46 ELEMENTARY BOTANY 
CHAPTER VIII 
THE INFLORESCENCE 
Definition of THE special branches of a plant which are modi- 
Inflorescence. fied to bear flowers form a system known as 
the Inflorescence. Flowers (as we have already seen, 
Chapter VI.) are modified shoots arising in the axil of leaves 
called bracts; in order to understand inflorescences, it. must 
be remembered that the formation of a flower from a terminal 
bud arrests growth in length, so that if growth continues it 
must be by means of lateral branches. 
In Flowering Plants the branching of stems is lateral, ‘that 
is to say, the main stem goes on developing by means of the 
erowing point in its terminal bud, and branches arise laterally 
from the buds situated in the angle which the leat makes with 
the stem. There are two main types of lateral branching : 
1. The main stem goes on developing upwards, giving off 
lateral branches, the oldest being furthest from, and the 
oe nearest to, the apex. 
. The lateral branches may develop more ee than 
See primary stem, the terminal bud of which may even become 
suppressed, as in the lilac. | 
eae Inflorescences show the same twotypes. Thus, 
Typesof in the wallflower, the flowers are always lateral, 
Inflorescence. over terminal ; the apex of the branches bearing 
‘ flowers goes on developing, so that the growth of the stem is 
never arrested, and the youngest flowers are nearest the apex, 
the oldest furthest away. This type of inflorescence is said to 
be indeterminate, or indefinite, because there is no limit to the 
erowth in length of the flowering shoot. The term racemose 
(Lat. racemus, a cluster of grapes) is applied to it. 
The buttercup or marsh marigold is an example of the 
second type of inflorescence. In this case the main stem 
