Cotyledons.—The first leaves of an embryo. In many cases packed with food and filling the seed. See [fig. 58].
Cross Fertilization.—The fusion of male and female cells from different plants.
Cuticle.—A skin of a special chemical nature which forms on the outer wall of the epidermis cells. See [p. 54], [fig. 21].
Earth Movements.—The gradual shifting of the level of the land, and the bending and contortions of rocks which result from the slow shrinking of the earth’s surface, and give rise to earthquakes and volcanic action.
Embryo.—The very young plant, sometimes consisting of only a few delicate cells, which results from the divisions of the fertilized egg cell. The embryo is an essential part of modern seeds, and often fills the whole seed, as in a bean, where the two fleshy masses filling it are the two first leaves of the embryo. See [fig. 58], [p. 77].
Endodermis.—The specialized layer of cells forming a sheath round the vascular tissue. See [p. 55].
Endosperm.—The many-celled tissue which fills the large “spore” in the Gymnosperm seed, into which the embryo finally grows. See [fig. 57].
Epidermis.—Outer layer of cells, which forms a skin, in the multicellular plants. See [fig. 21], [p. 54].
Fruit.—Essentially consisting of a seed or seeds, enclosed in some surrounding tissues, which may be only those of the carpel, or may also be other parts of the flower fused to it. Thus a peapod is a fruit, containing the peas, which are seeds.
Gannister.—A very hard, gritty rock found below some coal seams. See [p. 25].