Page 10 - Pharmacognosy-II (06-PG 303)

Medicinal Fruits belonging to Family Umbelliferae

(Family; Apiaceae)

General Characters of Umbelliferous Fruits
Macroscopic Characters :

1- The fruit is a cremocarp, i.e. a simple, dry, schizocarp, dried from an
inferior, bicarpellary, bilocular ovary.
On ripening , it splits along the septum into 2 mericarps which either

separate from one another or remain attached to the simple or forked
carpohore lying between them.
2- Each mericarp contains a single seed filling the locule and composed of a

thin testa, a large oily endosperm and a small apical embryo. The ovules
are anatropous, a raphe is present in the commisural surface.
3- At the apex of the fruit is a small nectar-disc "the stylopod" surrounding
the 2 styles. Remains of the 5 sepals may be present.
4- Each mericarp has a flat surface, the commissural surface and a rounded
one, the dorsal surface.
5- The dorsal surface is usually marked by 5 primary ridges, between the
ridges are pale brown furrows or 4 secondary ridges.
6- If the seed is flat on the commissural surface, the fruit is termed
orthospermous (ex. Fennel), if it is concave, the fruit is colespermous
(ex. Coriander), and if it is longitudinally grooved the fruits is
campylospermous (Hemlock).

Microscopic Characters :

1- The epicarp consists of polygonal, tabular cells with few anomocytic
stomata.

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