340 



NATURAL HISTORY OF PLANTS. 



of a free filament and a two-celled anther dehiscing by two sublateral 

 longitudinal clefts. Between the stamens are eight elongated glands. 

 The free gynseceum consists of an ovary with four prominent cells 

 superposed to the petals, each containing a large number of anatropous 

 ovules. It is surmounted by a short style, which soon expands into 

 a sort of four-lobed stigmatiferous cup, the lobes alternating with 

 the cells of the ovary. The fruit, around whose base is the persistent 

 calyx, is an elongated tetragonal septicidal capsule, dehiscing from 

 the summit downwards, with concave valves bearing the polysperm- 

 ous septa on the centre of their inner face, while the style persists, 

 dried up on top of the central columella (fig. 391). The seeds have a 

 lax membranous outer coat, and contain a fleshy albumen lodging 

 a small embryo at its apex. There are two species of Francoa? 

 perennial Chilian herbs. Their leaves are alternate, lyrate-pin- 

 natifid, 2 tapering at the base to simulate a winged petiole, though 

 really sessile, exstipulate, and often sprinkled with glands. Their 

 flowers form simple or compound racemes, and are each axillary to a 

 bract, more or less adnate to the pedicel in one of the species. 



Tetilla Iiydrocotylafolia? a perennial herb from Chili, is formed 

 as in Francoa ; but its perianth is irregular ; its posterior sepals 

 are larger than the anterior ; and its anterior petals are either quite 

 absent, or usually smaller than the posterior. The fruit is a many- 

 seeded membranous loculicidal capsule ; the flowers are racemose. 



VI. HYDRANGEA SEEIES. 



Hydrangea* (figs. 392, 393) has its flowers all fertile, or of two 

 kinds, the outermost of the inflorescence remaining sterile, with only 



1 Don, in Fdinb. N. Phil. Journ., vi. 51. — 

 Kze., in Flora (1831), 369.— Sweet, Fl. Gard., 

 ii. t. 151. — Lindi., in Pot. Peg., t. 1645. — 

 Hook., in Pot. Mag., t. 3178, 3309.— C. Gat, 

 Fl. Chil.,\\\. 147. — Lem.& Decne., Trait. Gen., 

 265. — Walp., Ann., vii. 902. 



2 Not really compound. 



3 DC, Prodr., iv. 667; vii. 778.— Deless., 

 lc. Sel., iii. t. 77.— Pcepp. & Endl., Nov. Gen. 



et Spec, i. t. 19.— A. Juss., loc. cit.—C. Gay, 

 Fl. Chil., iii. 149.— Endl., Gen., n. 4627.— 

 Dimorphopetalum Tetilla Beet., in Merc. Chil. 

 (1829), n. 12-14. — Tetraplasium Kze., in Flora 

 (1831), 378. 



4 L., Gen., n. 557 {Hydrangia). — J., Gen., 

 214.— G^etn., Fruct., i. 150, t, 30.— Lamk., 

 Diet., iii. 150; Suppl., iii. 71; III., t. 170.— 

 DC, Prodr., iv. 13.— Space", Suit, a Puffon, v. 



