B O T 
to Itic eye. Fig. ». represents the '/ares kftion magnified j 
a a, the bark; b b, an arched ring of fap-velfels next the 
fkin ; cc, the parenchyma of the bark with its cells, and 
another arched ring of lap veffels; d d, a circular line of 
lymph-duels immediately below the above arched ring; 
e e, the wood; f the firlt year’s growth; g, the fecond ; 
A, the third year’s growth ; it, the true wood; k k, the 
great air-velfels; It, the lelfer ones ; mm, the parenchy¬ 
matous infections of the bark reprefented by the white 
rays ; n, o, the pith, with its bladders or cells. 
The trunk, botanically conlidered, is of l'even different 
kinds, viz., eaulis, culmus, fcapns, pedunculus, petiolus, 
frons, and flipes. Caulis, a fiem, is the proper trunk of a 
tree or herb, which ferves to elevate the leaves and fructi¬ 
fication ; and is either fimple, or compound. Simple Items 
are fuch as proceed in a con' imted feries towards their fu m- 
mits: compound are fuch as are fubdivfded into fmall fa¬ 
muli or branches, and dimini.fh as they afeend. Culmus, a 
ftravv, is the proper Item of gralfes, oats, barley, wheat, Sc c. 
and elevates both the leaves and the.fructification. Scapus, 
a fialk, is an univerfal trunk, railing the fructification, but 
not the leaves, as in daffodil, winter-green, lily of the val¬ 
ley, &c. Pedunculus , a peduncle, or footfialk of a flower, 
is a partial trunk, ferving to unite the fiowers with, the 
root, flem, (talk, or branch, of the proper plant or tree 
to which they respectively belong. Petiolus, a petiole, or 
foot ftalk of a leaf, is a fpecies of trunk that fallens the 
leaves, but not the fructification ; a circumftance which 
diftinguilhes it from a peduncle. There are Come cafes 
where the fructification and leaves are borne on the fame 
footfialk, as in nettle-leaved ciflns, and Syrian mallow; 
but tliefe infiances are very rare. Frons, is a fpecies of 
trunk compofed of a branch and leaf blended together, and 
is frequently united with the fruClification. There is no 
exprefiion anfwerable to this term in our language. Frons, 
with the ancients, though frequently ufed in refpeCt to 
trees, in the fame fenfe with folium , a leaf, implied, in its 
proper fignification, a part of the wood of the tree with 
the leaf; or, as we fiiotild exprefs it, a twig with leaves ; 
and for this reafon they never applied the term to the leaves 
of herbs, which were always called folia, but only to thofe 
of trees. Linnaeus availed himfelf of this old diftinClion 
to make it a botanical term, expreffive of the character of 
palms, and Alices or ferns ; in the former of which the 
branches, and in the latter even the fiem itfelf, is an aClual 
leaf. Stipes , is ufed to exprefs the bafe or trunk of a frons, 
and is applied only to the palms and ferns, and to the 
fungi, or mufhrooms. It is ufed alfo to exprefs the thread, 
or fine trunk, that fupports the pappus in downy feeds. In 
the annexed plate of trunks and Items, fig. 3. is the caulis; 
fig. 4. the culmus; fig. 5. the fcapus; aaa a, peduncles ; 
bbbb, petioles; fig. 6. the frons; fig. 7. the fiipes. 
Trunks are again to be confidered with refpeCt to their 
duration, direction, figure, invefiment, fuperficies, cont- 
polition, and rami; that is, when the branches form a part 
of the fiem. 
I. Their duration. This is generally according to 
their texture, and named as follows: Herbaceous, or hevb- 
like, an annual Item, peri filing every year; as the water- 
plantain. Sujfruticofe, or half-fimibby, the root permanent, 
but the branches fometinies withering ; as the rafpberry. 
Fruticofe, both fiem and branches woody and abiding, as 
the currant. Arboreous, tree-like, having a folid trunk or 
fiem, firm and durable ; as the oak. Inanis, or pithy, ha¬ 
ving a fpongy fnbftance ; as the elder and holyhock. 
II. Their direction, which admits of the following 
diftinctions. EreB, .ftraight, or ftiff, rifing nearly in a per¬ 
pendicular line ; as the lafeinated teafel. Lax, loofe, or 
ealily turning; as the triple headed pond-weed. Oblique, 
growing awry, neither perpendicular nor horizontal; as 
the golden rod. Afcending, riling upwards, with a curve 
like an arch; as the garden fage. Reclinate , or reclined, 
bending or inclining downwards ; as the baftard-orpine. 
Incurved, or bending inwards ; as Solomon’s leal. Nutant, 
or nodding, when the _top or head turns downward ; as 
ANY. 2 39 
the mtifit thifile, and the nodding amaranth. Diffife, 
conlifiingof fpreading branches ; as the yellow fumitory. 
Procumbent, lying on the ground ; as the cucumber. Root¬ 
ing, producing fhoots or runners from the roots ; as the 
firawberry. Sanncntofe, confiding of long fhoots or ten¬ 
drils ; as the vine. Repent, creeping or trailing on the 
ground, and occalionully throwing out roots; as the draw- 
berry. Radicant, or paralitic, finking roots laterally, and 
growing into or upon other bodies ; as the ivy, and trum¬ 
pet flower. Geniculatcd, divided by joints or knots; as 
the white milletoe. Flexions, waved backwards and for* 
wards from bud to bud ; a§ the common fmilax. Climbing , 
trailing and growing round fonie other body; as the hop. 
Voluble, twining about, and fupporting itfelf upon fome 
twig or branch ; as the convolvulus, or bindweed : and. 
tliefe are either dextrorfum, twining from the right to the 
left, according to the motion of the fun, as the iiop, and 
honeyfttckle ; or jinifrorfum , winding from the left to the 
right, contrary to the fun’s motion ; as the convolvulus, 
nightfhade, and kidney-bean. The dircElion of the nutant 
fiem, or mufk-thillle, is Ihewn at fig. 8 ; the procumbent 
fiem, or cucumber, at fig. 9; the rooting and repent fiem, 
or firawberry, at fig. 10; the geniculatcd, or milletoe fiem, 
at fig. 11 ; and the flexions fiem, or fmilax, at fig. 12, of 
the Botanical Plate IT. The climbing dextrorfum, or hop, 
is Ihewn at fig.J3; and the voluble fnijlrorfum, or bind¬ 
weed, at fig. 14. of the Botanical Plate III. 
III. Their ficure, which admits of the following va¬ 
rieties. Teres, when the fiem is round, or of a cylindrical 
figure ; as dandelion. Semiteres, half-round, or femi-cy- 
lindrical; as the belladona lily. CompreJJ'cd, or flattened, 
with the two oppolite lides flat; as the water-aloe, or 
water-foldier. Anceps, two-edged, flattened, with two fharp 
fides; as St. John’s wort. Angled, having the fiem of an 
angular form; as the Ofwego tea. Alfo, diagonus, tetra- 
gonus, pentagonus, polygonus, having two, three, four, five, 
or many, angles ; and alfo triquetrous, three-lquare, when 
they have three plane fides; and triangular, quadrangular, 
quintangular, multangular, when they have three, four, 
five, or many, lides; as the melon-thifile. See a figure and 
fedlion of one of thefe angular Items, the cadlus-hexagonus, 
in the Botanical Plate III. at fig. 15; and of the melon- 
thifile, or many- angled fiem, at fig. 16. 
IV. Their investment; tliefe are either Nudus , or 
naked of leaves, as when the fiem is only covered with a 
fmooth Ikin, and wholly defiitute of leaves ; as the fpurge, 
fwaHow-wort, korfe-tail, and dodder. Foliate, or leafy, 
when furnifhed with leaves; as the tree-primrofe. Vaginate, 
or flieathed, when the fiem is Surrounded with fpatha at 
the bafe of the leaves; as the rhubarb. Squamous, when 
covered with fcates; as the prickly poly podium. Imbri¬ 
cated, when covered with a clofe lucceflion of fmall leaves, 
placed like tiles on a haufe; as the great houfeleek. The 
foliate Item, or tree-primrofe, is Ihewn at fig. 17 ; the vogi- 
nate fiem, or rhubarb, at fig. 18 ; and the imbricate fiem, 
or houfeleek, at fig. 19. 
V. Their superficies ; tliefe are either Suberous, with 
a foft elafiic bark; as the cork-tree. Rimous, with the bark, 
full of cracks and filfures ; as the oak. Tunicated, or the 
bark of the fiem coated with fkins and membranes ; as the 
birch-tree. Striate, or fireaked, when the fiem is marked 
with very thin hollow lines ; as the wake-robin. Sulcate, 
or furrowed, when the trunk is cut in with broad and deep 
grooves or channels ; as the crowfoot and butter-cup. 
Glabrious, or fmooth, when the fiems have a flippery, 
glolfy, and fmooth, furface ; as the w’ater corn-flag. Sca¬ 
brous, or rough, when covered with little projecting points 
and prominences ; as the dwarf fun-flower. Muricale, or 
prickly, when armed with lharp points or prickles ; as the 
cailus-parafidica Tomentofe, the fiem covered with down ; 
as the moth-mullein. Lanated, covered with a foft woolly 
hair; as the Ethiopian fage. Villous, or fhaggy, covered 
thickly with hair ; as the hairy inula. Pilofe, covered with 
hair thinly placed ; as the white faxifrage. Hifpid, co¬ 
vered with fiiff brifiles; as the lafeinated teafel. Aculealed, 
whece 
