pendulous ovule. From Chameedorea, Synechanthus differs 
by its moneecious flowers, and their arrangement on the 
spadix. : 
S. fibrosus is an exceedingly graceful Palm, with a trunk 
in the Kew specimen about four feet high, and a crown 
of leaves as long, from amongst the bases of which the 
graceful spadices spring, laden with almost microscopic 
flowers. These are succeeded by the bright orange-red 
fruits, which weigh down the spadix, and are copiously 
produced. The Royal Gardens are indebted to Dr. Wend- 
land, Director of the Royal Gardens at Herrenhausen, 
Hanover, for the specimen here figured. 
Descr. Trunk four feet high, solitary, erect, slender, 
ringed, green. Jieaves as long, erect and _ spreading, 
pinnate, sometimes interruptedly ; leaflets numerous, one 
to one and a half feet long, spreading and rather pendulous, 
linear-lanceolate from a broad adnate base, bright green, 
five to seven-nerved, the costa prominent, quite glabrous, 
margins recurved towards the base; rachis subterete with 
a mesial ridge above; petiole rounded; sheaths short, open. 
Spadices numerous, from amongst the leaves, suberect, 
one-third as long as the leaves; peduncle long, slender ; 
branches many, strict, forked, very slender. Spathes 
several, tubular, membranous, persistent. Flowers in two- 
ranked short linear clusters of eight to ten placed alternately 
on opposite sides of the branches, minute, green, sessile, the 
lowest of each cluster female, the rest males; bracts and 
bracteoles none. Calyx of three very short transversely 
elongate sepals. Petals of the male ovate, valvate; of the 
female orbicular, imbricate. Stamens six, attached to the 
base of the petals. Ovary globose, three-celled, with an erect 
ovule in each cell; stigmas three, sessile, minute. Fruit 
an ellipsoid orange-red sessile drupe, one to one and a 
quarter inch long ; pericarp fleshy and fibrous. Seed free, 
erect, ellipsoid, smooth, raphe with faint branches ; albumen 
equable ; embryo near the top of the sexd.-—J. D. H. 
Fig. 1, Portion of spadix with f flowers ; 2 ale flower; 3, petal 
’ group of flowers; 2, young male flower; 9, pe 
and stamens ; 4, female flower; 5, transverse section ob wary: 6, seed ; 7, vertical 
section of the same showing embryo :—all enlarged. 
