ANGIOSPERHLE, MONOCOTYLEDONES. 



731 



Liliastrum, a beautiful alpine plant; Hemerocallis, the Day Lily; Phortnium 

 tenax, the New Zealand Flax (tig. 414), the leaves ot" which yield a valuable 

 fibre; Kniphofia, whose dense spikes resemble a red-hot poker, cultivated in 

 gardens ; the Aloes and their allies, chieflj' African, with a permanent aerial 

 branch-sj^stem ; finally, the Australian Grass-trees (e.g. Xanthorrhcea hastilis, shown 

 in Plate XVI.), often a conspicuous feature in the landscape, and with its long 

 spicate inflorescence sometimes attaining a height of 3 metres or moi'e. This 

 plant j'ields a valuable gum. (3) Allioidece, usually bulbous, and having flowers 



Fig. 414. — Phormium tetiax, the Kew Zealand flax. 



in umbels. They include the Onion tribe {Allium, cf. fig. 311, p. 386), of which 

 A. cepa the Onion, A. porrum the Leek, A. ascalonicum the Shallot, A. sativum 

 the Garlic, A. schcenoprasum the Chive, and A. scorodoprasum the Rocambole, are 

 cultivated. Gagea (fig. 412 ') also belongs to this group. (4) LilioicleoB have 

 bulbs, anthers introrse, and loculicidal capsules. Styles generally united. They 

 include numerous familiar and beautiful plants: Lilium (45 species), Fritillaria (40 

 species), Enjthronium the Dog-tooth Violet, Tulipa (50 species), Scilla, Hyacinthus, 

 Ornithogalum the Star of Bethlehem, Muscari, &c. (5) Draccenoidece is an 

 interesting tribe, as it includes the Yuccas and Dracaenas, which possess a per- 

 manent aerial system, which exhibits what is very exceptional amongst Monocoty- 

 ledons, a secondary thickening of the stem. Draccena Draco, the Dragon-tree of 



