1774 



A TEXTBOOK OF THEORETICAL BOTANY 



The Lecythidaceae contain a number of genera of more than passing 

 interest. The family is represented mainly by trees and shrubs. It contains 

 about eighteen genera and some 150 species. The leaves are large and are 



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Fig. 1663. — BerthoUeiia excelsa. Brazil Nut. Woody capsule 

 cut in half showing the contained seeds. 



often produced in bunches at the ends of the branches. Among the more 

 important genera is BerthoUetia which contains two species found in 

 South America and the West Indies. The fruit (Fig. 1663) is a large woody 

 capsule containing seeds each having a hard woody testa and an oily 



endosperm. This seed is the Brazil 

 Nut of commerce, for the complete fruit 

 is seldom seen in this country. The fruit 

 is indehiscent and is closed by a plug 

 formed from the hardened calyx and it 

 is through this opening that the seed- 

 lings grow out during germination, as 

 the seeds germinate inside the capsule 

 after it has fallen to the ground. In the 

 genus Lecythis itself, the fruit is a large 

 woody capsule which opens by a lid. 

 The fruit is the famous Monkey Pot, 

 used to catch monkeys who insert their 

 hands to get the seeds and cannot with- 

 draw them without letting go of the 

 seed, which they will not do. The oily 

 seeds it contains are eaten in the tropics 

 as Sapucaia Nuts. Other species of this 

 genus are used for timber. The An- 

 chovy Pear {Grias caiiliflora) is culti- 

 vated in the West Indies. 



The genus Couroiipita contains nine 



1664. — Couroiipita ^uian?nsis. , . • /^ • • 



Cannon Ball Tree. Large woody American SpCClCS. C. gUianetmS pOS- 



capsules. Photograph supplied by scsscs flowcrs which are bornc on the 



courtesy of the Florida Agri- , , , , ,• n j u 1 



cultural Experiment Station. ^ older wood and are toUowed by large 



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