23 MONANDRIA MONoGYNiA. Curcuma. 



are four feet high, or more ; a very faint ferruginous tinge runs down 

 the middle, which is very conspicuous in those that appear first in 

 the season ; whereas it is scarcely to be observed in the latter. The 

 jlowers are large, few in number, with the exterior border red, and 

 the interior deep yellow. The bractes to the fertile part of the spike 

 ferruginous, those of the coma few, and of a pretty bright crimson 

 colour. 



8. C. riibescens. R. 



Bulbs ovate-lanceolate, and with the palmate tubers inwardly pearl- 

 coloured. Leaves broad lanceolate, on, red winged petioles, above 

 the sheaths ; rib red. Scape and scales red. Flowers longer than 

 their bractes. 



A native of Bengal. Flowering time the months of April and May, 

 soon after which the leaves appear; and decay about the beginning 

 of the cooi season, in November. Every part has a strong, but plea- 

 sant aromatic smell when bruised, particularly the root. 



Root of several, erect, solid, conical, pale straw or pearl-coloured, 



powerfully aromatic bulbs, which ga\e support to the former years 



foliage, and are strongly marked with the circular scars thereof; from 



their opposite sides the scapes, and stems of the succeeding year 



spring, which form similar new bulbs when those of the former year 



decay • but during their existence, there issues lound their lower 



half, a number of strong fleshy fibres, many of which end in ovate 



or sub-cylindrical, pale white, slightly aromatic tubers, which also 



perish with the original parent bulb. — Stems, as in the other species, 



no other than the united sheaths of the leaves, which like them, 



decay annually about the month of October, and appear again when 



the flowers begin to perish in April. — Leat;es bifarious, (six or eight 



of them forming the above-mentioned stems, of about three, or four 



feet in height, leaves included,) petioled on their sheathing base, 



broad-lanceolate, cuspidate, smooth, strongly marked with parallel 



veins ; of an uniform dark-green, with the nerves or ribs red, from 



twelve to twenty-four inches long, by five or six broadgp-Pef /o/es, and 



