84 



THE FLOWKR. 



LLKSSON 



the flower-clusters are centrifugal, that is, are cymes or fascicles ; 

 but they are themselves commonly disposed in spikes or racemes, 

 which are centripetal, or develop in succession from below up- 

 wards. 



LESSON XII. 



THE FLOWER: ITS PARTS OR ORGANS. 



223. HAVING considered, in the last Lesson, the arrangement ol 

 flowers on the stem, or the places from which they arise, we now 

 direct our attention to the flower itself. 



224. Nature and Use of the Flower. The object of the flower is the 



production of seed. The flower consists of all those parts, or organs, 

 which are subservient to this end. Some of these parts are neces- 

 sary to the production of seed. Others serve merely to protect or 

 support the more essential parts. 



FIG. 167. Cyme of the Wild Hydrangea (with neutral flowers in the border). 



