they are derived—sap, fibre, veins, flesh: for these are elementary substances—unless one should prefer to call them the active principles of the elements; and they are common to all the parts of the plant. Thus the essence[1] and entire material of plants consist in these.
Again there are other as it were annual parts, which help towards the production of the fruit, as leaf, flower, stalk (that is, the part by which the leaf and the fruit are attached to the plant),[2] and again tendril,[3] 'catkin' (in those plants that have them). And in all cases there is the seed which belongs to the fruit: by 'fruit' is meant the seed or seeds,[4] together with the seed-vessel. Besides these there are in some cases peculiar parts, such as the gall in the oak, or the tendril in the vine.
In the case of trees we may thus distinguish the annual parts, while it is plain that in annual plants all the parts are annual: for the end of their being is attained when the fruit is produced. And with those plants which bear fruit annually, those which take two years (such as celery and certain others[5]) and those which have fruit on them for a longer time—with all these the stem will correspond to the plant's length of life: for plants develop a stem at whatever time they are about to bear seed, seeing that the stem exists for the sake of the seed.
Let this suffice for the definition of these parts: and now we must endeavour to say what each of the parts just mentioned is, giving a general and typical description.
The sap is obvious: some call it simply in all cases 'juice,' as does Menestor[6] among others: others, in
- ↑ οὐσία conj. Sch. (but he retracted it); συνουσία MSS. (?) Ald.
- ↑ This definition is quoted by Hesych. s.v. μίσχος.
- ↑ ? om. ἕλιξ, which is mentioned below.
- ↑ τὸ συγκείμενον σπέρμα, lit. 'the compound seed,' i.e. as many seeds as are contained in one περικάρπιον.
- ↑ cf. 7.1.2 and 3.
- ↑ A Pythagorean philosopher of Sybaris.
