Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1882-04-08

number OF obese stomata varies from SUI
to ITO 800 to the square inch of surface.
Il ..om their immense number we can realize
what an effective check to undue evapora-
ton nature has placed in the hands of the
leaves. From the foregoing it will be seen
that the extent of exhalation of vapor
from the foliage of trees depends entirely
uuon the state of the atmosphere. The
absolute amount of exhalation can be quite
accurately determined by simply noting
the loss Of weight of the pot and plant
during any given time. The exhalation OF
water by plants is not regular, but depends
on numerous conditions. Il is Influenced by
the dryness and temperature of the air, by
the composition Of the soil, its temperature
and the amount of water in it, and by the
different textural and structural conditions
of the leaf. Exhalation is not detrimental
to the plant, unless the loss exceeds the
supply. nor is il essential to the plant.
The exhalatien of moisture takes place
through the epidermis and stomata Of the
leaves 1t is through the agency of the
leaves that the atmospheric air and other
gases fad access to the interior of the plant,
and it seems to be the principal function of
the foliage to absorb atmospheric air with
the gases it contains, assimilate the carbon
and other elements wanted by the plant,
and then to expel the free oxygen, which
quickly unites with some inorganic sub
stance, to form fresh material for plant
food. 1t has been mentioned that all plants
consist of
A FIXED AND A VOLATILE PART,
The first being the ash, and the last the
matter which disappears in the form of
gases on the plant. The foliage serves to
put the plant in communication with the
medium into which this volatile part of the
previously existing plants has been diff
fused, while the roots, which have no visible
pores, and which are not penetrated by air
and vapors to such an extent as are leaves,
serve to put the plant into direct communi
cation with the soil, where the fixed part
or ash of the decayed plants has remained,
and to a very considerable extent in forms
Immediately available to the roots of grow.
ing plants. The function of these two
classes of organs-foliage and roots-is
literally to reconstruct the products
of combustion into new vegetable
matter. The roots gather the ash ingre.
dients from the soil aud transmit them,
dissolved in the sap, up into the interior
of the stem and leaves, where they are met
by matter which has been gathered from
the atmosphere by the leaves, and these
two classes of substances are, by means of
the vegetable organisms, transformed into
materials for plant food. When it is re-
membered that the volatile part of plant
consists Of from 70 to 50 per cent. of its
whole weight, it will readily be seen that
the foliage is called upon to supply much
the largest part of the materials for plant
growth. This fact accounts for the rela-
lively great amount of surface exposed by
the foliage of plant.
THE FLOWER.
Little need here be said of the different
organs Of the flower and of their particular
functions, for almost every observing agri-
culturist has at least practical knowledge
of the compositions and functions of the
flower With the putting forth Of the
terminal flower buds the plant intimates
it's intention of discOntinuing its seasons
growth. and in many cases its individual
life. The complete flower consists OF four
distinct sets OF organs. Named from the
exterior inwa.ds they are : the calyx, made
up of the sepals; corolla, composed of
petals stamens and pistils. The calyx is
the outermost floral envelope; it's color is
almost always green, but 1t Is IN some
flowers ighly colored. 1t is the protect
ing envelope of the flower buds, and though
in some cases adhering, after the flower
has opened its presence Is not necessary to
the development of the seed. The caiyx
is made up of from one to numerous lobes,
each of which is termed sepal. Jnst in
side of the calyx, in the perfect flower, is
found the corolla, consisting Of from
one to several series of generally highly
colored leaves. Generally these series
are composed of one or more
individual leaves or parts termed p tails.
The petals are of almost every descnbable
form and color, and it is to them that most
flowers owe their attractive appearance.
AS with the calyx, the presence of the
corolla is not necessary to fructification.
The stamens are generally slender, thread
ike organs, terminating in an oblong sack.
They are often numerous in number and
sometimes highly colored. The oblong
sack is called the aRther, and in mature flow
ers is filled with a yellow powder, which is
the pollen. TIE center Of the perfect
flower is occupied by the pistil having at
its base the ovaries or seed vessels OF the
flower, which contain the documentary
seeds whereby the life of the species is to be
perpetuated. The forms of the pistils in
different flowers are exceedingly various, but
all agree in having an exposed spot at the
extremity where the epidermis is lacking.
This naked spot is the stigma, upon which
the pollen from the anthers is lodged, either
by the mechanical action of the winds, by
insects, or by artificial means. The con-
tents Of these grsias of ro!len find their
way through the stigma and generally
elongated pistil down to the ovules, and by
this means the seed vessels are fertlllZed.
THE sTAMENs AND PIsTILs
Are the only really essential organs of the
flower, and the flower is often made up of
them alone. Some flowers even contain
only one of these two essential organs. In
such cases either the plant also contains
flowers CT the opposite sex, and IS then
said to be mono sious, or else the flowers
OF the opposite sex are borne by adjacent
plants. Where the staminate and pistil-
late flowers do not both grow on the same
stem, the plant is said to be diecious. In
such plants the justification is brought
about by fertilization between flowers Of
different trees. should have said that
the terms staminate and pistillate were
used to designate flowers which had in the
one case stamens but no pistils, and in the
other the reverse. Such flowers have also
been termed respectively male and female.
As the union of sexes OF different kinds of
animals often produces hybrlds, SO also
may the gardener practice hybridization
among different kinds of flowers.
1t is, however, a wei. established fact
that liberalization can only take place be-
tween closely allied species in the vegetable
as we'll as animal kingdom. The flower
and its component parts may be considered
as modified leaves. This seems to be the
case from the fact that different conditions
of growth influence the form of the product
of the fundamental organ-the bud. Un-
der the influence of the gardeners care the