A 1-loculed pericarp that dehisces on both edges is a =legume=. Peas
and beans are typical examples (Fig. 232); in fact, this character
gives name to the pea family,--Leguminosæ. Often the valves of the
legume twist forcibly and expel the seeds, throwing them some distance.
The word “pod” is sometimes restricted to legumes, but it is better to
use it generically for all dehiscent pericarps.
A compound pod--dehiscing pericarp of two or more carpels--is a
=capsule= (Figs. 233, 234, 236, 237). Some capsules are of one locule,
but they may have been compound when young (in the ovary stage) and the
partitions may have vanished. Sometimes one or more of the carpels are
uniformly crowded out by the exclusive growth of other carpels (Fig.
235). The seeds or parts which are crowded out are said to be _aborted_.
[Illustration: FIG. 234.--CAPSULE OF MORNING GLORY.]
[Illustration: FIG. 235.--THREE-CARPELED FRUIT OF HORSE-CHESTNUT. Two
locules are closing by abortion of the ovules.]
There are several ways in which capsules dehisce or open. When
they break _along the partitions_ (or septa), the mode is known as
=septicidal dehiscence= (Fig. 236); In septicidal dehiscence the fruit
separates into parts representing the original carpels. These carpels
may still be entire, and they then dehisce individually, usually along
the inner edge as if they were follicles. When the compartments _split
in the middle, between the partitions_, the mode is =loculicidal
dehiscence= (Fig. 237). In some cases the dehiscence is _at the top_,
when it is said to be =apical= (although several modes of dehiscence
are here included). When the _whole top comes off_, as in purslane and
garden portulaca (Fig. 238), the pod is known as a =pyxis=. In some
cases apical dehiscence is by means of a hole or clefts.
[Illustration: FIG. 236.--ST. JOHN’S WORT. Septicidal.]
[Illustration: FIG. 237.--LOCULICIDAL POD OF DAY-LILY.]
The peculiar capsule of the mustard family, or Cruciferæ, is known as
a =silique= when it is distinctly longer than broad (Fig. 224), and
a =silicle= when its breadth nearly equals or exceeds its length. A
cruciferous capsule is 2-carpeled, with a thin partition, each locule
containing seeds in two rows. The two valves detach from below upwards.
Cabbage, turnip, mustard, water-cress, radish, rape, shepherd’s purse,
sweet alyssum, wallflower, honesty, are examples.
[Illustration: FIG. 238.--PYXIS OF PORTULACA OR ROSE-MOSS.]
[Illustration: FIG. 239.--BERRIES OF GOOSEBERRY. Remains of calyx at
_c_.]
[Illustration: FIG. 240.--BERRY OF THE GROUND CHERRY OR HUSK TOMATO,
contained in the inflated calyx.]
[Illustration: FIG. 241.--ORANGE; example of a berry.]
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