THE DICOTYLEDONES 



^905 



The genus Physalis, with forty-five species, is found in the warmer parts 

 of North and South America. It is pecuUar because of the large, coloured, 

 bladder-like structure which is formed from the calyx and encloses the ripe 

 (see Fig. 1132), edible berry. The structure is often bright red and the 

 plant is often grown in gardens under the name of Chinese Lanterns. 



The genus Capsicum has a peculiar distribution. Thirty species are 

 recorded from South and Central America, while one species, sometimes 

 separated as a genus Tiibocapsicum, is found in Japan. C anmium is the 

 commonly cultivated species, its fruits yielding Chillies or Red Pepper. 

 When these are dried and powdered they are sold as Cayenne Pepper. 



There are about 100 species of the genus Lycimn, most of which are 

 shrubs or trees. The plants are widely distributed in temperate regions of 

 both hemispheres. They are often thorny, with a narrow, bell-shaped 

 corolla, and the fruit is a berry. L. halamifolium is a straggling climber often 

 occurring as a semi-naturalized plant in this country. We have already 

 referred to its popular name of Tea plant. It is reported to have been 

 introduced in error for the true Tea bush. 



Fig. 1825. — Nicotiaua tahaciiui. Inflorescence. 



In the Cestreae by far the most important genus is Nicotiaua. There 

 are some fifty species, occurring in America and Polynesia with one species 

 in Australia. A^ tabacum (Fig. 1825) is cultivated in many tropical countries 



