capsule

noun

(L. capsula: small chest) A dry fruit that releases its seeds when ripe; it is formed from several fused carpels and contains many seeds. The seeds may be dispersed through pores (as in the poppy), through a lid (as in plantain), or by the splitting and separation of the individual carpels (as in the crocus). Various other forms of capsules include the silicula and siliqua. The part of the sporophyte of mosses and liverworts in which the haploid spores are produced. It is borne on a long stalk (seta) and sheds its spores when mature (see peristome). In most mosses it is differentiated into an apical operculum, central urn (spore-bearing region) and a sterile basal neck or hypophysis; in most liverworts and hornworts it is a uniform structure containing spores and elaters or pseudoelaters.