Order 116. Dioscoracece. 345 



The above is D.'s description. H. has male spikes short, leaves 

 with a cartilaginous margin. Mdnda, pdshpoli. Common on the 

 Ghauts (D. and (?.). Tropical India (H.). 



D. sativa is the yam most commonly cultivated (D.}. KonphaJ, 

 Godri. * D. globota, " the white yam, nearly as common as the last " 

 (D.). * D. aculeata, " Goa potato, common in Bombay, but imported 

 from Goa; the smallest and most delicate of those cultivated" (#) 

 Edngi, Mnte kdngi. These two H. has not identified. * D. alata, 

 stems short, variously angled or winged, leaves subhastate or 

 deeply cordate, roundish, ovate, petiole stout, often winged. H. 

 ascribes this to tropical India. * D. dcemona is apparently D.'s 

 Helmia d., stems twining, armed, leaves ternate, leaflets very large, 

 obovate acute, petioles prickly, male spikes compound 6 to 18 inches 

 long, female flowers on a different plant, solitary, pendulous. Vin- 

 gorla and Konkan hills, rare (D.). Tropical forests throughout India 

 (H.}. Helmia bulbiftra, D., is apparently G.'s D. lulbifera, put down 

 by H. as undeterminable, Kdru Icaranda, a smooth climber, leaves 

 cordate, deeply nerved, flowers white, the male spikes panicled, 

 bearing brown bulbs ; fruit in racemes, oblong with 3 oval wings. 

 Dapoli. Bombay and Konkans, common (D.). H. has not referred 

 to these two. He says the species of this genus are "in a state of 

 indescribable confusion." 



ORDER 117. LILIACE^. The Lily Family. 



Generally herbs with fibrous roots, or bulbs ; leaves generally 

 narrow with parallel veins ; flowers generally bisexual ; perianth 

 coloured with 6 divisions in 2 series ; stamens 6, rarely 3 or 

 fewer ; ovary 3-celled, fruit a 3 -celled capsule or berry. 



This great family contains such a number of plants quite unlike 

 what are ordinarily known as lilies that it seems almost misleading 

 to call it by that name. Among these are tulips, onions, squills, 

 asparagus, aloes, Smilax, and Dracaena. H. has sixteen tribes, of 

 which only seven are represented in W. India, and six of these by a 

 single genus each. 



TRIBE 1. SMILACE^:. Climbing shrubs with reticulated 

 and strongly-nerved leaves. 



1. SMILAX. Flowers dioecious, small, umbelled, anthers twin, 

 or with cells separated by the forking of the filament : in the 

 female flowers there are 3 or 6 staminodes; fruit a round 

 berry. 



TRIBE 2. ASPARAGEJ:. No real leaves, but many much- 

 divided, very slender branchlets, looking like feathery leaves, 

 and so called by old botanists. 



2. ASPARAGUS. Flowers very small axillary, perianth bell- 

 shaped, berry round. 



