(5) Creeping Crowfoot, p1. 2, fig. 1. There are some few in-
stances in which plants are increased by means of bulbs formed
either on the stalk, as in (6) Toothwort and (7) Pilewort,
pl. 2, fig. 2, or among the flowers., as in many of the Onion
tribe, pl. 2, fig. 3, and which falling to the ground, produce
new plants, and hence, in certain soils, become highly
troublesome. Roots may also spring from other parts of the
plant, as from the midrib of the leaf, instanced in the
(8) Common Cuckow F1ower, p1. 2, fig. 4, when growing in a
wet situation, and by which that species is frequently increased,
or from the substance of the leaf itself, as in several of the
succulent plants.

Pupil. Do all plants produce seeds?

Preceptor. All annual plants growing in a favourable soil
and situation, and no ways diseased, constantly produce seed;
they must indeed of necessity, otherwise, as you must be sen-
sible, certain species would become extinct: most perennial
plants also produce seeds, but many instances occur in which
perennial plants rarely or never produce perfect seeds, as in
(9) Butterbur, (1) Water-Radish, (2) Horse-Radish, (3) Peri-
winkle, and some others; but this most probably arises from
their growing in a situation unfavourable to the production
of fruit.

(5) Ranunculus repens. (6) Dentaria bulbifera. (7) Ranunculus Ficaria.
(8) Cardarmine pratensis. (9) Tussilago Petasites. (1) Sisymbrium amphibium.
(2) Cochlearia Amoracia. (3) Vinca major.

Pupil.

Pupil. Are not such species liable to be lost on this ac-
count?

Preceptor. Such plants have generally creeping roots, by
which. they are greatly multiplied, and therefore in no danger
of suffering, from a want of seed : many plants, growing on
very high mountains, where cold and moisture predominate,
which are unfavourable to the ripening of seeds, have a par-
ticular provision made for their increase ; where each seed
should be formed on the flowering branch, a green shoot
springs forth, by which means the flowering stem often be-
coming too heavy, falls to the ground, and these shoots take
root: such plants are said to be viviparous; the (4) Sheeps
Fescue-Grass is often found in this state in such situations,
pl. 2, fig. 5. Other grasses also sometimes become viviparous
in meadows and gardens.

Pupil. I learn then that plants are for the most part raised
from seeds; of course, the seed must be an object of the
first importance in the oeconomy of the plant.

Preceptor. Your conclusion is perfectly just.

Pupil. I feel a strong desire, therefore, to become ac-
quainted with the several parts of which the seed is composed,
and to learn in what manner it unfolds itself, and becomes a
plant.

(4) Festuca ovina.

Preceptor.

Preceptor. I shall communicate this information to you
with the greater pleasure, as the subject is not only highly
interesting and curious in itself, but has been but lightly
touched on by modern Botanists.

Pupil. Have all seeds the same component parts?

Preceptor. In general they have, and the larger the seed,
of course, the more visible are the parts of which it is com-
posed; in the (5) Broad Windsor or Garden Bean, and
(6) Kidney Bean, they are very conspicuous.

Pupil. Of how many parts does the seed consist?

Preceptor. The seed consists of three principal parts, viz.
the Husk* or Skin, the Embryo†, and the Lobe‡ or Lobes.

Pupil. The Husk, I presume, is the outer covering of the
seed, formed, as I should suppose, to preserve the tender
embryo and lobes from injury : does it exhibit any peculia-
rity of structure worth notice?

Preceptor. As you rightly conjecture, the use of the husk
is to defend the parts contained within it, for which it is ad-
mirably adapted, being in these and most other seeds of

considerable thickness, of a firm tough texture, somewhat
like parchment, composed of two or three coats adhering

(5) Vicia Faba. (6) Phaseolus vulgaris.

*Cutis. † Corculum. ‡Cotyledon. Lin.

closely

closely together. At one end of the Garden Bean, we ob-
serve, in such as are ripe, a black mark called the Eye, p1. 3,
A, fig. 1, which is nothing more than a kind of scar, formed by
the breaking off or separation of the stalk to which it was
affixed, and by which it received its nourishment in the seed
vessel, pl. 3, A, fig. 2. 3. It is by the colour of the eye, as you
must have noticed, persons judge of the age of the bean in
the pod or shale : in the Kidney-Bean, the eye is situated on
the middle of the seed, pl. 3, I, fig. 1. Besides the eye, a very
minute hole or aperture is perceptible, even without a glass,
in a full-grown Garden-Bean, especially if a green one, pl. 3,
A, fig. 4, at the end of the eye, just at the point of the radicle.
If the Bean be cut longitudinally edge-ways down the middle,
we perceive that the husk is much thickest at the end next
the eye, pl. 3, D, fig. 1, and that in its fore part it has a dupli-
cature, D, fig. 2, in which the radicle, C, fig. 3, is lodged.
The husk only, is represented at D, the lobe with the embryo
attached to it being taken out.

Pupil. Is the small aperture which you speak of constant
to all seeds, and what is its use?

Preceptor. The aperture, we believe, is constant to all
seeds, though so minute as to be scarcely visible in small
ones. when perfectly ripe and dry ; what its use is, is not so
clear it has been supposed by GREW, that the moisture which
the Bean absorbed when placed in the earth., and by which
it became distended passed through this aperture : to

ascertain

ascertain the reality of this, I covered the aperture in
six (7) Peas with a strong spirit varnish, and placed them with six
other Peas, which together were exactly of the same weight, in a
pot of moist earth ; the next day I took them out of the pot,
weighed them, and found them nearly as heavy as the unvar-
nished ones; Nor was there much difference in the size of the
Peas thus differently treated ; hence it would appear, that the
moisture which the Pea absorbs, enters the Cotyledons by
some other channel than the aperture, most probably the
whole surface of the husk is permeable.

Pupil. What is the Embryo which you speak of, and in
what part of the seed is it situated?

Preceptor. The Embryo is the future plant, existing in
miniature ; it may be considered as the essence of the seed,
that part which all the others serve only to defend and nourish;
it is situated, for the most part, betwixt the middle and one
end of the seed, as in the Garden-Bean, pl. 3, C, fig. 3,
and Kidney-Bean, pl. 3, G, fig. 1; sometimes at the very extremity,
as in the (8) Filbert, pl. 3, L, fig. 1.

Pupil. By what name does LINNÆUS distinguish it ?

Preceptor. LINNÆUS distinguished it by the name of
Corculum.

(7) Pisum sativum. (8) Corylus Avellana.

Pupil.

Pupil. Of how many parts does it consist?

Preceptor. It is divided into two parts, the Plumule and
Radicle; the Plumule is the upper part of the Corculum ;
from its supposed resemblance to a feather, it has been called
by GREW, the Plume; by LINNÆUS, Plumula: it rises up-
wards when the seed begins to vegetate, and forms all that

part of the plant which appears above ground ; the Radicle is
the lower part of the Corculum, which descends and forms the
root of the plant it has been called by GREW and other
writers the Radicle; by LINNÆUS, it is called Rostellum;
but we prefer GREW's name, as being the most expressive, and
the most easily retained in the memory. Both the Plumule
and Radicle are remarkably conspicuous in the Kidney Bean,
the Plumule exhibiting some of the future leaves, and even
their fibres: visible even to the naked eye, pl. 3, G, fig. 1; but
much more so when magnified, pl. 3, H, fig. 1, the Plumule;
fig. 2, the Radicle.

Pupil. It now remains, that you give me some informa-
tion respecting the third principal part of the seed, the Lobe,
or Lobes.

Preceptor. The Lobe, or Lobes, of the seed, for they
are for the most part two in number, constitute the chief
substance of the seed, enclose and for a certain time afford
nourishment to the Corculum or Embryo, the Plumule lying
within the Lobes, pl. 3, C, fig. 4 ; the Radicle without them.

pl. 3,

pl. 3, B, fig. 1; enclosed in a duplicature of the husk, pl. 3, C
fig. 3; its apex pointing to the small foramen or aperture before
mentioned, pl. 3, A, fig. 4, which it almost touches. If you take
a Pea, or Kidney-Bean, and strip off the husk, you will find,
it readily split into two halves ; these are the Lobes of the
seed.

Pupil. Do not Botanists distinguish them by some other
name ?

Preceptor. They generally distinguish them by the name of
Cotyledons.

Pupil. You observe, that in most seeds they are two in
number; of what other number are they found in different
seeds?

Preceptor. In most seeds they are two in number, as in
the Garden-Bean and Pea; some have only one Cotyledon,
as Wheat, Barley, and the seeds of all the Grasses; and some
few seeds are said to have more than two, though in fact such,
when strictly examined, are found to have only two lobes,
each of which is deeply divided into three or more segments,
as in the Cress, pl. 8, fig. 1.

Pupil. Do not seeds assume different names, according
to the number of their Cotyledons.

Preceptor.

Preceptor. They do-thus, such seeds as are composed of
one Cotyledon, are called Monocotyledonous; if they have
two Dicotyledonous, and if more than two Polycotyledonous.

Pupil. Have not some seeds been considered as destitute of
Cotyledons ?

Preceptor. Both LINNÆUS * and ADANSON † have de-
scribed the Mosses, and other Cryptogamous plants, as
having no Cotyledons ; HEDWIG || however, born to abolish
Cryptogamy, hath shewn that both these celebrated authors
were mistaken.

Pupil. Have there not been some attempts to found systems
of Botany on the number of the Cotyledons ?

Preceptor. Several authors have formed their systems in
part from the number of the Cotyledons; and Mons. ADANSON

* Musci et adfines folis Cotyledonibus destituuntur. Lin. Phil. Bot. p. 93.
ACOTYLEDONES ubì nulli omnino extant Cotyledones. MUSCI. Phil.
Bot. p. 106.

† On n'a pas encore défini ce qu'il faut regarder come Cotulèdons dans les graines
des Plantes, imparfaites, teles que les Bissus, les Champignons, les Fucus, les
Epatikes, les Foujères, & les Mousses. Ces graines n'ont ni Radicule, ni Cotu
lèdons, ni Plantule centrale come les parfètes. Adans. Fam. des Plantes, p. 304.

|| Pulvisculus igitur Muscorum intra Capitula contentus, verum eorum est
semen, quod, veluti aliorum vegetabilium semina sua tunica, Cotyledone uno et
ultra, et plantulæ rudimento instruitur. Hedwig. Fund. Hist. Nat. Musc. frond.
p. 58.

has

has founded two systems on them exclusively, the one on

their number, the other on their form.
Pupil. Can such systems be easily applied to practice?

Preceptor. The least so of any-for to apply them, we must
see the plants immediately as they appear above ground, op-
portunities of doing which are very rarely afforded.

Pupil. Of what materials is the substance of the Coty-
ledons composed ?

Preceptor. The Cotyledons are generally composed of
farinaceous matter, mixed with expressed or essential oil, and
that frequently in considerable quantities; the former is suf-
ficiently visible in pounded Almonds, and the latter in bruised
Aniseeds.

Pupil. In what manner does the Corculum receive its
nourishment from the Cotyledons ?

Preceptor. The Corculum, previous to the vegetation of
the seed, lies enclosed within the Cotyledons, as before de-
sribed, to each of which it is connected by the middle part,
of it, just in the intermediate space betwixt the Plumule and
Radicle; from every part of the Cotyledons, a number of
minute vessels arise, which unite as they proceed towards the
Corculum, into which they enter in two distinct bodies, vid.

pl. 3.

pl. 3. F, in dicotyledonous seeds at least, and supply it with
nourishment ; being of the same colour as the other parts,
their ramifications are scarcely visible on the flat surface of the
Cotyledon, and their delicate structure prevents us altogether
from unravelling them by maceration, or filling them by in-
jection; if we examine a thin slice of a Cotyledon, with a
deep magnifier, it appears made up of a number of small
bladders. Such then appears to be the structure of the Coty-
ledons, the farinaceous matter of which they are composed,
is the substance which is in such general use for food in all
countries ; when ripe and dry, they are pretty easily reduced
to powder, the husk being of a different texture, and more
tough, is separated in the bolting and sifting, and forms the
Bran.

Pupil. Is not Bread nutritious in proportion to the quan-
tity of Cotyledon, or farinaceous matter it contains?

Preceptor. Indisputably, inasmuch as Flour is more nutri-
tive than Bran.

Pupil. How comes it then, that brown bread, which can
only differ from white, by containing a greater quantity of
the husk, is considered as more wholesome than white, and
preferred by many?

Preceptor. Supposing the same process to be used in making
the different kinds of bread, a given quantity of white must

be

be more nutritious than the same quantity of brown ; all that
can be said in favour of brown bread, is, that it may agree
best with certain constitutions: this, however, by the bye-
I have now endeavoured to give you a general idea of the
several parts which compose the seed ; we come next to take
notice, of the alteration which it undergoes, when placed in a
situation adapted to make it vegetate.

Pupil. In what kind of a situation must a seed be placed to
make it vegetate ?

Preceptor. In order that a seed should vegetate, and pro-
duce a new healthy plant, it is necessary that it be impregnated,
that it be placed in a certain degree of heat, supplied with a
certain degree of moisture, and that light and air have free ac-
cess to it: these appear to be all the circumstances which are
necessary to set the Embryo in motion and make it productive.

It is a fact, well known to such as keep poultry, that if a hen
lays an heg, without having been previously trodden by the
cock, such an egg proves abortive ; in like manner, if the
seeds of a plant, while in the Germen or Ovary, re-
ceive not the vivifying influence of the Pollen or impreg-

nating dust of the Antheræ, they prove abortive, and
do not germinate. That a certain degree of heat is ne-
cessary to make the seed germinate, is known to every
one, who has in the least noticed the śconomy of nature,
and is evident from this circumstance, that during the winter,

at

at least, in this country, seeds remain inactive in the earth, till,
as Nature's Historian expresses it,

-- "the penetrative sun,
" His force deep-darting to the dark retreat
" Of vegetation, sets the steaming pow'r
"At large, to wandcr o'er the earth
"In various hues."

Seeds, kept perfectly dry, as is well known, never shew the
least disposition to germinate.

That light is not essential to the germination of the seed,
though it be to the health of the plant, as soon as it appears
above ground, is proved by the following experiments.

EXPERIMENT I

Sowed ten grains of Barley in a pot of earth, and set them
in a pan of water, in the window of a warm room fronting
the North, so that they could receive no warmth from the
sun.

EXPERIMENT II.

Sowed ten grains of Barley in another pot, placed in a
similar situation, and covered them with a small inverted
bason, so as to keep them totally dark.

On

On the 23d of March, eight days from the sowing, eight
seeds in the first pot had vegetated, and the blades ap-
peared above ground, of a green colour ; on the same day,
on taking off the bason, which covered the seeds sown in the
second pot, eight seeds also, had vegetated, the blades appeared
of a much paler colour than those sown in the other
pot, and were drawn up nearly as tall again. March 27,
twelve days from the sowing, no great difference in the height
of the blades in the two pots of barley; that which was
covered, looked of a pale yellow colour, the other of a
bright green, the covered barley was not so broad in the
blade; this day took off the bason ; in two days the yellow
barley had nearly recovered its green colour.

Hence it appears, that seeds secluded from light, vegetate
to the full as soon as those which are exposed to it, and that
the green colour of the leaves depends on the light entirely;
that plants, by the deprivation of light, are rendered weakly,
and unhealthy, but may recover, if exposed to it in due
time.

Pupil. Do you not find air, which is so essential to the
life of animals, to be of more importance in the vegetation
of seed than light ?

Preceptor. The following experiment proves it to be so.

March 23. Put, some dry earth into a middle sized vial

so

so as to fill it one third, poured some water on the earth, so
as to moisten it, then dropped in about a dozen Radish seeds,
which lay on the moist surface, corked the vial close, so as
to cut off all communication with the external atmosphere,
and set the vial in the window of a warm room. On Saturday
the 29th, two seeds only had vegetated so far, that the husks
were thrown off, and the Cotyledons appeared in the form of
leaves, but of a yellow colour, the rest of the seeds were
swelled. but had not burst their skins, many of which were
mouldy.

April 2. No appearance of vegetation in any more of
the seeds, the Cotyledons of the two, which bad begun to
unfold, looked yellow, and did not in the least advance.

April 16. Vegetation quite at a stand.

Hence it appears, that for the seed to vegetate and produce
a new healthy plant, it is necessary, as I before observed, that it
be impregnated, that it be placed in a certain degree of heat,
supplied with a certain degree of moisture, and that light
and air have free access to it.

Now to illustrate the process of vegetation, we have chosen
seeds of the Pea, Wheat, Radish, and Pine, as these exhibit
the different appearances, which seeds in general assume in
changing into plants.

After

After a Pea has been placed in moist earth, in the summer
time, for the space of twelve hours, the whole bulk of it is
considerably enlarged, so that it occupies twice the space it
did before, and from its increased weight, as well as size, it
is evident it has absorbed a considerable quantity of water;
the Radicle now becomes more prominent and apparent; in
twenty-four hours more, the point of the Radicle has pene-
trated through the husk, and passed downward into the earth;
the Plumule soon afterwards makes its way out from betwixt
the Cotyledons, where it lay enclosed, and rises upward. The
Radicle, as it descends, begins to throw out, not only small
fibres, but to be clothed with fine villi, by means of which
it draws nourishment from the earth, the Plumule, rises up-
wards, and expands into leaves, the Cotyledons having afforded
nourishment to the Corculum, till capable of shifting for
itself, continue under ground, where they decay. Vid. .pl. 4.
Fig. 1. to 11.

To ascertain how far the Cotyledons were necessary to the
growth, or advancement of the Plumule and Radicle of the
Pea, previous to the Radicles putting out its fibres, I made the
following experiment.

Of four peas, which I had sown in a pot, and which had
appeared above ground two days, I pulled up two, the
Radicles of which had not put forth any fibres, cut away their
Cotyledons entirely, and replaced them in the earth ; of one of
the remaining ones, I cut away rather the largest half of the

Coty-

Plate 1, represents a Potatoe Root, pulled out of the
ground, at the time when the Potatoes, fig. 1, are beginning
to form: and is intended to shew one of the modes in which
plants are increased, viz. by roots under ground. Vid. page 1.

Explanation of PLATE II.

LETTER A. Part of the stalk, with some leaves of the
Creeping Crowfoot, which shews another mode in which
plants increase, viz. by roots springing from the stalk, fig. I,
as it lies on the ground. Vid. page 1.

LETTER B. Part of a branch of Pilewort, taken from a
plant out of bloom., and in which bulbs of a pale brown colour,
somewhat like grains of wheat, are observable in the alæ
of the leaves, fig. 2, exhibiting another way in which plants
increase, viz. by bulbs forming on the stalk, and which
falling off, in due time strike root. Vid. page 2.

LETTER C., Shews bulbs, fig. 3, formed in the head of a
plant of the Onion tribe, among the flowers, and by which
the plant is increased in the same manner as by the bulbs
of the Pilewort. Vid. page 2.

LETTER D. A leaf of the common Cuckow flower, which
when growing in wet situations throws out roots from the mid-
rib, fig. 4, whereby the plant is increased. Vid. page 2.

LETTER E. A small part of a flowering branch of the
Sheeps Fescue-Grass, become viviparous, that is, throwing out
shoots of grass, fig. 5, where the seed should be formed, and
which falling to the ground, take root, and thereby increase
the plant without seed. Vid. page 3.

Explanation of PLATE III.

LETTER A. A Garden Bean, in a green state, with its
Husk or skin on. Fig. 1, the Hilum or eye. Fig. 2, the foot-
stalk or umbilical cord, by which it was connected to the shale
or pod. Fig. 3, the footstalk dilated so as to cover the Hilum
before their separation. Fig. 4, the Foramen or small aperture
at the extremity of the Hilum next the Radicle.

LETTER B. The same stripped of its Husk. Fig. 1, the
point of the Radicle projecting beyond the Cotyledons.

LETTER C. A Garden Bean divided longitudinally down
the middle. Fig. 1, the Skin or husk. Fig. 2, one of the
Cotyledons within the husk. Fig. 3, 4, the Corculum in its
natural situation.

LETTER D. The Husk of the Bean C, fig. 1, the Coty-
ledon, fig. 2, with the attached Corculum, fig. 3, taken out of
it. Fig. 1, shews its greater thickness at the Hilum. Fig. 2,
represents a duplicature in its anterior part, in which the
Radicle of the Corculum, fig. 1, B, and fig. 3, C, is lodged.

LETTER E. A transverse section of an entire dry Bean,
which shews more completely how the Radicle C, fig. 3, is
surrounded by the duplicature of the Husk, D, fig. 2. Fig. 1,
the Radicle. Fig 2, the duplicature. Fig. 3, the Cotyledons.

LETTER F. The two Cotyledons of the Garden Bean,
with their vessels arising from their exterior edge, and which
ramifying enter the middle of the Corculum, fig. 1. Fig. 2,
the Plumule. Fig. 3, the Radicle.

LETTER G. One of the Cotyledons of a Kidney Bean with
the Corculum, fig. 1, in its natural situation.

LETTER H. The Corculum of the Kidney-Bean, G. Fig. 1,
taken out and magnified. Fig. 1, the Plumule, which shews
the veins of the future leaves. Fig. 2, the Radicle.

LETTER I. A Kidney Bean, in which the Hilum, fig. 1,
is situated in the middle of the seed.

LETTER K. The kernel of a filbert.

LETTER L. Half of the same, or one of the Cotyledons,
in which the Corculum is situated at the point, fig. 1.

Explanation of PLATE IV.

Fig. 1. A Pea which, having been placed in moist earth.
is just ready to vegetate.

Fig. 2. One of the Cotyledons with the Corculum in its
natural situation.

Fig. 3. The two Cotyledons opened, shewing the Corculum
betwixt them, and the manner in which it is attached to them.

Fig. 4. The Radicle shooting downwards, being the first
obvious appearance of vegetation in the pea.

Fig. 5. The vegetation of the Pea further advanced, the
Radicle having shot down deeper, and beginning to put forth
Fibres, the Plumule rising upwards and appearing above
ground.

Fig. 6. The Plumule further advanced.

Fig. 7. The Radicle now beginning to push forth nume-
rous fibres. Fig. 8, the Plumule expanded into leaves. Fig. 9,
the Pea continuing under ground, where the Cotyledons
perish.

Fig. 10. A Garden Bean beginning to vegetate. Fig. 11,
the Radicle putting forth fibres. Fig. 12, the Plumule ex-
panding into leaves.

Cotyledons, and replaced it in the earth; the remaining
fourth Pea I suffered to continue, without mutilation, undis-
turbed in the earth.

The two Peas whose Cotyledons had been cut entirely
away, grew about three inches high, but the leaves never
properly expanded, and in about three weeks they began
to decay; on taking them up, I found that neither of their
Radicles had put forth a single fibre.

The Pea which had been robbed of one half of its Coty-
ledons, grew tolerably well, but not so vigorously as the
Pea which remained undisturbed ; on examining the Radicle
of the former, I found it had put forth plenty of fibres.

It appears, therefore, that by the loss of the Cotyledons,
the Corculum being robbed of the nourishment derived from
them, has not strength to put forth fibres from the Radicle,
and of course the plant must decay; but if a part only of
the Cotyledons remains, it acquires sufficient strength to be
enabled to put forth fibres from the Radicle, and thereby
live and grow.

Pupil. Did you ever make any experiment to discover
whether cutting off the Plumule on its appearance above
ground, was as destructive to the plant, as cutting away the
Cotyledons under ground.

Preceptor.

Preceptor. Yes; with this view I sowed nine Peas in a
pot of earth, and set it in a pan of water; on the 16th, nine
Plumules were come up, some two inches high, others just
emerged, as at pl. 7. Fig. 1 ; I cut off all of them close to the
earth, and to my astonishment three of the Peas afterwards
threw up a new stalk, as at pl. 7, fig. 2, and six, two stalks
each, as at pl. 7, fig. 3, all of which looked healthy and
vigorous, and produced plenty of fruit ; hence we find that
in the Pea, and probably in many other plants, the Plumule
may be destroyed without killing, or indeed without much
injuring the plant. Such is the process of vegetation in the
seed of the Pea; a very similar process takes place in Wheat
and Barley, the Radicle shooting downwards, the Plumule
rising upwards, the Cotyledon (for Wheat, Barley, and all
the Grasses, have one Cotyledon only) undergoing the same
fate as those of the Pea; but in the Radish, and by far the
majority of seeds, a very different process takes place. The
Cotyledons which in the Pea perished under ground, and
consequently never appeared in view, in these are con-
verted into real leaves; a circumstance which passes un-
noticed by most people, and did not daily observation prove
it, one would scarcely be persuaded to think, that the thick,
yellow, solid substance of the Cotyledons should be con-
verted into green leaves.

But to be convinced of this, we have only to mark the
progress of its vegetating. Place a radish seed in moist
earth, and in a day or two the Radicle, as in the Pea, bursts

through

through the husk, and makes its way downward into the
earth, as at pl. 5, fig. 2. So far the process is similar; but
now, instead of the Plumules unfolding and pushing up-
wards as in the Pea, the Cotyledons or Lobes of the seed
alter their form, become extended, push upward, changing
their colour as they approach the surface, and presently ap-
pear above ground in the form of green leaves, from be-
twixt which soon after the Plumule comes forth, see pl. 5,
fig. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. for the Plumule is much longer before it
appears in the Radish than in the Pea; in the Pea, the first
appearance of vegetation above ground is the Plumule, pl.
7, fig. 1, in the Radish it is the Cotyledons changed into
Leaves, pl. 5, fig. 6, and which are very properly called
Seed-Leaves, to distinguish them from leaves formed by the
expansion of the Plumule.

Pupil. Has the seed of the Pine any thing peculiar in its
mode of vegetating.

Preceptor. The manner in which the seed of the Pine
vegetates, differs considerably from that of the preceding
ones ; in the Pea and Wheat, the Cotyledon or Cotyledons
perished under ground, in the Radish they were converted
into leaves ; but in the Pine-Seed, the Cotyledon neither
decays under ground, nor is changed into leaves, but is
brought above ground on the summit of the Plumule, which
is divided into many linear leaves kept together at top by

the

the Cotyledon, pl. 7, fig. 4, which falling off, they expand,
fig. 5-.

Pupil. Has not the Pine been considered as one of those
seeds which have many Cotyledons,

Preceptor. Mons. ADANSON places the Pine seed among
those which have more than two Cotyledons*; he remarks,
however, that it consists more properly of two, each of
which is divided into six lobes down to their base†. -LIN-
NÆUS ‡, arranges it among the Polycotyledonous seeds, de-
scribing it as having ten Cotyledons; but if our observa-
tions are just, both these illustrious authors are deceived in
this matter-we have carefully attended to the vegetation of
Pine seed, and have found that instead of having many Co-
tyledons, it has only one, and that what they have taken
for the Cotyledons was, in fact, the Plumule expanded into,
a considerable number of narrow leaves.

Pupil. Can any reason be assigned for their being de-
ceived in this affair ?

* Cotulédons découpés en trois lobes ou plus, ou dentelés. Fam. des Pl.,
p. 306.

† Et le Pin qu'on regarde come Polucotulédon n'a réellement que deux Co-
tulédons qui sont divisés chacun en six Lobes jusqu' à leur base. Fam. des Pl.
p. 305.

‡ Phil. Bot. p. 106.

Preceptor.

Preceptor. Most probably they were misled by the ap-
pearance which the seed assumes on its beginning to vege-
tate. In those seeds whose Cotyledons are converted into
leaves, it is not uncommon for the husk to be brought above
ground with them previous to their expansion. In the Pine,
the Cotyledon which is brought up on the summit of the
Plumule when the seed begins to vegetate, is so closely en-
veloped with the husk that it has very much the appearance
of a husk only, and without an accurate examination might
be taken for one. I have now endeavoured to give you an
idea of the manner in which seeds in general vegetate,
the examples adduced will apply to the process of vege-
tation in most seeds; some slight deviations may be found in,
particular ones.

Pupil. Of these several different modes, which takes place
most generally?

Preceptor. That in which the Cotyledons are converted
into leaves, in the proportion we apprehend of six to one.

Pupil. Do you find the disposition in the Plumule to
rise upwards, and the Radicle to shoot downwards, prevail
in all seeds. 1,

Preceptor. In all invariably. You will see this tendency
more strongly manifested by the following experiment :
March 23, I pulled up four Peas whose Plumules were just

emerging

emerging from the ground, but whose Radicles had not
yet put forth fibres, and planted them inverted, so that the
top of the Plumule was at least two inches under ground.

On the 2d of April, numerous fibres had shot downwards
from the Radicle, the Plumules turning upwards had emerged
two inches above ground, and were strong and vigorous.

Pupil. Is this peculiarity of disposition in the Radicle
and Plumule to be accounted for?

Preceptor. Various hypotheses have been formed con-
cerning it, none of which are satisfactory; it is probably one
of those numerous phænomena in nature with whose exist-
ence we must rest satisfied without knowing the cause.

Pupil. From your experiment. it would appear to be a
matter of no great consequence in sowing of seeds, whe-

ther the seed be placed in the ground with the Radicle
downwards or not.

Preceptor. The only difference will be in the time of its
vegetating, and that will be very trifling.

Pupil. Do the seed leaves differ much in their appear-
ance.

Preceptor. They vary greatly, both as to their size, form,
and other circumstances, see pl. 8, and its explanation;
their

their shape usually accords in some degree with that of the
seed; in many of the Umbelliferous Plants they are long
and narrow, as in Sweet Cicely, and Shepherd's Needle; in
the Convolvulus, large and broad; in some of the Gera-
niums, almost round; in most plants they are entire and
smooth, and very different from those into which the Plu-
mule expands: but instances to the contrary occur in the
Cress, hemlock-leaved Cranesbill, and Hemp ; in the two
former they are divided into several lobes, and in the latter
they are evidently hirsute ; in some plants they quickly fall
off in others, they continue a long time, as in the Radish
pl. 6, fig. 1.

Pupil. You observed a short time since that if the Plu-
mule of the Pea was cut off as soon as it appeared above
ground, the Pea would be to the full as productive, though
its growth might be retarded, as if no such accident had
happened ; pray is the plant liable to suffer by the loss of the
seed-leaves.

Preceptor. It is true our experiment proved that the Pea
so far from being injured, was multiplied by the loss of the
Plumule but very different is the effect which ensues from
cutting off the seed-leaves of the Radish, and other plants;
for in such case the plant unavoidably perishes, and hence
the mischief which plants in this state suffer from the ra-
vages of slugs and insects are irreparable. The seed-leaves
being smooth, tender, and sweet, are eaten with great avidity

by

by many insects, and whole fields of Turnips at this period of
their growth are destroyed by a small Beetle *, known in most
parts of the kingdom by the name of the Black Fly †; if the
plants be enabled to expand their Plumule, and come into
rough leaf, as the Farmers call it, they consider them as
safe; nor is the slug ‡ much less destructive to seedling plants.
Some have recommended seeds to be soaked in bitter and
saline infusions, previous to their being sown, in order to
prevent the Insects from destroying them when they come
up; but from the alteration which the Cotyledons undergo
before they are converted into seed-leaves, we should ap-
prehend the effect of such infusions would be entirely de-

* Chrysomela.

† An effectual remedy for this destructive evil, is, we believe, at present
unknown, which will, it is presumed, be a sufficient apology for our publishing
the following extract from a letter received from Mr. Robert Austin, an inge-
nious Seedsman at Glasgow.

"It is a well-known fact that the Turnip Crop is often totally destroyed
"by the Fly, to prevent which, let the seed intended to be sown be taken of
"three or four different years growth, viz. one-fourth of new seed, one-fourth
"of seed a year older, and so forth; mix the whole together, adding a quantity
"of Flowers of Sulphur, stirring the whole together two or three times a
"week for a month before sowing, by these means there is a succession of
"Crops, some of which are almost sure to escape the Fly; a friend of mine
"who sows from thirty to forty acres annually for a number of years past,
"by this simple method has never failed of having a good Crop, and never
"sows above three pounds of seed to an acre."

‡ According to the observations of Mr. Vagg, an ingenious Agriculturist,
the Slug is more destructive to Turnip Crops than is generally imagined; he
recommends repeated rolling in the night time, when they come out of the earth
to seed, as the most effectual remedy.

stroyed:

stroyed : a similar kind of practice also prevails of soaking
Wheat and other Grain, in certain liquids, to secure the
Corn from diseases to which it is subject: a practice as in-
consistent with nature as sound philosophy : if the grain be
good and perfect, any attempt to meliorate it must be ab-
surd; besides the alteration which the Cotyledon undergoes
in the seeds of the Grasses during their vegetation, is much
greater than in those seeds whose Cotyledons are converted
into leaves, for in these a fermentation of the substance of
the seed takes place, which changes its elementary parts, and
absolutely converts it into sugar.

Pupil. What proof have you that this extraordinary
change takes place during the vegetation of the seed ?

Preceptor. The process of malt-making exemplifies this
very satisfactorily.-If we take a large heap of Barley, soak
it in water, and afterwards spread it on the floor, keeping it
regularly turned over, so that some of it may not be more
heated than the rest, in a few days the Radicle will shoot
out at one end, and the Plumule appear at the other *; it
now only requires to be dried on a kiln to be converted

* From the appearance of the Barley in this state, one would imagine, at first
sight, that the Radicle actually sprung from one end of it, and the Plumule
from the other ; but this is not the case, for both Plumule and Radicle spring
from the same end as in Wheat: but in the Barley, the seed being covered
with a thick skin which is wanting in the Wheat, the Plumule, as soon as it
pullulates, passes up under the same, and is therefore not seen till it comes out
at the opposite end. Vid. Pl. 4. Fig. 8, 9.

into

into malt, when its sweetness to the taste will presently con-
vince you that it contains more sugar than it did when in the
state of Barley.

Pupil. Do not some seeds retain their power of vegetating
much longer than others?

Preceptor. Some seeds are found to be infinitely more
tenacious of life than others; some are said not to grow
if more than a year old, as Parsley, Carrot, and Parsnip;
some not so long as Acorns; while others will keep to al-
most any length of time : such are usually observed to con-
tain much oil, which is frequently of a warm nature, as
Mustard, Charlock, Rape, and Flax.

Pupil. Does not this tenacity of life frequently depend
on the situation in which the seed may happen to be
placed?

Preceptor. Perhaps so, MILLER informs us that the seeds
of Corn-Sallad, which had lain buried in the earth thirty-
two years, when turned up to the air grew as readily as fresh
seeds; it is highly probable that they would not have kept
one-third of that time out of the ground.

Pupil. At what depth do seeds cease to vegetate ?

Preceptor.

Preceptor. I cannot inform you precisely. I have known
peas to grow that had been planted nine inches deep.

Pupil. When different seeds have been placed in a proper
situation to make them vegetate, is there not a great deal of
difference in the time of their coming up?

Preceptor. There most undoubtedly is; some spring in
a few days, as the Grasses, Cress, and Mustard; others are
much longer before they appear. Parsley is one of those
seeds which remain a considerable time in the ground,
whence the vulgar proverb, that Parsley seed goes nine times to
the Devil before it comes up; some continue many months in
the earth before they vegetate, others one, two, or three
years, or more, as many of the stone fruits : this is a kind
of knowledge very necessary to Gardeners, and it is to be
regretted that no set of experiments have been made to
ascertain the precise time at which the common seeds, at
least, vegetate; you should be aware, however, that certain
seeds even of the same age, and sown at the same depth,
will vary in the time of their coming up, days, weeks,
and even months, and years, and that the same seeds of
different ages will vary also in this respect.

Pupil. I shall now beg leave to trouble you for a little
information respecting the best mode of preserving seeds,
as well as of transmitting them from foreign parts, in a ve-
getative state.

Preceptor.

Preceptor. The information you solicit is of the most
useful kind, and should you ever travel into remote
climes, may enable you to render essential service not only
to your own country, but to mankind in general. You are
in the first place to be careful in selecting such seeds as
are perfectly ripe, and well-conditioned; but if ever so
ripe, unless gathered in hot, dry weather, they will re-
quire to be made perfectly dry, by spreading them thinly
on mats or paper, in a dry, airy room; before you pack
them up you must examine them carefully to see that there
are no insects among them ; such, therefore, as were dried
in their pods or capsules must be taken out, otherwise you
will be likely to enclose latent enemies : each sort is then
to be put up separately in paper or canvass bags, out of
the reach of vermin or placed in, tin boxes or canisters
where no vermin can penetrate to destroy them ; this last me-
thod is to be preferred if the seeds are to be kept long:
you will observe that we are only speaking here of small
quantities.

Thus much may suffice for the local management of seeds;
in the transmission of them from a distant country, they
are liable to suffer from the length of time taken up in their
passage, from the great heats, and confined air to which
they are exposed ; other methods therefore must in some
instances be adopted. It will be difficult to lay down any
general plan that shall be applicable to the management of

all

all seeds indiscriminately, as they will be found to require
a very, different treatment, perhaps as much so as the plants
they produce.

Experience has shewn that some seeds keep best exposed
to the air, while others have had their powers of vegetation
preserved by a total exclusion of it: MILLER relates from
his own and other persons experiments, that seeds of Parsley,
Lettuce, Onion, &c. kept in vials, hermetically sealed, a
twelvemonth, did not vegetate, while those of the same age
and sort hung up in bags in a dry room, vegetated freely :
and in ELLIS'S Directions for bringing over Seeds and
Plants, the necessity of giving them fresh air is fully proved *,

* "A Gentleman going to Bencoulen in the island of Sumatra, had a mind
"to furnish himself with an assortment of seeds for a kitchen garden; these
"were accordingly packed up in boxes and casks, and stowed with the other
"goods in the hold of the ship.

"When he arrived at Bencoulen, he sowed his seeds ; but soon found
"to his great mortification, that they were all spoiled, for none of them
"came up."

"Convinced that it must be owing to the heat of the ship's hold, and their
"long confinement in putrid air, and having soon occasion to return to Eng-
"land., he determined in his next voyage thither to pack them up in such a
"manner, and place them so, as to give them as much air as he could, without
"the danger of exposing them to the salt water ; and therefore put the smaller
"seeds into separate papers, and placed them among some clean straw in a
"small, close net, and hung it up in his cabin ; and the larger ones he put
"into boxes, stowing them where the free air could come at them, and blow
"through them : the effect was, that as soon as he arrived at Bencoulen he
"sowed them, and in a little time found to his great satisfaction, that they all
"grew extremely well."

but

but it will not follow that all seeds thus treated will grow;
Acorns, for instance, would not succeed in this way.

Excluding air from seeds by coating them with wax, has
been found to preserve the vegetative power of certain
seeds, and we have thereby been put in possession of several
valuable plants, and in particular the Tea tree. I shall give
you the process as related by Mr. ELLIS*, and shall take the

liberty

* "It principally consists in choosing only such seeds as are perfectly found
"and ripe. To prove this, we must cut open some of them to judge what
"situation the rest may be in, taking care to lay aside any that are outwardly
"defective or marked with the wounds of insects. When a proper choice
"of them is made, they should be wiped extremely clean to prevent any
"dirt or moisture being enclosed ; each seed should then be rolled up carefully
"in a coat of soft bees-wax, half an inch thick : the deep yellow English
"bees-wax is the best. When you have covered the number you intend to
"enclose, pour some of this bees-wax melted into a chip-box of six or se-
"ven inches long, four broad, and three deep, till it is above half full;
"and just before it begins to harden, while it is yet fluid, put in the seeds
"you have rolled up in rows, till the box is near full ; then pour over them
"some more wax while it is just fluid, taking care when it is cold to stop all
"the cracks or chinks that may have proceeded from the shrinking of the
"wax, with some very soft wax ; then put on the cover of the box, and keep
"it in as cool and airy a place as you can.

"Acorns so preserved have vegetated freely, after they had been kept a
"whole season enclosed in wax.

"Another method that has been tried with success, is, by procuring the
"Tea seeds in their pods or capsules, when they are brought down fresh
"from the tea country, at the latter end of the year, to Canton, at the time
"that our East-India Ships are preparing to depart for Europe. The seeds
"then in their pods are to be put into pound or half-pound canisters made of
"tin and tutenague, with a double rim to the top : the inside of the canister
"should be first lined with silk paper, or the paper commonly used in China,
"and

liberty of making some further extracts from his very
ingenious and useful treatise which relate particularly to
this subject.

Accident has discovered what we should not have ex-
pected a-priori, that seeds buried in the earth a foot or
more, have been preserved for a great number of years ;
this may furnish a hint for the mode of treating certain
seeds.

That seeds will retain their powers of life for a long
time in earth, is evident from this circumstance.

"and the seeds pressed down close, but not so as to be bruised. When the
"canister is near full to the neck, some more of the same paper must be
"stuffed in very close, till it is full to the top, and then the double-rimmed
"cover should be put on very tight. Care must be taken that the seeds are
"not too moist when they are put into the canister, and that they are sound
"and in good order. The canister then is to be kept in an airy, cool place.

"If the ship arrives early in England, I mean in June, or the beginning of
"July, they may be sown with success ; the sooner it is done, the better
"chance we shall have of their growing. Those seeds which I have seen
"brought home in this manner, had shot out roots, owing to the heat of
"the climates they had passed through, and the confined moisture; and
"though not above twenty out of two hundred in the canister succeeded,
"yet these are thought a great acquisition.

"The smallest seeds being very liable to lose their vegetative power by
"long voyages through warm climates, it may be worth while to try the
"following experiment upon such kinds as we know for certain are found.
"Dip some spare pieces of cotton cloth in melted wax, and while it is
"soft and almost cold, strew the surface of each piece over with each sort
"of small seed, then roll them up tight, and enclose each roll in some
"soft bees-wax, wrapping up each of them in a piece of paper, with the
"name of the seed on it."

Earth

Earth brought from abroad with the roots of plants, and
properly exposed and watered on their arrival, is produc-
tive of a great number of plants, and frequently of new
ones *, and by exposing now and then a fresh surface of
such earth, others will continue to come up ; hence a box
of the common earth of an unknown country, as it teems
with seeds, may turn out a valuable acquisition, especially
if it be judiciously selected from different soils and situa-
tions.

I shall now enumerate, and place in one point of view,
the several different modes of preserving seeds to be trans-
ported, which have been, or may be practiced with a prospect
of success.

* From the earth which accompanied some Carolina plants received this,
spring, I obtained nearly eighty different species, and amongst other rare
and valuable ones, the true Limodorum tuberosum of LINNÆUS, a new and
beautiful Aster, as well as Asclepias.

The

It is highly probable that we may obtain plants from cer-
tain seeds, which are scarcely to be brought over in a
living state, by sowing them in suitable boxes *, immediately
on the sailing of the vessel; or, if the voyage be very long,
a month or six weeks previous to her arrival; this, for ob-
vious reasons, can only be attempted when the vessel is to
arrive in England in the summer-time. Of these several
modes, those should be adopted which are found by expe-
rience to answer best; and where success attends, such should
always be made public : thus we should in time be able to
ascertain the precise mode of treatment which each particular
seed requires.

* Vide Ellis's Directions for bringing over Plants and Seeds.

Explanation of PLATE V.

Fig. 1. The Radicle just breaking through the Husk.

Fig. 2. The Radicle pushing downwards, the Husk burst
so as to shew a little of the Cotyledons.

Fig. 3. The Radicle further advanced, the Husk more
opened, and the Cotyledons more visible.

Fig. 4. The Husk ready to drop off, the Cotyledons still
yellow, but beginning to assume the appearance of leaves.

Fig. 5. The Husk dropped off, the Cotyledons now more
like leaves, just rising above ground.

Fig. 6. The Cotyledons in the form of green leaves, as
they first appear above ground, as yet without any appearance
of the Plumule.

Fig,. 7. The Cotyledons or seed-leaves grown larger, with the
Plumule 8, now considerably advanced, rising up betwixt them.

Fig. 9. Wheat in a state of vegetation, the Plumule and
Radicle proceeding from the same end.

Fig. 10. Barley in the same state, the Plumule and Ra-
dicle proceeding, from the same end, but not appearing to do
so, for reason., mentioned, Page 25.

Explanation of PLATE VI.

Fig. 1. Shews a Radish advanced to that state in which
the root is usually eaten; the Seed-leaves aa still accom-
panying it.

Explanation of PLATE VII.

Fig. 1. Represents a Pea, so far advanced in its vegeta-
tion, that the Plumule A, begins to appear above ground.

Fig. 2. Shews a Pea whose Plumule A was cut off close
to the ground when in the state of the Pea, fig. 1. B, a
new stalk, which after this operation sprung up from the base
of the Plumule A.

Fig. 3. Another Pea whose Plumule A, underwent the
same operation as that of fig. 2, B B, the two stalks which
shot forth in consequence thereof.

Fig. 4. Exhibits the appearance which the Pinus Cedrus,
or Cedar of Lebanon makes, as it vegetates, and first comes
above ground: A, the Plumule, composed of a number of
narrow leaves kept together at top by the Cotyledon B, which
is closely enveloped by its husk.

Fig. 5. A, the Plumule expanding, the Cotyledon with
its husk, fig. 4, B, which kept them together, being drop'd
off.

Explanation of PLATE VIII.

Representing the Seed-leaves of several different
Plants.

Fig. 1. Those of the garden Cress (Lepidium sativum)
in which each leaf is divided down to the base into three
lobes.

Fig. 2. A seedling variety of the same, in which, by acci-
dent, each leaf is only partially divided.

Fig. 3. Those of the hemlock-leav'd Cranesbill (Geranium
cicutarium) which, contrary to those of most plants, are
formed of several lobes on each side a midrib.

Fig. 4. Those of the Hemp (Cannabis sativa) which are
covered with fine short hairs.

Fig.. 5. Those of the Bear's-Foot (Helleborus foetidus).

Fig. 6. Those of sweet Cicely (Scandix odorata) which
are remarkably long and narrow.

Fig. 7. Those of blessed Thistle (Centaurea benedicta).

Fig. 8. Those of yellow Goats-Beard (Tragopogon pratense).

Fig. 9. Those of white Mustard (Sinapis alba) in which
the Radicle is unusually hairy.

Fig. 10. Those of small Toad-Flax (Antirrhinum minus).

Fig. 11. Those of summer Savory (Satureja hortensis).

Fig. 12. Those of fine-leav'd Sandwort (Arenaria te-
nuifolia).