402 



STRUCTURE OF PHANEROGAMIC PLANTS. 



the Poppy (Fig. 190, a) presents a regular reticulation upon its 



sui'face, pits, for the most 





Seeds, as seen under a low magnifying power : — a. 

 Poppy ; B, Am-arantlius (Prince's fealher); c, Antirrltinum 

 majus? (Snapdragon); D, CaryophyUum (Clove-pink); E, 

 Bignonia. 



^•o. 190. part hexagonal, being left 



between projecting walls ; 

 that of Oaryophyllum (d) is 

 regularly covered with 

 curiously jagged divisions, 

 every one of which has a 

 small bright black hemi- 

 spherical knob in its mid- 

 dle ; that of Amaranthus 

 hypochondriacus has its sur- 

 face traced with extremely 

 delicate markings (b) ; that 

 of Antirrhinum (?) is 

 strangely irregular in shape 

 (c), and looks almost like 

 a piece of furnace-slag; and 

 that of Bignonia (e) is re- 

 markable for the beautiful 

 structure of the translucent 

 membrane which sur- 

 rounds it, the radiating lines shown in the figure being found 

 under a higher magnifying power to consist of rows of elongated 

 spiral cells. Such are seen, too, in the like delicate membrane 

 that surrounds several other seeds, as those of Sphenogyne speeiosa 

 and Lophospermum eruhescens, which, from possessing this ap- 

 pendage, are spoken of as "winged." The most remarkable 

 development of this structure is said by Mr. Quekett to exist in 

 a seed of Ualosanthes Indiea, an East Indian plant, in Avhich the 

 wing extends more than an inch on either side of the seed. 

 Some seeds are distinguished by a peculiarity of form, which, 

 although readily discernible by the naked eye, becomes much 

 more striking when they are viewed under a very low magnify- 

 ing power ; this is the case, for example, with the seeds of the 

 Carrot, whose long radiating processes make it bear, under the 

 Microscope, no trifling resemblance to some kinds of star-fish ; 

 and with those of Oyanthus minor, which bear about the same 

 degree of resemblance to shaving-brushes. In addition to the 

 preceding, the following may be mentioned as seeds easily to be 

 obtained, and as worth mounting for opaque objects: — Anagallis, 

 Anethum graveolens, Antirrhinum, Begonia, Carum carui, Ooriopsis 

 tinctoria, Datura, Delphinium, Digitalis, Elatine, Erica, Gentiani, 

 Q-esnera, Ilyoscyamus, Hypericum, Lepidium, Limnocharis, Linaria, 

 Lychnis, Mesembryanthemum, Nicotiana, Orohanche, Petunia, Re- 

 seda, Saxifraga, Scrophularia, Sedum, Sempervivum, Silene, Stel- 

 laria, and Verbena. The following may be mounted as trans- 

 parent objects in Canada balsam : — Drosera, Sydrangea, Mono- 



