their corolla is not so soon 

 exhausted as usual." 



The nectary, or second part of the corolla, is, ac- 

 cording to Linnxus, " every supernumerary part of 

 a flower ;" which has exposed him to much trifling 

 attack. It properly means that part of the flower 

 which secretes honey ; and which is scarcely ever the 

 same in two distinct plants, (Art. 61. Sect. ii. Part I.) 

 It maybe here remarked, that honey is not always 

 confined to the flower, but is found occasionally on 

 other parts of the plant. The use of honey appears 

 to be chiefly to allure bees, whose bodies being load- 

 ed with pollen, may thus promote the propagation 

 of vegetables. 



The stamen or chive, is considered the male organ 

 of generation in flowers. It usually consists of the 

 filament and anther, (Art. 65. Sect, ii. Part I.) The 

 parts are conjoined, and exhibit a considerable diver- 

 sity of external forms, (Plate LXX. Figs. 1 22.) 

 The vessels are said to be distributed on the filaments 

 as on an herbaceous stem. The number in different 

 genera is not the same ; and Linnsus has founded the 

 characters of twelve of the classes of his artificial sys- 

 tem on this fact ; and some of the remaining closes 

 are distinguished by some further peculiarities of this 

 organ. 



The anther is essentially necessary, and is formed 

 of cells of a membranous texture, which generally 

 burst longitudinally. It contains the pollen, which, 

 to the naked eye, appears mere dust ; but,, on being 

 examined with a microscope, it is found to consist of 

 numerous small bags, of different forms, and exhibit- 

 ing different surfaces, that remain entire unless water 

 be present, when they burst with considerable vio- 

 lence, and emit a gelatinous matter. Koelreuter 

 denies this sudden bursting, but contends, that the 

 i;)U3 matter is slowly emitted through the pores 

 on the application of moisture. Hedwig, however, 

 confirms the statements of former observers. The 

 latter physiologist has carried his observations very 

 far, and has found, that the pollen of mosses exhibit 

 the same peculiarities as that of larger plants. This 

 appears to us very minute observation. Some cu- 

 rious speculations are connected with the nature of 

 the polleu ; but we fear that, with our imperfect 



senses we may coniccture without ever approaching 

 the recess of Nature. 



The pistil is another organ of much importance 

 in the economy of flowers, (Art. (>(>. Sect. ii. Part I. 

 Plate LXX. Fig. 2:i (><).) It is considered the Pi ATP. 

 female organ of generation, and is generally sur- |^ X 4 jjj.gp. 

 rounded by the stamens. Linnrcus fancied that it '*"' 

 originated in the pith. Each perfect pistil is formed 

 of two subordinate parts ; the germen or embryo 

 seed, and the style on which the stigma is placed, 

 The germen varies in size and shape equally witk 

 the style, (Plate LXX. Fig. 2360.) and botfi 

 are composed of numerous vesseli. The latter has a 

 hollow tube, ty which it communicates with thr 

 former. The stigma consists of absorbent channel* 

 or tubes, and is an indispensiblc part of the pistil. 

 It is always more or less moistened Ivith a viscid 

 fluid, which sometimes accumulates in a very percep- 

 tible quantity. 



Pistils are sometimes changed into petals ; and Dr 

 Smith has seen one^ changed into " a real leaf." The 

 uses of the pistil shall be detailed at some length, in 

 conjunction with those of the stnmens. t 



Botanists are now generally agreed as to the real Function 

 nature and extent of the offices which the stamens of stamen* ' 

 a/nd pistils are destined to perform in the economy of ar ' d l>' l!s - 

 Nature. From the earliest period, they have both 

 been considered necessary for the perfection of the 

 fruit ; and in the Levant, it has been long well 

 known, that the female flower of the date palm will 

 be abortive without the intervention of the male. 

 After the revival of learning, little attention was paid 

 by botanists to the functions of vegetables ; they ra- 

 ther employed themselves in determining species, and 

 their medicinal virtues. And when the inquiry was 

 first set on foot, respecting the peculiar functions of 

 the stamens and pistils, some of the leading botanists 

 of the time, Morrison, Tournefort, and Pontedera, 

 treated it with sovereign contempt. Soon after, how- 

 ever, it had the good fortune to attract more no- 

 tice, and many valuable hints were thrown out by 

 Camerarius, Vaillant, Blair, and Bradley. Some of 

 the most illustrious vegetable physiologists, among 

 whom we may reckon Grew and Ray, adopted the 

 idea of Sir Thomas Millington, respecting the ne- 

 cessary agency of the stamen in fecundating the 

 seed. Other aucceeding philosophers had partial 

 views of the subject, while others opposed it with an 

 intemperate zeal. Linnseus has the distinguished me- 

 rit of having clearly and satisfactorily established the 

 position, that stamens and pistils are ofgans essen- 

 tial for the propagation and perfection of the fruit. 

 This he accomplished in the year 1732, by the pub- 

 lication of his Fiinditmeiila., and of his Ph'dosophicet 

 Bolanica. In addition to the perfect establishment 

 of the above fact, he conceived the noble idea of 

 founding a classification on the principles he had so 

 beautifully developed. 



The proofs adduced in favour of the above opi- Proofj. 

 nion are highly satisfactory. All must have observed, 

 that the flowers precede the fruit, even in the meadow 

 saffron, which has sometimes been considered an ex- 

 ception to the general law. In this plant, says Dr 

 Smith, the fruit and leaves are perfected in the spring 1 , 



