A MORPHOLOGICAL STUDY OF THE UMBELLIFERAE 
CONTRIBUTIONS FROM THE HULL BOTANICAL LABORATORY 298 
HILARY STANISLAUS JURICA 
(WITH PLATES XIII, XIV) 
Introduction 
The fact that the Umbelliferae are so extensive and so well dis- 
tributed throughout the northern university zone has made them 
an object of frequent study. CESALPIN (9) was the first to assemble 
the different members of the Umbelliferae into a separate group, 
not only on the basis of their umbellate inflorescence, but also on 
the basis of a secondary character, the two-celled ovary, each cell 
of which gives rise to a single seed. Morison (51) recognized the 
family on the basis of the same characters as CESALPIN, but added 
a number of other plants, especially some of the Valerianaceae and 
Thalictrum, which of course, were not destined to remain within 
this family. To these, he applied the name of imperfect Umbel- 
liferae. According to GENEAU DE LAMARLIERE (27), however, it 
was left for HERMANN (1690) to establish a rational division for 
this family, namely, (1) species with ovate seeds; (2) species with 
hairy or spiny fruits; and (3) species with large and flattened 
fruits. Following HerMANN, MAGNoL (27), in 1709, divided the 
family into four groups based on the character of the surface of the 
(r) fruit ribbed, (2) fruit large, (3) fruit spiny, and (4) 
fruit long. 
The classification of the Umbelliferae entered upon a new phase 
with LinnE (45), who selected or rather borrowed from his contem- 
porary ARTHEDIUs the row of bracts of the involucre and of the 
involucel as a principal character, upon which he based his division 
of the Umbelliferae, with the already mentioned external features 
of the fruit as secondary characters. At this time the essential 
distinction between a cyme and an umbel was not considered, and 
accordingly very many forms were included, which later workers, 
notably ADAMSON (1), CRANTZ (15), SPRENGEL (63), HOFFMANN 
Botanical Gazette, vol. 74] [292 
