[Illustration: FIG. 223.--CENTRIFUGAL INFLORESCENCE.
1, cyme; 2, scirpioid raceme (or half cyme).]
=The flower-stem.=--The stem of a solitary flower is known as a
=peduncle=; also the general stem of a _flower-cluster_. The stem of
the individual flower in a cluster is a =pedicel=. In the so-called
stemless plants the peduncle may arise directly from the ground, or
crown of the plant, as in dandelion, hyacinth, garden daisy; this kind
of peduncle is called a =scape=. A scape may bear one or many flowers.
It has no foliage leaves, but it may have bracts.
SUGGESTIONS.--=166.= Name six columns in your notebook as follows:
spike, raceme, corymb, umbel, cyme, solitary. Write each of the
following in its appropriate column: larkspur, grape, rose, wistaria,
onion, bridal wreath, banana, hydrangea, phlox, China berry,
lily-of-the-valley, Spanish dagger (or yucca), sorghum, tuberose,
hyacinth, mustard, goldenrod, peach, hollyhock, mullein, crêpe
myrtle, locust, narcissus, snapdragon, peppergrass, shepherd’s purse,
coxcomb, wheat, hawthorn, geranium, carrot, elder, millet, dogwood,
castor bean; substitute others for plants that do not grow in your
region. =167.= In the study of flower-clusters, it is well to choose
first those that are fairly typical of the various classes discussed
in the preceding paragraphs. As soon as the main types are well fixed
in the mind, random clusters should be examined, for the pupil must
never receive the impression that all flower-clusters follow the
definitions in books. Clusters of some of the commonest plants are
very puzzling, but the pupil should at least be able to discover
whether the inflorescence is determinate or indeterminate. Figures
221 to 223 (from the German) illustrate the theoretical modes of
inflorescence. The numerals indicate the order of opening.
CHAPTER XXI
FRUITS
The ripened ovary, with its attachments, is known as the =fruit=.
_It contains the seeds._ If the pistil is simple, or of one carpel,
the fruit also will have one compartment. If the pistil is compound,
or of more than one carpel, the fruit usually has an equal number
of compartments. The compartments in pistil and fruit are known as
=locules= (from Latin _locus_, meaning “a place”).
[Illustration: FIG. 224.--DENTARIA, OR TOOTH-WORT, in fruit.]
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