Connate is a term common for either not free or not distinct, that is, for parts united congenitally, whether of same or of different kinds.
Adnate, as properly used, relates to the union of dissimilar parts.
272. In still another form of expression, the terms superior and inferior have been much used in the sense of above and below.
Superior is said of the ovary of Flax-flower, Cherry, etc., because above the other parts; it is equivalent to "ovary free." Or it is said of the calyx, etc., when above the ovary, as in Fig. [273]-[275].
Inferior, when applied to the ovary, means the same as "calyx adnate;" when applied to the floral envelopes, it means that they are free.
Fig. 273. Hawthorn-blossom in section; parts adnate to whole face of ovary, and with each other beyond; another grade of perigynous.
Fig. 274. Cranberry-blossom in section; parts epigynous.
[273.] Position of Flower or of its Parts. The terms superior and inferior, or upper and lower, are also used to indicate the relative position of the parts of a flower in reference to the axis of inflorescence. An axillary flower stands between the bract or leaf which subtends it and the axis or stem which bears this bract or leaf. This is represented in sectional diagrams (as in Fig. [275, 276]) by a transverse line for the bract, and a small circle for the axis of inflorescence. Now the side of the blossom which faces the bract is the