Tass. 7552, 7558. 
SCHEELEA KEWENSIS. 
Native of tropical America. 
Nat. Ord. PatME&.—Tribe CocoInEa. 
tenus ScHeEEa, Karst.; (Benth. & Hook. f. Gen, Plant. vol. iii. p. 947.) 
ScHEELEA kewensis; trunco robusto obscure annulato infra folia basibus 
petiolorum vetustoram onusto, foliis 25-pedalibus breviter petiolatis 
patenti-recurvis pinnatisectis, segmentis decurvis 2}—3-pedalibus 1-13 poll. 
latis ad basin versus rachi subsolitariis medio subternis apicem versus 
subquaternis longe acuminatis basi incrassatis supra carinatis laete 
viridibus subtus pallidioribus, nervis obscuris, rachi valida pentagona 
dorso rotundata appresse purpuracea, floribus in spathis diversis 
monoici, spathis 2} pedalibus breviter crasse pedunculatis erectis 
cymbiformibus rostratis fuscis lignosis, spadicibus simpliciter ramosis, 
masc. Yamis densissime fasciculatis 4—6-pollicaribus strictis deflexis, 
rachibus flavis ad basin floriferis, floribus confertis, sepalis minutis 
ovatis, petalis elongato-cylindraceis apice rotundatis fere 3 poll. longis 
purpnreis, staminibus 6, filamentis equilongis anthera lineari brevioribus ; 
fl. fem. quam masc. multo majoribus subsessilibus ovoideis, bracteola 
lanceolata paucidentata suffultis, sepalis ovatis obtusis crassis, petalis 
paullo latioribus, disco cupulari, stylo crasso, stigmatibus brevibus 
recurvis, fructu 3 poll. longo, ovoideo breviter crasse rostrato basi disco 
sepalis petalisque valde auctis vaginato abortu 1-spermo. 
The larger Palms so rarely produce flower, and still more 
rarely fruit in our tropical Palm Houses, that it appears 
to me expedient to figure such as fulfil these con- 
ditions in the Royal Gardens, Kew, even when, as in this 
case, I am unable to identify them specifically. That the 
Palm here figured belongs to the genus Scheelea, which 
was founded by Karsten on the species of Mawimiliana, 
‘Mart., with long narrow petals, is obvious. A _ near 
congener is S. Princeps, Karst., in Linngwa, vol. xxviii. 
p- 269 (Attalea Princeps, Mart., Palmet., Orbign., p. 118, 
t. 31), in which, besides other differences, the fruit is not 
beaked. It has flowered but once, when it produced two 
spathes, the lower male (of which the pollen was kept) in 
August, 1895, and the upper female (to which the pollen 
was applied) in the following October. The fruit did not 
completely ripen. | 
SzrremBeR Ist, 1897, 
