90 SYSTEMATIC POMOLOGY. 



ORDER ERRICE^. 



A large family, of shrubs, herbs, or even small trees, diffi- 

 cult to define as a whole; the leaves are simple and mostly 

 alternate; the flowers almost all regular, and with as many or 

 twice as many . stamens as there are petals or lobes of the 

 corolla ; their anthers 2:celled, each cell more commonly open- 

 ing by a pore or hole at the end; ovary mostly with as many 

 cells as there are lobes to the corolla ; style only one, and seeds 

 small. The only fruits of merit are the whortleberries and 

 cranberries which are known by having the tube of the calyx 

 adherent to the ovary,, on which the monopetalous corolla and 

 th« stamens are therefore moimted. All of these are shrubs, 

 with scaly buds. Fruit a berry or berry-like. Only the cran- 

 berry is cultivated. 



THE CRANBERRY. 

 (Ancient Latin name, of obscure meaning.) 



Stamens 10 or 8 ; anthers tapering up into a tube with a hole 

 at the top. Ovary with several or many ovules in each cell, 

 forming a pulpy many-seeded (rarely rather few-seeded) berry. 



Ckanbeeby. — Creeping or trailing, very slender, hardy 

 woody plants, with small evergreen leaves whitish beneath, 

 single flowers in summer, borne on slender erect pedicels, pale 

 rose corolla, deeply parted into J/, narrow reflexed divisions, 8 

 anthers with very long tubes, but no awns on the hack, and acid 

 red berry J/, celled, ripe in autumn. 



