137. PALMACE.E. [10. Calamus. 



9. BORASSUS, L. 



Trunk stout. Leaves fan-shaped. Flowers dioecious, Spadices 

 very large, simply branched, spathes open. Male fls. small, mixed 

 with scaly bracteoles, secund in tAvo series in small cymules or capitate 

 spikelets and protruding one by one from the cavities between the 

 large broad closely imbricating bracts of the stout cylindric branches 

 of the spadix. Sepals 3, narrowly cuneate, tip inflexed, truncate, 

 imbricate, petals shorter, obovate spathulate, imbricate, dry ; stamens 

 6, anthers subsessile large oblong, pistillode of 3 bristles. Female 

 fl. larger, globose, scattered singly on the branches of a sparingly 

 branched spadix. Perianth fleshy, much accrescent, sepals reniform, 

 petals smaller, convolute, staminodes 6-9, ovary globose, sub-trigonous 

 entire, or 3-4-partite, 3-4-celled, stigmas 3, sessile recurved. Ovules 

 basilar, erect. Fruit a large subglobose drupe Avith 1-3 fibrous 

 pyrenes ; pericarp thinly fleshy, stigmas terminal. Seeds oblong, 

 top 3-lobed ; testa adherent to the pyrene, albumen equable, hollow. 

 Embrj^o subapical. 



1. B. flabellifer, L. Tal, tar, tali, tala, tadi, Veni. ; The Palmyra or 

 Toddy {tadi) palm. 

 A very large palm 70-100 ft. in height and 2 ft. diam. near the 

 ground, often swollen near the middle, when young covered Avith the 

 dry leaves and bases of the petioles, old naked and marked with the 

 sheath scars. Leaves 3-5 ft. diam. with 60-80 linear-lanceolate (not 

 drooping) segments, folded along the midrib. Petiole 2-4 ft. long 

 semiterete, edges spinosely serrate. Branches of male spadix clus- 

 tered, about 12" long and V diam. including the closely imbricate 

 broad truncate bracts, the flowers seated on the inner upper side of 

 the cavities, petals spreading -1" long. Fem. fl. I" diam. Fruit 6" 

 diam. 



In nearly all districts, cultivated. In Chota Na^pur it chiefl.y occui^ies a zone or 

 belt .skirting- the Gangetic plain from the Sone to the Ganges at Sahebganj. It is, 

 however, common on the Palamau and Hazaribagh plateau within this zone esp. 

 on gueissic rocks and occurring naturalised in the scrub jungles. In Gaya it is 

 very common. Fl. March-May. Fr. August or the following March-May. 

 Native of Africa. 



It is largely tapped for "toddy," the suaary juice from which it is prepared 

 exuding from the cut spadices and which is often used in place of yeast for making 

 bread in camp. The leaves are used for fans. Portions of the fruit and seeds are 

 eaten and there are very numerous other uses for parts of the tree. 



10. CALAMUS, L. Cane. 



Usually slender palms, rarely erect, armed with long spines or 

 recurved prickles and usually scandent, very frequently climbing by 

 the aid of long flagella copiously supplied with recurved prickles, 

 which may be a continuation of the leaf-rhachis or an appendage to 

 the leaf-sheath or a continuation of the spadix or its spathes. Leaves 

 not confined to a terminal croAvn, pinnate or pinnatisect, midribs 

 often armed. Spadices interfoliar, compound, elongate, with tubular 

 or open persi-stent spathes passing into bracts and bracteoles (spathels 

 and spathellules). Flowers small polygamo-dioecious, in usually 

 distichous often scorpioid spikelets, solitary or 2-nate in the spathel- 



885 



