AMARYLLIDACE^. 4I I 



many seeds, and dry capsular fruit. Very similar there- 

 fore to the LILIACE^ except in the inferior ovary, and 

 also that the flowers are usually umbelled and in bud 

 enclosed in a large thin, or scarious, bract (spathe) ; 

 (sometimes one flower only to the bract). 



Genera 64. Species 700. 



Common garden plants on the plains : crinum and pancra- 

 tium (White Lilies), eucharis. In England and on these hills : 

 Amaryllis, Narcissus, Daffodil, Snowdrop, agabanthus, etc. 



CURCULIGO. F.B.I. 152 II. 



Yellow Ground Star. 



Small herbs with tuberous rootstock and star-shaped 

 flowers close down among the narrow plaited leaves, and 

 remarkable for the sepals, petals, stamens and style being 

 carried up on a short or long solid stalk above the ovary. 

 Stamens short : anthers linear, fixed by the back. Style 

 short : stigmas three, erect, stout. Fruit more or less 

 beaked indehiscent. 



Species about 12 in the tropics. 



Ovary not visible above ground : solid stalk of perianth above 

 it long : leaves glabrous ...... C. orchioides. 



Flowers racemed. Stalk of perianth short, ovary therefore 

 visible : leaves villous finlaysoniana. 



The long thick roots show transverse wrinkling. This is due to a 

 contraction by which the plant is pulled deeper into the ground each year, 

 as the rootstock grows in height, so that the leaves are kept at the ground 

 level. 



Curculigo finlaysoniana Wall; F.BJ. vi 279, II 4. 

 Leaves villous. Flowers in lax racemes, well above the 

 ground. Solid stalk of perianth short, ovary therefore 

 close below the sepals and petals. Upper flowers male 

 only. Pedicels in fruit ij^ inches. 



Pulneys : Kodaikanal to Silver Cascade. Bourne 122^. 



Gen, Dist. Also Ceylon. 



