DESCRIPTION OF THE COTTON PLANT 



211 



usually treated as annuals. The plants are tap-rooted, erect, shrub- 

 like and rather woody. The branches are in pairs, spreading and 

 strongly jointed ; and the stems and branches are in most species 

 covered with delicate, whitish hairs. The leaves are three to five 

 lobed. In upland varieties the flowers are white, turning red on the 



FIQ. 77. 



FIG. 78. 



FIG. 77. The flower of upland cotton, viewed from the side, showing the bracts, 

 calyx, and petals (after Cook). 



FIG. 78. Showing the "squares" of cotton the unopened buds enclosed by the 

 bracts (after Cook). 



second day of blooming, but Sea Island cotton has yellow flowers 

 with a purple-red spot at the base of each petal. The flowers are 

 surrounded by three to five deeply fringed bracts (Fig. 77) the 

 number corresponding to the number of cells in the bolls. Previous 

 to the opening of the blossom, the enclosing bracts form the so-called 

 " squares " (Fig. 78). The bolls are irregularly oblong or oval in 

 shape and are somewhat pointed. They have three to five cells and 



