130 THE BOOK OF NATURE STUDY 



veins project on the lower surface. The surface of the leaf -blade 

 thus appears wrinkled ; it is deep green above and paler beneath, 

 where the veins bear numerous short hairs. 



Within the circle of foliage leaves, that is, higher up on the 

 stem, we come to a number of small pointed leaves which require 

 to be carefully looked for. These are the bracts, and in the 

 axil of each is a single flower. After the foliage leaves have 

 been formed the stem bears the bracts, and with the production 

 of the flowers that particular shoot ceases to grow. Provision is, 

 however, made for the further growth of the plant. This is 

 carried on by a lateral bud standing in the axil of one of the 

 uppermost foliage leaves. This bud is now expanding, and the 

 leaves, the blades of which are rolled backwards towards the 

 midrib in the bud, contrast with the withered ones of the old 

 rosette. The old leaves will shortly perish, and the bud will 

 give rise to the rosette of leaves. These will remain until after 

 the next flowering season, to be in turn replaced by a lateral 

 bud. The underground stem is thus seen to be made up of 

 the shoots of each year, and careful search among the leaf- 

 bases will reveal the scars left by the group of flowers of 

 each season, and enable the amount grown in each year to be 

 determined. 



The flowers in the Primrose are borne on long stalks which 

 carry them clear of the leaves. In some close relations of the 

 Primrose, such as the Cowslip, the whole group of flowers is carried 

 up on a bare cylindrical region of the stem. This does not develop 

 in the Primrose. The flower stalks are thin and cylindrical, and 

 clothed with soft hairs. The flowers themselves are of two types 

 which are borne on distinct plants, so that any individual bears 

 flowers of one type only throughout its life. In general features 

 the two kinds of flower correspond ; they differ in the length of 

 the style and the position of the stamens. The two kinds are 

 familiar to gardeners, who call them "pin-eyed" and "thrum-eyed" 

 flowers, and can readily be distinguished by looking at the face of 

 the flower. In the pin-eyed or long-styled flowers the entrance to 

 the tube of the corolla is occupied by a greenish globular stigma. 

 The stamens are out of sight lower down. In the thrum-eyed or 

 short-styled flowers the five anthers are seen at the entrance to 



