Table Of ContentA
HAND-BOOK OF BOTANY
FOR INDIA
BY
Dewan' Bahadur K. RANGACHARI, M.A., L.T.
Indian Agricultural Service
. REVISED AND ENLARGED
BY
S. N. CHANDRASEKHARA AYYAR, M.A.
{.cclurer in ButallY, .1grielllrttral College and Nestardl
] Ilstitutc, Coimba!orc
P. VARADACHARY & CO.
8, LINGHA. CHETTY ST., MADRAS
1945
Price Rs. K
PREFACE
THE number of students studying botany is gradually increasing.
Books on botany now in common use are not suited to the re
quirements of the Indian student, as the plants referred to in
many of these books are foreign ones not known to him. The few
books in which Indian plants are dealt with cover only certain
aspects of plcllt life, and too much promInence is given to the study
of Natural Orders or Families.
This book is intended to meet the requirements of University
, students in their Intermediate and pregraduate courses and those of
the professional Colleges such as the Medical, Agricukural and
Forest Colleges. I t will also be found useful to persons interested
in the study of plants. The scope and arrangement of the topics
arlopted is based upon my experience as a teacher and examiner
for the Madras University Examinations for nearly a decade.
I have to express my thanks to Mr. Rudolph D. Anstead,
Director of Agriculture, Madras Government, and the Government
of Madras for giving me permission to reproduce the illustrations
mentioned below from my published books (Figs. 4, 11,13,21,
24, 43, 52, 82" 83, 114, 134, 145, 148, 150, 159 to 162, 164, 165,
167,170,173, 174, 175,181 to 185, 188 to 190,193, 198, 199,203.
209 to 214, 217 to 220, 228 to 230, 253, 258 to 260, 262,264 to 274,
278,280,282,283, 294, 295, 298 to 300, 303 to 305, '307, 308, 318,
322,328, 329, 331, :132, 335, 350, 351, 353, 357, 361, 362, 364,
~~72 to' 374, 375). Tile illustrations of the following figures are from
~otographs kindly given by Mr. M. O. Parthasarathy Aiyangar,
Professor of ]:'otany, Presidency College, Madras to whom I am
also indebted for some suggestions. Figs. 32 35 64 275 to 277
288, 296, 297, 301, ~i02, 376-380, 382, 384 t~ 387. ' The photo:'
micrographs of Figs. 106, 107, 151, 153, 155, 156, 157, 176, 287,
are from slides prepared and kindly lent by Dr. M. A. Sampath
kumaran, Professor of Botany, Central College, Bangalore. I am
indehted to Mr. R. Dehberman, Botanic Gardens, Calcutta, for
Pl(EFACE
Fig. 28 and to :'VIr. C. Tadulingam, Lecturing Botanist, Agricultural
College, Coimbatore for Figs. 235, 236 and 356. The Figs. 355, 360
and 368 are reproduced with the kind permission of Dr. F. H.
Gravely, Superintendent, Government Museum, Madras, from the
Collection of excellent drawings specially prepared for the Flora of
Madras City.
I have to thank 1\[r. M. s. ~abesa lyer, lVi.A., Madras Christian
College for assistance in proof-reading.
JPril, 1925 }
; K. RANGACHARI
Madras
',' :
PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION
THE demand for a suitable hand-book of Botany became imperative
with the place assigned to it by the universities in the remodelled
courses. The author is glad to learn that .the first edition of this
book has met the requirements of the university students, whether
in Arts and Science colleges or in professional colleges. A revision
of the book has become necessary, especially in view.of the changes
in the syllabus in Botany. The author has taken advantage of this
opportunity to make a slight rearrangement of matter here and
there so as to emphasise clearly the relative importance of the
different facts. He has also found it desirable to introduce
fourteen families in " Chapter XXIII Angiosperms" and their
characteristics are given in full in their respective places. The
author trusts that the inclusion of the scheme of classification
adopted by J. Hutchinson of Kew will be welcomed by students
interested in systematic Botany.
, PREFACE TO THIRD EDITION
IN Arts, Science and Professional Colleges, Botany is gamIng
increasing importance. It is but natural in an agricultural country
like ours, everyone, whether directly connected with Agriculture or
not, must know the essentials of plant life. Therefore, the demand
for a suitable hand-book of Botany became imperative and the
original author of this text-book, the late Dewan Bahadur
K. Rangachariar took initiative as early as 1925 in writing up what
may be said to be the first text-book with Indian examples. The
book was revised in 1940 and again now, especially in view
of the changes in syllabus and also due to advancement of our
knowledge in new branches, such as genetics, which are gaining
increasing importance in the teaching of Botany in Colleges.
In this edition, "Fungi and Bacteria" has been revised
and enlarged. Chapters dealing with (( Economic Botany" and
" Elements of Genetics and Plant Breeding" are new additions·
Chapter XXVIII dealing with "Description of Families" has
been enlarged by the addition of more families. With reference
to Chapter XXV, I wish to mention that only bare elements of
Genetics and Plant Breeding have been included here, as I, am
afraid that any attempt to present the subject in any greater
detail may make this edition unwieldy. Further, a separate
volume on the subject is under preparation by me.
I wish to express my thanks to my Assistant, Sri S. V.
Parthasarathy, B.Sc., Ag., M.Sc" for help rendered in the
preparation of Chapter XXV. I also thank the Publishers, Messrs.
P. Varadachary & Co., for having requested me to revise thif
text-book .
l
. Agricultural College
and S. i>J. CHANDRASEKHARA AYYAR,
.R.) esearCh Institute, J~ Lecturer in Botany
:CQimbatore, 4-4-1945.
:
~
CONTENTS
MORPHOLOGY
CHAPTER PAGE
I INTRODUCTION 1
'·111',
II THE PLA);T BODY 6
III STRUCTVRE AXD GERMINATION OF SEEDS 12
IV THE ROOT 27
", •• fo;
V THE SHOOT ... 40
,.,:~ ,~ .~;.*::
VI THE LEAF ... .' 53
VII THE INFLORESCENCE 68
VIII THE FLOWER 77
IX THE ESSENTIAL ORGANS AKD THEIR FUNCTIO?>{S 92
X FR_UI_T A ND SEED 106
XI PLANT CELL, TISSUES AND TlSSUE-SYSTEMS 124
--'
XII INTERNAL STRUCTURE OF ROOT, STEM AND LE.\F... 158
PHYSIOLOGY
XUI SOILS, MICRO-ORGANISMS, ABSORPTION AND MOVE
MENT OF WATER AND NUTRIENT ~ALTS WITHIN
THE PLANT 198
XIV PHOTOSYNTHESIS AND FOOD OF PLANTS 222
XV RESPIRATION IN PLANTS 236
. XVI GROWTH AND MOVEMENTS IN PLANTS 245
XVII THALLOPHYTA 262
CONTENTS vii
CRYPTOGAMS
CHAPTEl{
XVIII PHAEOPHYCEAE OR BROWN ALGAE 293
XIX EUMYCETAE 302
XX BRYOPHYTA 328
XXI PTERllJOPHYTA 341
ECONOMIC BOTANY
...
XXII CEREALS AND PULSES ~no
386
XXIII l'IBRES, SUGAR-CANE AND OILSEEDS •••
XXW 1'"RU1'lS, 'rnn~"Bm; AND ':)1'1C11..':> ~1
XXV ELEMENTS OF GENETICS AND PLAl'>T BHE:EDING 409
SPERMATOPHYTA
XXVI G Y!l1NOSPER1I1S 4284
437
XXVII TAXONOMY OR SYSTEMATIC BOTANY •..
445
~XVIII DESCRIPTION OF :FA!l1ILlES ._;
~IX PLANT IN RELATlO:z.; TO ITs ENVIRON MEJIIT AND
TYPES OF VEGETATION 521
INDEX
ApPENDIX I
ApPENDIX II
HAND-BOOK OF BOTANY
r
CHAPTER a
INTRODUCTION
"
THE science of plants or botany is a very important and·interesting
branch of knowledge. Plants form the basis, as it were, of all
life. Fr-Oll1 a study of plants we learn a great deal about life.
The uses of plants to human life are indeed manifold. Every
human being, therefore, should possess a knowledge of at least
the fundamental features of plant life. The importance of this
knowledge to men who follow the professions of' agriculture,
forestry and medicine is too well known to \ need any mention.
Plants are living beings, and this fact should never be forgotten.
Ordinarily we are most familiar with the higher plants and they
live on the land. These plants are, on the whole, though by no
means invariably, bigger than the lower, less complex forms. In
the vast vegetation clothing the earth's surface we find endless
variations in size. Some plants are so small that they cannot be
seen with the naked eye. Side by side with these we have small
plants, such as grasses and herbs and large plants, such as the
tamarind, the banyan and the palm trees.
All plants, whatever their size, high or low, live and reproduce
themselves, just as animals do. Nutrition and reproduction are
two great functions which are· of the utmost importance to all
living organisms.
Plants, at any rate the higher ones, are rooted to the soil.
. This necessitates their dependence upon the substances available
in the soil to which they are fixed and in the air surrounding
them. And we know that only inorganic substances are found
everywhere on the earth and in the air. As plants have to take
these available substances in the form of liquids and gases, a
large amount of space is obviously req\lired for their absorption.
So they have a branching habit both in their roots and shoots.
All plants are green in colour. This is the unique characteristic
of plants. The presence of this green colour enables the plants
to build up organic materials. All the differences between plants
and animals are due to this plant-power.
2 HAND-BOOK OF BOTANY
Animals have to use for food organic substances, which consist
of special complex substances forming part of, or produced by
other animals or plants. Therefore, in order to secure their food,
animals should move about freely. And for free locomotion the
body of an animal must lie compact in form and arrangement of
parts or organs. .
If we only think of the essential features of these two process
es, nutrition and reproduction, we perceive that there is no great _.
gulf separating the animal from the plant. On the other hand,
the similarities existing between the two great classes of living
things are even more striking than are the obvious differences.
<
As a matter of fact, we have some low organism's living in water
and called Euglaena which move about rapidly in water and so
these are called animals. They are unicellular organisms and each
one contains within its portion a small body, green in colour.
Similarly there are small plants, that are unicellular and green also
running about quickly in water. After all, the differences seen
consist in features mainly of secondary importance.
Between animals and plants there is also a characteristic
difference with reference to energy, which' is also due to the
difference in their mode of feeding. Life, after all, consists in the
expenditure of energy. All living organi.sms may be viewed as
machines transforming energy. We know that animals consume
organic food. This food has plenty of energy locked up in its
molecules; and this potential energy is transformed into kinetic
energy seen in the motion of the bo'dy and in the production
of heat. Plants also are machines concerned with the transformation
of energy. The presence of green colour, e1isting as green
corpuscles in plants, enables them to obtain the energy available
in sun's rays and build up organic substances. This is really
transformirIg kinetic energy into potential energy.
Both animals and plants have to spend their energy for their
life processe-s. In the case of a_nimals the expenditure of energy
is more rapid than in plants. Furthermore plants are able to
make large quantities of organic material and, out of them, only
a very small portion is utilised by them as the source of energy
for all the work that they do. In other words, plants tend to
accumulate organic material which may be used by plants or
animals. On the other hand, animals feed, directly or indirectly,
upon plants and their products. To put it briefly, animals are
consumers and plants are builders.
IRTRODUCTION
It is not amis!) to say that no animal can exist without plants,
lor can we expect to have energy on the surface of this-earth
.vithout the intervention of plants: All the energy utilised in
.vorking the varied machinery in factories is traceable to coal.
~nd coal is a plant product_ The energy locked up in coal was
;tored up by plants ages ago. When coal is burnt energy is set
:ree. In other words, energy locked up by plants ages ago, with
:he help of the sun's rays, is being now dissipated by burning
:he coal.
The peculiar power of. the chloroplasts forms the starting
?oint of the food supply of the world. In the absence of chloro
?lasts neither plant life nor animal life is possible. So, in a sense,
we may say that the real source of energy for plants and animals
.s the sun .
. Knowing as we do that animals are dependent on plants,
1irectly 'or indirectly, for their food, they could not have come
.nto being before plants. So plants must be considered to be
)lder than animals. They are, therefore, the first and most origi
'lal foim of living beings and without them no life of any sort
would be possible.
All living matter is manufactured by plants out of the' mate
jals found in the soil and in the air, under the influence of sunlight.
We know that without living matter new living matter cannot be
formed. One may, therefore, legitimately ask how the first plant
:ame into existence. This cannot be answered with any certainty.
We can only guess that in the early ages of the world the earlibt
living body came into being because the conditions favourable for
Its formation then existed. At the present time those conditions
10 not exist. It is highly probable that in former ages the matter
was more plastic and that certain combinations of atoms were
possible then, but not now. This spontaneous appearance of living
matter must have occurred once at leftSt. But it is certain that
"spontaneous generation" does not now take place. At any rate,
at the present day, every living being whether plant or animal
lS the product of a living being, its parent or of two previous
living beings, its father and mother.
The first formed or primitive forms of plants must of neces
:;ity be very simple piants. Such plants persist even now and
they consist of small specks of jelly-like matter freely floating
in water. They are green in colour. Th~refore, they have the
HAND-BOOK OF BOTANY
power of building up fresh living material when sunlight falls on
them. As soon as each of these plants attains a certain size, it
splits up into two or more similar parts and· this method of
division is known as fission. _And all of them again continue to
live and then behave e~actIy like the original plant from which
they arose. This coming into being, of two or more organisms
from a single one, is the simplest form of the process of l;'epro
duction. All higher forms of plants must have been descended
from these primordial forms. "
.From the fact that living matter is manufactured only by
plants, we should not conclude that living matter is something
mysterious and peculiar and that they are not subject to the
influence of the ordinary physical and chemical laws. Living
matter is also influenced by physical conditions and is subjected
to the influence of chemical laws just like dead matter. It is
true that there are differences between the reactions occurring
inside the living body and those taking place outside it. These
differences are obviously due to the greater complexity ~f sub
stance,s concerned in the living matter. For the present our
methods are probably not sufficiently accurate and delicate
enough to bring about the reactions outside successfully. Further
more the frame work of living matter or of living things consists of
the peculiar state of aggregation of matter usually described as
colloidal. Probably this colloidal character provides the conditions
necessary for the chemical reactions. The materials constituting
living matter are vast in their range and, therefore, it is impossi~le
to analyse the results of experiments sufficiently well to refer them
to their proper causes. .~ , . .~ ;.
We have to study plants from different standpoints of view.
For the sake of convenience these different views are considered
separately each forming a section of botany. For example, we
have to study the external features and the internal structure of
the members or parts of plants. The former forms the section
called Morphology and the latter constitutes Histology. The
various life processes have also to be considered and this forms
the section of Physiology. The multitude of individual plants,
we know, are varied in form and structure. We compare plants
with one another and group them into classes or divisions. This
part of botany dealing with classification is called Systematic
botany or Taxonomy. It is also usual to deal with plant and
