226 



BOTANY OF CROP PLANTS 



spikelet. Each spikelet is two-flowered; the lower one is 

 sterile and consists of a palet; the upper is fertile and has 

 a lemma and palet, two minute lodicules, one to three sta- 

 mens, and a single ovary with two stigmas. There is a tuft 

 of long, silky hairs at the base of each spikelet. The grain 



Fig. 86. — Mill where sugar cane is crushed. (From Essentials of Geography, 

 Second Book. Copyright, 1916, by Albert Perry Brigham and Charles T. 

 McFarlane. American Book Company, Publishers.) 



is small, silky, and of low vitality. Mature grains are seldom 

 produced in cultivated plants and pollen is often infertile. 

 Geographical. — Saccharum officinarum is a native of the 

 tropics. It is now grown as a crop throughout our Southern 

 States and in many other warm regions. It is not a success 



