50 NATURE STUDY AND AGRICULTURE 
Stems that are not woody either die entirely in the fall or 
at least die down to the ground. Such plants are said to 
be herbaceous. 
Duration of a Plant’s Life. — Some plants live but a single. 
season and then die, others live two years, and still others 
live year after year for an 
indefinite time. Plants are 
accordingly classified as an- 
nual, biennial, and peren- 
nial. 
An annual is a plant that 
completes the whole cycle 
of its life in a single year. 
It begins with the seed and 
dies, root and all, after 
ripening its seed. Corn, the 
small grains, and mustard 
are examples of annual 
plants. 
A biennial is a plant that 
lasts but two years. It 
usually grows the first year 
without blossoming. In the 
; Casor fall the leaves may die, but 
a ee seed the second the rest of it survives the 
winter and the next season 
forms a plant that flowers, ripens its seeds, and then dies. 
Beets, carrots, parsnips, and cabbage are familiar examples. 
A perennial plant lives year after year. If the stem is 
herbaceous, it dies down to the ground in the fall, and only 
the root with part of the stem below the surface survives 
the winter. Such a plant is called an herbaceous perennial. 
