NOTES ON SOME GRASSES. XVI. EMBRYO STRUCTURE OF THE GENUS ORYZA IN RELATION TO THE SYSTEMATICS

Three distinct types of embryo have been found in 18 species of the genus Oryza. Type 1 is characterized by lateral fusion of the epiblast and the scutellum and also by the development of auricles. Type 2 has no auricle, and the epiblast is not laterally fused with the scutellum. Type 3 has a cleft between the lower part of the scutellum and the coleorhiza, a long epiblast which is free from the scutellum, and lacks auricles. Type 1 has been found in 13 species of section Sativae, Type 2 in 4 species of sections Granulatae and Coarctatae, and Type 3 in O. coarctata only. The results indicate that species of section Sativae are more or less closely related, while section Coarctatae is a heterogeneous group. A new section, Ridleyianae, has been described for Oryza ridleyi and some other species. Oryza coarctata has unique features in embryo structure, morphology and leaf anatomy, and this species has been moved from the genus Oryza to a separate genus, Sclerophyllum, which is here revived.