STANDLEY TREES AND SHRUBS OF MEXICO. 1061 



maulipas) ; " capiroto " (Nicaragua); " cirin " (El Salvador); " lengua de 

 vaca," "p(i," " purrg," " escobillo " (Costa Rica); " guabon " (Guatemala); 

 "mora" (Tepic) ; "pupu" (Sinaloa) ; " capulin de cotorro," " tecapulln," 

 *' teshuate " ( Veracruz ) . 



Judging from the number of herbarium specimens at hand, this is by far 

 the most common Melastomaceous plant of Mexico. The form witli narrow 

 leaves is C. lanceolata Cogn.* and C. minutiflora Rose, but it grades imper- 

 ceptibly into the typical form. Some specimens of C xalapensis exhibit a 

 truly remarkable diversity in leaf pubescence. Some of the leaves are, when 

 young, finely tomentose upon the upper surface, and these leaves, even in 

 age, are densely tomentose beneath. Other leaves upon the same brancli are 

 thinly setose upon the upper surface, without any trace of tomentum, while 

 the lower surface is green and soon glabrate. Unless one had seen both 

 kinds of leaves upon the same specimen, it would be hard to believe that they 

 belonged to the same species. 



The dark blue or purple fruits are edible and of good llavor. They some- 

 what resemble blueberries iVaccinium) in appearance and are often seen in 

 the markets of Central America. 



16. MICONIA Ruiz & Pav. Fl. Peruv. Chil. Prodr. 60. 1794. 



Shrubs or small trees ; leaves entire or denticulate ; inflorescence terminal ; 

 flowers small, 4 to 8-parted, white, red, or yellow ; calyx urceolate or campanu- 

 late, the lobes short ; petals oblong or obovate ; stamens ecpial or nearly so ; 

 fruit a small berry. 



The largest genus of the family, including over 500 species. The fruit, like 

 that of other genera, is edible, and some species yield dyes. 



Anthers short, obovoid, oblong, or cuneiform. 

 Anthers oblong, with a single minute pore at apex. 

 Flowers secund upon the panicle branches. 



Branches long-hirsute 1. M. lacera. 



Branches glabrous 2. M. ciliata. 



Flowers not secund. 



Branches glabrous or furfuraceous-puberulent ; leaves acute or rounded 

 at base. 



Leaves acute at base; branches glabrate 3. M. g'labrata. 



Leaves rounded at base; branches densely furfuraceous-puberulent. 



4. M. madrensis. 

 Branches hispid or densely tomentulose ; leaves cordate at base. 



Branches hispid 5. M. phaeotricha. 



Branches stellate-tomentulose 6. M. tepicana. 



Anthers cuneiform, truncate at apex and with 2 large pores. 

 Leaves stellate-furfuraceous beneath along the nerves. 



7. M. hemenostigma. 

 Leaves glabrous beneath. 

 Leaves triplinerved, the lateral nerves arising above the base of the 



blade 8. M. rubens. 



Leaves 3-nerved, the lateral nerves arising at the base of the blade. 



Stigma not dilated 9. M. oligotricha. 



Stigma capitate. 



Calyx 1.5 mm. long 10. M. glaberrima. 



Calyx 2.5 to 3 mm. long 11. M. pinetorum. 



Mn DC. Monogr. Phan. 7: 708. 1891. 



