446 MALVACRffl. 



have a great affinity to Caryophyllaoese, from which they are chiefly 

 distinguished by their bisepalous calyx, their stamens being often 

 perigynous, and their transversely dehiscent capsule. The plants 

 belonging to the order have few properties of importance. They are 

 insipid and destitute of odour. Portulaea oleraeea, common Purslane, 

 is used as a potherb on account of its cooling and antiscorbutic quali- 

 ties ; the ancients thought the seeds, steeped in wine, to be an 

 emmenagogue. The tuberous roots of Glaytonia tuberosa, a Siberian 

 plant, are eaten ; and those of Melloca ( Ullucus) tuherosa, a native of 

 Peru, have been recommended as a substitute for the potato. In 

 Portulaea oleracea and grandiflora the stamens, if brushed lightly in 

 any direction, will immediately, with a strong impulse, bend over 

 to the point from which they were brushed. There are 15 known 

 genera, and 125 species. Examples — Portulaea, Talinum, Calandrinia, 

 Claytonia, Montia. 



Order 26. — MALVACBiE, the Mallow Family. (Polypet. Hypog.) 

 Sepals 5 (fig. 683), rarely 3 or 4, more or less cohering at the base 

 (fig. 298 c, p. 197), with a valvate ajstivation (fig. 287, p. 194), often 

 bearing an external calyx (epiealyx) or involucre (fig. 298 6, p. 197). 

 Petals equal in number to the sepals ; aestivation twisted (fig. 286, p. 

 194). Stamens 00 (fig. 685 a), hypogynous, all perfect; filaments 



Kg. 683., Fig. 684. 



monadelphous (fig. 685 t), or polyadelphous (fig. 651, p. 370) ; anthers 

 monothecal (fig. 360, p. 222), reniform (fig. 686), with transverse 

 dehiscence. Ovary formed by the uuion of several carpels round a 

 common axis (figs. 417, p. 239 ; 548, p. 305 ; 687), either dis- 

 tinct or cohering ; styles as many as the carpels (fig. 685 s), united 

 or free. Fruit capsular or baccate; carpels one- or many-seeded, 

 sometimes closely united, at other times separate or separable (figs. 



Kgs. 683-691. Organs of fructification of Malva sylvestris, to illustrate the natural order 

 Malvaeese. Fig 683. Flower viewed from above, with its iive petals, monadelphous 

 stamens, peduncle or flower-stalk, and two stipules, s. Fig. 684. Diagram of the flower, 

 showing the different whorls or verticils ; five valvate or induplioate sepals, five twisted 

 petals, indefinite monadelphous stamens, and united carpels. 



