CRUGIFERJE. 



Cakile maritima 

 (Sea Socket). 



III. CAKILE SERIES. 



Cakile 1 (fig. 241) has flowers like those of a Wallflower or Radish, 

 with the two lateral sepals gibbous at the base, cruciate 

 petals, six tetradynamous stamens, and four receptacular 

 glands, two of which are conical-compressed, external to 

 the pair of large stamens, and two smaller, internal to 

 the two short stamens. The distinctive characters are 

 to be found chiefly in the g}ma3ceum and fruit. The 

 former consists of a pluriovulate ovary, surmounted 

 by a subsessile stigmatiferous mass. The fruit is at 

 first almost drupaceous, finally dry and corky ; it con- 

 sists of two vertical indehiscent joints, which may 

 separate transversely from one another at maturity. 

 The lower one forms an inverted truncated pyramid, 

 laterally compressed. The superior is a more or less 

 elongated compressed cone. Each is one-celled and 

 contains a single seed, the upper ascending, the lower 

 descending, with a coloured fleshy embryo whose radicle 

 is accumbent or oblique to the cotyledons. Two 

 species of Cakile" are known, one of which is very common 

 sandy beaches in Europe, 

 North America, and Austra- 

 lia. They are annual fleshy 

 glabrous herbs, whose rami- 

 fied stems are covered with 

 alternate, entire or pinnatifid 

 leaves, and end in racemes 

 of flowers. 3 



This genus may be con- 

 sidered the type of a series 

 characterized by its fruit ; 

 which is neither longitudi- 

 nally dehiscent as in Cheiran- 

 thece, nor indehiscent as in 



Fig. 244. 

 Fruit. 



on 



Rapistrum (Didesmus) cegyptium. 



y^\ 



Fig. 215. 

 Fruit. 



Fig. 246. 



Fig. 247. 



Long. sect, of fruit. Lower joint of fruit. 



T., Inst., 49, t. 483. — G^btn., Fruct., ii. Fl. Cam., ii. 35. — Dexess., Ic. Sel., ii. t. 57. — 



287, 1. 141.— DC, Prodr., i. 185.— Spach, Suit, a 



Buffon, vi. 330.— Endl., Gen.,n. 4899.— A.Gray, 



Gen. III., t. 74.— B. H., Gen., 99, 968, n. 156. 



2 Reichb., Ic. Fl. Germ., ii. t. 1. — Scop., 



Gkiseb., Fl. Brit. W. Ind., 14.— Gren. & 

 Godr., FL de Fr., i. 154. — Walp., Rep., i. 159. 

 Several authors consider this genus monotypic. 

 3 Pale purplish pink, or whitish. 



o 2 



