CBUGIFEE2E. 209 



imbricate-decussate in the bud. The alternating cruciate petals are 

 sessile, riband-shaped, elongating with the growth of the flower, 

 imbricate in the bud. The androceum is formed as in Crucifercs 

 generally, of six tetradynamous stamens, the two lateral a little shorter 

 than the rest. Each consists of a free filament, and an introrse two- 

 celled, anther, of longitudinal dehiscence. The concavity of the 

 receptacle is lined by a thin layer of glandular tissue, which is thick- 

 ened in a circle towards the rim of the receptacle. There the disk 

 is prolonged in front of each petal into a prominent truncate lobe. 

 The gynasceum is free ; it consists of an ovary like that of most 

 Crucifers, tapering above into a very short style, whose -scarcely 

 dilated obtuse apex is covered with stigmatic papillae. Each, half- 

 cell of the ovary contains from two to six descending campylotropous 

 ovules. The fruit, accompanied at its base by the remains of the 

 receptacular sac, is a turgid silicule, ovoid, ellipsoid, oblong, or sub- 

 globular. It contains from two to six or eight descending seeds, 

 formed as in Cruciferce generally, containing a very bowed embryo, 

 whose ascending radicle is as broad as the accumbent cotyledons or 

 even broader. Two species of Subularia are known, little herbaceous 

 annuals ; one inhabits mountain-lakes in Europe, Asia, and North 

 America ;' the other has a similar habitat in Abyssinia. 2 Their 

 leaves are alternate, all radical, narrow, elongated subulate, in form 

 like those of a Monocotyledon. The flowers 3 form ebracteate racemes 

 (?), terminating a lateral axis, and simple or slightly ramified. 



The Crucifers have long been known as forming a most natural 

 group in similarity of fruit, corolla, and androceum. Ray, 4 in 1682, 

 noticed them as uniform Telrcqjeialde and as Siliquoste. Herein he 

 was closely followed by Magnolius, 5 who in 1GSU classed them as 

 Siliqno-ste, in the plants of his seventh section (tetrapetalous), and by 

 P. Hermann, 5 whose Class XL consists of herbaceous siliquose plants. 

 Tournefort/ in 1694, resting chiefly on the cruciform corolla, united 



1 S. aquatica L., Spec., 896. 5 Fam. PL per Tab. Disp., in Prodr. Hist. 



2 S. monticola A. Be., in Schweinf. Beitr. Gen. PI. 



z. Fl. mhiop.—Scinvmx-e., Ic. Lith. 6 Fl. Lugd.-B.at. (1690). 



'° Small, with a whitish corolla. 7 Isagoge ; Inst. 210 (1700). 



4 Meth. Nat. PI, ; Sist., xvi. 777. 



VOL. III. P 



