Desmos the proper generic name for the so-called Unonas of the 
d World 
WILLIAM EDWIN SAFFORD 
In connection with his work on the American Annonaceae* the 
author has had occasion to look into the question of the types of 
the genera of this family. To his surprise he found that the 
genus Unona, based upon an American type by the younger 
Linnaeus (who is quoted by all botanists as author of the genus), 
is declared to be exclusively Asiatic. The various American plants 
assigned to this genus by Dunal in his admirable monograph of the 
Annonaceae have all been relegated to other genera; and the 
recently described Unona panamensis and U. bibracteata of Dr. 
B. L. Robinson are undoubtedly species of Unonopsis.t Concern- 
ing Unona discreta modern botanists are silent. 
The original description t of this species, the type of the genus, 
is as follows: 
“discreta. UNONA. 
eyricoboom. Surinam. 
Habitat in Surinamo. C. G. Dalber 
Arbor ramis virgatis, angustis, flexilibus. 
Folia bifaria, alterna, petiolata, ligustrina, glabra, integerrima, 
digitalia. 
Petioli brevissimi. 
Pedicelli baccarum intra corollam, umbellati. 
Flos Annonae, sed Fructus diversus, purpureus, sapidus, 
aromaticus, qui distinguit genus uti in Theobroma & Am- 
broma. 
“* Annotatio”’ 
a3 - . 47° 2 
Unona, Annona, Xylopia floris charactere simillimae, potius 
Gynandris associandae, cum stamina germini insideant. 
In the above description the form of the carpels is not indi- 
<<. aloe m mee eemaa 
P Sek Jour. Washington Acad. Sci. 1: 118-120. S 191. 
: t Fries, Robt. E. Beitrage zur Kenntnis der siid-amerikanischen Anonaceen, 
gl. Sv. et.-Akad. Handl. 345: 26. 1900. 
t Linn. ¢, Suppl. 270. 1781. 
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