524 I'Xi. rASSii'LOB.vc'E.i;. 



Carica Papaya., Linn. The Papaiv, a rapidly growing soft-wooded 

 tree, considered by DeCandoUe to be a native of the W. Indies, the 

 shores of the Gulf of Mexico and doubtfully of Brazil, is widely culti- 

 vated throughout India. It has large glabrous pinnatifid and palini- 

 nerved leaves 1-2 ft. across, and fragrant (dioecious) flowers of which 

 the males are in long drooping panicles and the females in short clusters. 

 The fruit, which is of the size of a small melon, with a soft yellow sweet 

 pulp, is eaten and is regarded as possessing properties similar to pepsin. 

 It seems to be a well-established fact that meat wrapped in the leaves or 

 treated with the juice of the fruit becomes tender. The milky juice of 

 the unripe fruit has been extensively used in medicine (see Watt, Diet. 

 Econ. Prod. v. 2, p. 158). Fl. B. I. v. 2, p. 599 ; Grab. Cat. p. 80 ; 

 Dalz. & Gibs. tSuppl. p. 37 ; Woodr. in Journ. Bomb. Nat. v. 11 (1898) 

 p. 639, & Gard. in Ind. ed. 5, p. 324. — Vern. Papdya ; Popai. 



Passijiora fcetida, Linn., a native of Tropical America, is a very common 

 plant in gardens and is frequently found as an escape. It has small 

 flowers and a remarkable pectinate and moss-like involucre. — Yern. 

 Veli-(fhdni. 



Several other species of Passijiora are grown in gardens throughout 

 the Presidency, of which may be mentioned : — Passijiora edulis with 

 bluish-purple fragrant flowers, not fruiting much below 4000 ft. altitude 

 and then bearing a plum-like edible yellow fruit ; P. laurifolia with large 

 blue fragrant flowers ; P. racemosa with deep-red or scarlet flowers ; 

 P. holosericea with mottled flowers about 2 in. across ; and P. Raddiana 

 (better known as P. kermesina) which bears in great abundance bright- 

 red flowers with narrow petals. (See Woodrow, Gard. in Ind. ed. 5, 

 pp. 322-324.) 



Order LXII. CUCURBITACE^. 



Herbs or undershrubs usually climbing. Leaves alternate, petiolate, 

 frequently cordate, simple, or palmately or pedately divided. Tendrils 

 when present lateral, solitary, simple or divided, spirally twisted. 

 Flowers monoecious or dioecious, yellow or white, solitary, paniculate or 

 racemose. Calyx-tube adnate to the ovary ; limb rotate, campanulate or 

 tubular, 5- (rarely 3-6-) lobed, imbricate. Petals as many as the calyx- 

 lobes, inserted on the limb of the calyx, free or rarely gamopetalous, 

 sometimes lobed or fimbriate, valvate or involute in bud. Stamens in- 

 serted at the mouth, or about the middle, or at the base of the calyx- 

 tube, usually 3 (rarely 5) ; anthers free, cohering, or confluent into a 

 capitulum, one usually 1-celled, the other two 2-celled, the cells flexuose 

 or conduplicate, extrorsely dehiscent ; the connective sometimes pro- 

 duced beyond the cells. Ovary inferior, or rarely free at the apex only, 

 usually 3-carpellary ; ovules usually many, horizontal, rarely few and 

 pendulous ; style 1 with 3 large stigmas (more rarely styles 2-3-4) ; 

 placentas usually 3, the edges of the carpellary leaves being often 

 turned in so far that the ovary (even before fertilization) is spuriously 

 3-celled. Fruit usually a fleshy berry, indehiscent or dehiscing by 

 valves or by a circumscissile lid. Seeds numerous, often packed in 



