THE BOTANY OF ANTIGUA 51 



Gec\?iv (Tecomaleucoxylon). The Wild Balsam (? Lantana), with 

 its thick yellow gum, is one of the most dominant plants. The 

 Wild Pine (Tillandsia utriculata) and the Old Man's Beard 

 {TiUandsia usneoides) are very common epiphytes, but 

 they occur almost equally in the Central Plain ; the Dodder 

 {Cusciita sp.) is chiefly, but exclusively, found in this area. In 

 the Barbuda Limestone the Loblolly is very common and 

 often bears a Misseltoe (LorantJms) upon it, but the Misseltoe is 

 seldom (if ever) found in Antigua, while the Loblolly occurs 

 mainly near the sea, and but seldom on the Limestone hills. The 

 Castor Oil {Ricinus communis), a well-known member of this 

 Flora, and the Soursop [Anona imiricata) and the Papaw [Carica 

 Papaya) occur as well as the wdld Sage [Lantana Camara). 



5. The Central Plain. — The Flora here includes many kinds 

 of plants ; there are the weeds of the canefields, the hygrophyllous 

 and hydrophyllus plants of the ponds, and the trees and herbs 

 found generally throughout the district. But the typical plant is 

 the Acacia, which covers all the level clays, and which quickly 

 invades a deserted piece of cultivated land, in most cases so over- 

 running it that the other wild plants hardly get a chance, except 

 the Grasses. The commonest species appears to be A. arahica, 

 but a number of species occur. The acacias are met with some- 

 times in the Limestone and Volcanic districts, but are never 

 dominant except in the Central Plain. 



A number of large trees are found, usually near small ponds or 

 the beds of streams. Among them are the Antigua W^hitewood 

 {Terminalia Buceras), the huge Silk Cotton (Eriodendron), the 

 Sandbox {Hura crepitans), and the " Evergreen," whose enormous 

 roots frequently grow 100 feet in length in search of water. It is 

 their power of abstracting water from dry soils which enables 

 them to keep their leaves when other trees have shed theirs, thus 

 earning their name. These spreading roots have caused serious 

 damage to the foundations of the large stone church of St. Peter's, 

 Parham. The Tamarind has quite established itself, too, but is 

 not to be regarded as indigenous, and the same may be said for 

 the Mahogany [Sioietenia Mahagoni). 



The ponds are always small, but usually manage to exist 

 through the droughts ; they are often covered by the Pond Weed 

 and by Nymphcea ainpla, which is indigenous, or by its rival, the 

 Egyptian Lotus, which is ousting it in most places. The Water 

 Violet (Eichornia tricolor) is also found, but, like the Lotus, has 

 (probably) been introduced by human agency. Pound the margins 

 grow a yellow Mimosa, Wedelia, various Sedges {Cyperus), Bam- 

 busa vulgaris, the French Weed {Commelina elegans), Grinum 

 longiflorum, the Wild Tobacco or Cattle Tongue {Pluchea odorata), 

 and the Wild Cane [Gynerium saccharoides). Ruellia tuberosa, 

 with its tuberous roots and explosive capsules, is also found in 

 damp situations ; it is known locally as Daniel's Great Gun. 

 Mimosa pudica, which abounds in Trinidad, is never found in 

 Antigua. 



The pastures abound in herbs, many of which are Papilionaceae ; 



