THE WHITE LILY 149 



Class to which the Lily belongs (Monocotyledons) lose their 

 main root early, and replace it by adventitious roots. 



B. THE FLOWERS 



The flowers are borne in a terminal raceme, i.e. they 

 spring from the elongated main axis the older flowers 

 below, the younger above ; each flower is stalked, and 

 grows in the axil of a small leaf called a bract. 



The flowers are large, and very easy to examine. 

 The first great difference which we notice, from the 

 Wallflower, is that the whole perianth, including both 

 calyx and corolla, is coloured alike, and its leaves are all 

 of about the same size. In the bud, when just about to 

 open, the three outer perianth leaves or sepals enclose 

 all the other organs, only the midribs of the petals 

 showing between them. A good idea of the arrange- 

 ment of the parts of the flower is obtained by 

 examining a transverse section across a bud (see Fig. 

 56 ; also diagram, Fig. 78, p. 176). 



The sepals are three in number, and are all inserted 

 at one level, forming a single whorl. They are 

 lanceolate in shape, and their venation is much like 

 that of the green leaves, only less conspicuous. In the 

 bud each sepal is somewhat hooded, so as to arch over 

 the other organs. At the base of each sepal, on its 

 inner side, is a shallow groove with raised sides, into 

 which honey is secreted. 



The three petals also form a whorl, and stand 

 opposite the spaces between the sepals, or, in other 

 words, are alternate with them. The petals are 

 narrower at the base than the sepals, but rather 



