Enquiry into Plants

Ὅλως δὲ καθάπερ εἴπομεν οὐδὲ πάντα ὁμοίως καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν ζώων ληπτέον. δι᾿ ὃ καὶ ὁ ἀριθμὸς ἀόριστος· πανταχῆ γὰρ βλαστητικὸν ἅτε καὶ πανταχῆ ζῶν. ὥστε ταῦτα μὲν οὕτως ὑποληπτέον οὐ μόνον εἰς τὰ νῦν ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν μελλόντων χάριν· ὅσα γὰρ μὴ οἶόν τε ἀφομοιοῦν περίεργον τὸ γλίχεσθαι πάντως, ἵνα μὴ καὶ τὴν οἰκείαν ἀποβάλλωμεν θεωρίαν. ἡ δὲ ἱστορία τῶν φυτῶν ἐστιν ὡς ἁπλῶς εἰπεῖν ἤ κατὰ [*](¹ εὐθενεῖ conj. Sch., εὐθετεῖ UMVAld. i.e. we do not argue from the fact that animals are at their handsomest in the breeding season that the young is therefore ‘part’ of the animal.) [*](² Lit. ‘which’ are in holes,᾿ in allusion to the well-known belief that animals (especially birds) which are out of sight in the winter are hiding in holes; the text is supported by [Arist.] de plantis 1. 3, the author of which had evidently read this passage; but possibly some such words as τάς τε φολίδας καὶ have dropped out after φωλεύοντα.)

Ληπτέον δ᾿ ἐν αὐτοῖς ποῖά τε πᾶσιν ὑπάρχει ταὐτὰ καὶ ποῖα ἴδια καθ᾿ ἕκαστον γένος, ἔτι δὲ τῶν αὐτῶν ποῖα ὅμοια· λέγω δ᾿ οἷον φύλλον ῥίζα φλοιός. οὐ δεῖ δὲ οὐδὲ τοῦτο λανθάνειν εἴ τι κατ᾿ ἀναλογίαν θεωρητέον, ὥσπερ ἐπὶ τῶν ζώων, τὴν ἀναφορὰν ποιουμένους δῆλον ὅτι πρὸς τὰ ἐμφερέστατα καὶ τελειότατα. καὶ ἁπλῶς δὲ ὅσα τῶν ἐν φυτοῖς ἀφομοιωτέον τῷ ἐν τοῖς ζώοις, ὡς ἄν τίς τῴ γ᾿ ἀνάλογον ἀφομοιοῖ. ταῦτα μὲν οὖν διωρίσθω τὸν τρόπον τοῦτον.

Αἱ δὲ τῶν μερῶν διαφοραὶ σχεδὸν ὡς τύπῳ λαβεῖν εἰσιν ἐν τρισίν, ἢ τῷ τὰ μὲν ἔχειν τὰ δὲ μή, καθάπερ φύλλα καὶ καρπόν, ἢ τῷ μὴ ὅμοια μηδὲ ἴσα, ἢ τρίτον τῷ μὴ ὁμοίως. τούτων δὲ ἡ μὲν ἀνομοιότης ὁρίζεται σχήματι χρώματι πυκνότητι μανότητι τραχύτητι λειότητι καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις πάθεσιν, ἔτι δὲ ὅσαι διαφοραὶ τῶν χυλῶν. ἡ δὲ ἀνισότης ὑπεροχῇ καὶ ἐλλείψει κατὰ πλῆθος ἢ μέγεθος. ὡς δ᾿ εἰπεῖν τύπῳ [*](¹ A very obscure sentence; so W. renders the MSS, text.) [*](2 i.e. ‘inequality’ might include ‘unlikeness.’)

ὅλως δὲ τὸ τῆς θέσεως ἐν τούτοις καὶ τοῖς φύλλοις καὶ ἐν τοῖς βλαστοῖς ληπτέον.

Διαφέρει δὲ ἔνια καὶ τῇ τάξει· τὰ μὲν ὡς ἔτυχε, τῆς δ᾿ ἐλάτης οἱ κλῶνες κατ᾿ ἀλλήλους ἑκατέρωθεν· τῶν δὲ καὶ οἱ ὄζοι ὄι᾿ ἴσου τε καὶ κατ᾿ ἀριθμὸν ἴσοι, καθάπερ τῶν τριόζων.

Ὅστε τὰς μὲν διαφορὰς ἐκ τούτων ληπτέον ἐξ ὦν καὶ ἡ ὅλη μορφὴ συνδηλοῦται καθ᾿ ἕκαστον.