PHANEROGAMIA, 951 
baskets, buckets, ropes, mats, cups, food, wine, and many 
other purposes. The Date-palm of the Mediterranean 
region, the Palmyra Palm of Southern Asia, and the Sago- 
palms of Siam and the Indian Archipelago are all food- 
producing trees of great importance to the people of these 
countries. 
527. The Bananas likewise furnish great quantities of 
food to the natives of tropical countries. There are sev- 
eral species and many varieties; all are large herbs with a 
palm-like aspect, often 3 to 5 metres (10-15 feet) high. 
Their fruits are borne at the summit of the stem, a large 
flowering bud gradually unfolding and exposing clusters 
of small flowers which produce the well-known fruits 
(Fig. 139) 
Sus-Ciass II. Tu Dicorytepons (Dicotyledones). 
528. The first leaves of the embryo are two and oppo- 
site; hence they are said to have two cotyledons. The 
venation of the leaves is for the most part such that the 
veins are rarely parallel, and in joining one another they 
form an irregular network. 
529. The germination of Dicotyledons may be illustrated 
by the following examples. In the seed of the Windsor 
Bean (Fig. 140) the embryo entirely fills up the seed- 
cavity, the endosperm having all been absorbed. The 
thick cotyledons lie face to face, and are attached below to 
the small stem of the embryo-plant. The stem extends 
upward a short distance between the cotyledons, bearing 
a few rudimentary leaves and itself ending in a growing 
point, the whole constituting the plumule. The downward 
prolongation of the stem (commonly but erroneously called 
