THE MIGNONETTE TRIBE. 39 



angles will be found covered with a cold-grey frost, of 

 an extremely pretty appearance. 



The seed-vessel of the Mignonette is an oblong 

 brown case {fig. 8.), opening at the point into a trian- 

 gular passage, through which the seeds readily fall 

 out. The seeds {fig. 9.) are brown, warted, kidney- 

 shaped bodies, attached by the middle of their con- 

 cave side {fig. 9. «•)' ^^^ contain an embryo, which is 

 curved like the seed itself {fig. 10.). 



Besides Mignonette, the genus Reseda contains 

 many other species ; they are all, however, confined, 

 when cultivated, to Botanic Gardens ; for they are but 

 little superior in external appearance to the Mignonette 

 itself, and thev have none of its franjrance. Two of 

 the species are wild in Great Britain, and one of 

 them (Reseda luteola), the dyers weld, possesses the 

 property of imparting a beautiful yellow colour to 

 linen and wool. 



You have remarked, that in Mignonette the ovules 

 grow to the shell of the ovary, and not to the middle ; 

 a similar circumstance has been pointed out to you in 

 the tribes of the Violet, the Poppy, the Passion- 

 flower, and others, formerly brought under your 

 notice. I think I have somewhere already told you 

 that the place where the ovules adhere to the ovary is 

 called the placenta ; and that the manner in which they 

 adhere is hence called their placentatio/i ; let me now 

 add, that when the placentae are upon the shell of the 

 ovary, as in this and the other instances already alluded 

 to, the placentation is technically called parietal ; I 

 mention this, because the latter term is of such com- 



