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Pig. 13. (Tab. Nat. Hiflory) reprefents the Male Flower, orBlofTom, of the Melon, the Leaves being ftripp'd from off
the Circle FF', ABEreprefent the Head, placed in the
Center of the Flower, and form'd of the Circumvolutions of the Apices B, and fuftained by four Columns GGGG. —The Part B of the Head reprefents the Circumvolutions of the Apices while yet ftmt •, and the Part E reprefents them open, and covered with the Farina, which they be- fore contained, but which is diffufed on the outfide when the Plant arrives at Maturity. Each Apex forms a kind of Canal feparate by a Partition into two. A Grain of the
Farina is reprefented by D. Fig. 14. H, in the former
Figure, reprefents the Pedicle that fuftains the Flower, and which in the Male-Flower produces nothing.
Fig. 1 5. reprefents the Female Flower or BlofTom of the
Melon, or that which bears the Fruit. The Leaves are
ftripp'd off the Circle F F, as before, the better to fhew the other Parts. The Knot of the Flower, or the Embryo of the Fruit is reprefented by A. The Piftil is reprefented by B B ; and is only a Continuation of the Embryo of the Fruit A. The top of the Piftil fpreads, in B B, into feveral oblong Bo- dies, each feparable into two Lobes. Thefe Bodies are ve- ryrough, mrniuYd with Hairs and little Veficles proper to Catch the Duft of the Male Flower, and to conduit them to the Mouths_ of the Canals, which communicate as far as the Cells of the Grains contained in the young Fruit. Upon cutting the Piftil tranfverfely in its fmalleft Part, we find as many Canals as there are Divifions in its Head ; which Ca- nals correfpond to as many little Cells, each including two Orders of Grains, or Seeds, ranged in a fpongy Placenta.
This Doflrine of Generation, affords us a Hint how to al- ter, improve, csrc. the Tafte, Form, Flowers, Quality of Fruits, &c. viz.. by impregnating the Flower of one, with the Farina of another of the fame Clafs.
To this accidental coupling and intermixing it is, that the humberlefs Varieties of new Fruits, Flowers, &c. produced every Day •, with many other Phenomena in the vegetable Kingdom, nretobe afcribed. See Mule.
The Affedration of Perpendicularity obferved in the Stalks or Steins of Plants, as well as in their Branches and Roots makes a fine Speculation. -'Tis a Phenomenon never at- tended to till very lately. The Caufe is very fubtile, and has employ'd the Wits of feveral of the prefent Set of Phi- lofophers, particularly Aftruc, de la Hire, Dodart, and Pa- rent ; fee their feveral Syftems under the Article Perpen- dicularity.
Nor is that conftant "Paralleliuri obferved in the Tufts of Trees, to the Soil or Ground they grow upon •, a Circum- ftance to be over-look'd. See Parallelism.
For the Fecundity of Plants, &c. See Fecundity, &c.
Diftribution b/Plists,
Plants rmy be divided, with regard to the manner of their generating, into i° Male, or fuch as bear no Fruit or Seed, and have only the Male Organ of Generation, viz* the Fa- rina— Of this kind are the Male Palm-Tree, Willow, Po- plar, Hemp, Nettle, and Hop-Tree.
2° Female, or fuch as bear Fruit, and have the female Organ, viz.. the Piftil, or Uterus, but want the Farina. — Such are the fen-ale Palm, Willow, Poplar, &c.
3 Hermaphrodites, or fuch as have both male and female Parts, the Farina and Piftil.
Thefe are again fubdivided into thofe in whofe Flower both Sexes are united; as the Lilly, GillihWer, Tulip, and much the greater Part of the vegetable Species', whofe Piftil is
furrounded by the Stamina. And thofe whofe male and
female Parts are diftincr, and at a Diftance from each other ; fuch is the Rofe, whofe Uterus is beneath the Fetala ; the Me- lon, and all of the Cucumber Kind, which have their male and female Flowers a-part ; and all Fruit, Nut, and Maft-bear- ing Trees, as the Apple, Plum, Goofberry ; the Walnut, Halle, Philbud, Oak, Beech, Pine, Cyprefs, Cedar, Juniper, Mulberry, Plantane, &c. which have Catkins.
Plants may be again diftinguilhed, with regard to their Food, and the Element they live in; into — 1° Terrene, which are thofe that live only on Land ; as Oaks, Beech, C?r.
2° Aquatic, which live only in Water ; either in Rivers, as the Water-Lilly, Water-Plantane, &c. or in the Sea, as the Fucus, Coral, Coralline, &c.
3° Amphibious, which live indifferently either in Land or Water; as the Willow, Alder, Minths, &c. ' Plants are again diftributed, with regard to their Age or Pe- riod, into 1° Annual, which are thofe whofe Root is form'd and dies in the fame Year ; fuch are the leguminous Plants, Wheat, Rye, &c. 2° Bifannuals, which only produce Flowers and Seeds, the fecond or even third Year after their being rais'd, and then die ; fuch are Fennel, Mint, &c. 3 Perennial, which are thofe that never die after they have once bore Seed ; of thefe fome are Ever-Greens, as the Afarabacca, Vio-
let, &c others lofe their Leaves ene Part of the Tear, al Fern, Colts-foot, &c.
_ Plants again are diftinguifhed with regard to their Mag- nitude,^, into, 1° Trees, Arbores; as the Oak, Pine, Fir, Elm -, Sycamore, &c-z° Shrubs, Suffrutices -, as the Holly. Box, Ivy, Juniper, &c. and-3 Herbs, as Mint, Sage, Sor- rel, Tnyme, &c. See Tree, Shrub, and Herb. BuE
this Divifion is rather popular, than jhft and philolbphical.
The Botanifts give us more accurate and minute Arrange- ments, or Diftributions, of the Vegetable Kingdom, into Claffes, Genera, Species, d-c. with regard to their Nature; Characters, &c. 'Tis a Point they are not well agreed upon from what Confederation the Divifion into Genera is beft taken; fome, as CcJmer,Colenjna,Tournefsrt,8a:. chufing the Flower and Fruit ; and others taking in the Roots, Leaves, Stems, &i. See farther under the Article Genus.
Our ingenious Mr. Ray diftributes Plants into 2J Genera, or Claffes, under the following Denominations.
i° Imperfect Plants which are fuch as appear to want the Flower and Seed — Such are, Corals, Sponges, Fungus's, Truffles, Mofs. See Coral, Sponge, Mushroom, Truf- fle, and Moss.
2° Plants producing an imperfetl Flower, and whofe Seed, is too fmall to be difecrned by the naked Eye y^-fuch are Fern, Polypody, &c. See Flower.
3° Thofe whofe Flowers want Petala; fuch are Hops,
Hemp, Nettles, Docks. See Petala, Hops, ehr.
4° Thofe with a compound Flower, and which emit a mil* ky Juice when cut or broke; as Lettuce, Dandelion, Suc- cory, &c. See Compound Flower.
5° Thofe with a compound Flower of a difcous Form, and vyhnfe Seed is winged with Down ; as Colts-foot, Flea-bane, &c. See Winged.
6° Hcrbtc capitatx, or thofe whofe Flower is compofed of long fiftulous Flowers gathered into a round Head, and co- vered with a fcaly Coat; as the Thiftle, great Burdock, Blue- bottle, &c.
7° Corymbiferous Plants with a difcous Flower, but no Down ; as the Daify, Yarrow, Corn-Marygold, &c. See
CoRYMBUS.
8° Plants with a perfect Flower, but only one Seed to each Flower, as Valerian, Agrimony, Burnet, &c.
9° "Umbelliferous Plants, with a Flower of five Petala,
and two Seeds to each Flower, See U M b e l l m. This
being a large Genus is fubdivided into kvm Species, viz. thofe with a broad flat Seed like a Leaf, as wild Garden Parfnip: with a longifh and larger Seed, fwelling in the middle, as Cow-weed, and wild Chervil: with a fhorter Seed, as Angelica : with a tuberous Root, as the Earth-nut: with a fmall ftriated Seed, as Caraways, Saxifrage, and Bur- net: with a rough hairy Seed, as Partly, and wild Carrot: with intire Leaves fubdivided into Jags, as Senicle, and Thoro-Wax.
10° Stellate Plants, whofe leaves grow round the Stalks, at certain Intervals, in form of Stars ; as Mug-Weed, Mad- der, &c. See Stellate.
ii° Rough leaved Plants, which have their Leaves placed alternately, or in no certain Order along the Stalks ; as Hounds- Tongue, Moufe-Ear, &c.
14 Suffrutices, or Verticillate Plants, whofe Leaves grow by pairs, on their Stalks, one Leaf right againft another, the Flower being monopetalous, and ufualiv in form of a Helmet; as Thyme, Mint, Pennyroyal, Vervain, &c. See Verticillate.
13° Polyfpermous, or thofe with many naked Seeds, at lead five, fiuceeding their Flower ; as Crows-foot, Marlh-Mallows, Cinquefoil, Strawberries, &c. See Poly-
SPERMOUS.
14 Bacciferous Plants, or fuch as bear Berries ; as Brio- ny, Honeyfuckle, Solomon's-Seal, Lilly of the Valley, Nightlhade, Afparagus, &c. See B a c c i f er o u s, Berry, &c.
1 5° Multijiliauous, or Coraicalate Plants, which after each Flower produce feveral long (lender Siliquce, or Cafes where- in their Seed is contained ; as Orpine, Navel-wort, Bears- foot, Columbines, &c. See MuLtisui Q_u o u s,&c.
I6 Q Vafculiferous Plants, or thofe with a Monopetalous Flower, and which, after each Flower, have a Veffel befide the Calyx, containing the Seed ; as Henbane, Bindweed, Rampions, Fox-Glove, Eye-Bright, &c. See Vasculife- rous, &c.
17° Thofe with an uniform tetrapetalous Flower, bearing their Seeds in oblong filiquous Cafes; as Stockgilfy-Flower, Muftard, Radifh, &c.
i8° Vafculiferous Plants, with a faming tetrapetalous Flower, but of an anomalous or uncertain kind, and in rea- lity only monopetalous, falling off altogether in one ; as Speedwell, Fluellin, Plantane, yellow and wild Poppy, &c.
19° Leguminous Plants, or fuch as bear Palfe, with a Papilionaceous Flower, confiding of four Parts joined at the Edges; as Peafe, Beans, Vetches, Tares, Lentils, Liquo- rice, Trefoil, &c. See Leguminous.
11° Tlann
