THE BRACTS AND FLOWERS. 88 



The Bracts and Flowers. — 'riio gnussos form a natural 



order wliicli is oiu* of the easiest to learn to recoirnize, but for 

 this very reason it is generally diflieult to distinguish the several 

 speeies. 



The hest charaeters for descrihing grasses are found in connec- 

 tion with the bracts, flowers and the ripened ovary. 



A great diversity of views has been entertained by leading 

 botanists in relation to the morphology of the flower and the 

 names to be given to each part. 



According to our best modern authorities, including lientham. 

 Hooker, Gray, Sachs, Munro, and Doll, the three outer scales ctjii- 

 stitute no part of the flower, but answer to bracts. 



Morphology of the Bracts and Flowers. — The following u 

 a full abstract of an able essay on tliis subject, by the late Geo. 

 Bontham, and is taken from the Transactions of tlie Linnean 

 Society: 



The terminology adopted by botanists has been very unsettled 

 and repeatedly modified. The absence of .ill homology be- 

 tween the so-called sepals in grasses and those of jjcrfect 

 flowers has been repeatedly demonstrated. "Some years ago, when 

 preparing my Handbook of the British Flura, I i)urposed following 

 Kunth, but I was soon brought to a standstill by the anomaly of 

 the spikelet of Milium being described as having two flowers 



Fis. 51.— A plant of Port prateiwin, L. (June grass). At 1, a small plant, with 

 roots, root-stocks, leaves, culm and flowers; c, part of a sheath of a leaf with a white 

 fi(/i(/c, ahove which is part of a blade; a, npikrht, closed, contaiiiiup: fotir //(i/vYx ; h, 

 tfpikelet spread open, containins< five florets, as seen when in flower: the lower scales 

 as seen in ti and h, are the imijlji tiUiinia, c, a )l(nrl, with fUmtl oIuiih: at the nulit, 

 Vtihit at the left, including thrco stamens; /, cross-section of tlie Jliinit oUniir whicli 

 IS "j-ribhed. and keeled ; tl, a pistil with the ovary below bearing two short ntjih)<, eacli 

 terminated by a feathery titifiinn ; at the base on each side is a /oi/i'ck/c. — (Scribner.) 



According K> Robert Brown, the two lower scales of n and /> are the {jUtnur, and con- 

 stitute an iiivolitnr. They are the rm\:l]i {flumes or haml {ihimn^ of many authors: 

 ii((/(((!of Duniortier; tctiincn of Palisot de Beauvois. According to Robert Brown 

 and Jussieu, the two scales at c, are the txtlffc, nniX represent the sepals; (iiimdUi' of 

 Dumortier; ulraimltiot Palisot de Beauvois; ■jirriauthiuni of authors. According to 

 It. Brown and .Tussieu, the right hand scale in c is the hiiirr or oiilir iHiha, ohimen 

 /('/•fi/c ofGermaiado .St. Pierre; flowering ghime of Bentham, Hooker, DOll, 



Accordmgto R.Brown and .Ttissieu. the Muit scale at the left in c is the interior 

 palca, ))iilr<)1a iiitrrior ot Datnortier i KpnthrUn of Diill. According to R. Brown and 

 Kunth, the small scales at tl are thosqunmnkc: lodindcti n( Bentham and others; 

 ncftaria of Scheher;(;/umc(te of some authors. By many, these scales were thought 

 to represent petals. 



