83 THE AMERICAN BOTANIST 



pea family. The latest discovery has a curious habit in the 

 way its fruit is buried. Our native peanut, after flowering, 

 buries its ovary by the lengthening of the flower stalk, but 

 in the new one it is the base of the pistil which lengthens and 

 in so doing pushes the ovary out of the calyx and into the 

 earth. 



Tulip Trees. — The tulip tree of eastern America belongs 

 to the magnolia family and is known to scientists as Lirio- 

 dendron tulipifera. Because this name is so commonly used 

 for our tree we might think it the only species so called, but 

 in other parts of the world there are three other trees, all of 

 which bear this name. They belong to the mallow family and 

 are called respectively Langunaria Patersoni. Thespesia 

 populnea and Hibiscus elatiis. The first is the "she oak" of 

 New South Wales and the last is known also as "blue mahoe." 

 All are found in the Old World. Though our tree is known 

 as tulip tree its wood seldom bears that designation being 

 better known as yellow poplar of whitewood. There are, 

 however, seven trees whose wood is known as tulip wood. 

 Two of these, Harpullia pendida and Atalaya hemiglauca, be- 

 long to the Sapindaceae or soapberry family and are not very 

 distantly related to our maples. They are found in Australia. 

 Another Australian tree of this name is Ozvenia venosa be- 

 longing to the Meliaceae to which the China-berry of our 

 southern States belongs. In the Philippines is found a tree 

 of the nettle family Aphananthe Philippinensis also known as 

 tulip wood which extends southward to Australia. From the 

 same general region comes Stenocarpus sinnatus one of the 

 Proteaceae which has no relatives in our part of the world. 

 The Lythraceae, represented by our water willow (Decodon), 

 has a species in Brazil, Physocalymnia scabcrrima known as 

 tulip wood. To complete the list DicypelHuin caryophyllatum 

 one of the Lauraceae may be mentioned. It is related to our 

 sassafras and spicewood and is found in Brazil. 



