532 WOODY PLANTS OF MASSACHUSET'ES. 
SECOND GENERAL DIVISION. 
CHAPTER VIII. MONOCOTYLEDONOUS PLANTS. 
Tus division is of little comparative importance in extra- 
tropical regions. In this State, it is represented by a few families 
of humble plants, among which are, however, the grasses and 
those which produce the various kinds of corn and grain. ‘The 
noblest of monocotyledonous plants, the palms, are confined to 
the warmer climates. 
The stem of monocotyledonous plants is not composed of dis- 
tinct pith, wood and bark, the two latter arranged in concentric 
rings or zones and traversed by medullary rays, but of bundles 
of vessels and woody fibres traversing the stem somewhat irreg- 
ularly from the base of the leaves to the roots or to points near 
the surface of the stem. ‘The leaves have ribs and veins nearly 
parallel, and are not usually articulated to the stem, but con- 
tinuous, so that, when they wither and decay, they leave a rag- 
ged, indefinite, partial stalk, instead of the well-marked scar 
left by the fall of the leaf of a dicotyledonous plant. The 
parts of the flowers are in threes or multiples of three. The 
embryo of the seeds 1s undivided, and has a single lobe or 
cotyledon, and a single radicle. 
FAMILY XLI. THE SMILAX FAMILY. SMILA‘CEZ. R. Brown. 
This small family, the only one containing monocotyledonous 
plants which in our climate have woody stems, includes plants 
differing considerably m aspect, habits and duration. To it 
belong the small, herbaceous annuals, Trillium, Medéola, Strep- 
topus, Convallaria and Uvularia, and the woody, climbing 
plants of the genus Smilax. It is found principally in Asia 
and North America. It is characterized by having the calyx 
and corolla usually confounded, of six parts resembling petals 
in being colored; 6 stamens; style trifid; 3 stigmas or a 3-parted 
stigma, and the fruit a roundish berry. 
