298 MONOCOTYLEDONES. ' 



and covered with leaf-scars or the bases of the leaf-stalks (Fig. 

 296), and at the summit a rosette of large leaves closely packed 

 together (Fig. 295). An exception to this is found in Calamus 

 (Cane, "Rotang"), whose thin, creeping or climbing stems have 

 long internodes ; sparsely l branched is, e.g. the African Doum-palm 

 (Ilyphcene). Notwithstanding their often enormous stems the 

 Palms have fibrous roots, like the bulbous Monocotyledons. The 

 leaves are pinnate (Feather-palms, Fig. 298) or palmate (Fan- 

 palms, Fig. 295) and often very large; they have a well-developed 

 petiole with an amplexicaul sheath, which is often more or 

 less separated into a large number of fibres. In the bud the blade 

 is entire but folded, as the leaf expands the lines of folding are 

 torn, either those which are turned upwards (thus V V V V , e.g. 

 Pritchardia, Livistona, Phoenix, Chamcerops) or those turned down- 

 wards (thus A A A A, e.g. Gocos, Chamcedorea, Calamus). The 

 inflorescence is usually lateral ; when, as in Sago-palm (Me- 

 troxylon rumphii) or Talipot (Corypha umbraculifera) it is termi- 

 nal, the plant is monocarpic, and dies after flowering; it is 

 often a very large and branched spadix with numerous flowers 

 either borne externally or embedded in it, and enclosed either in 

 one woody, boat-shaped spathe (Fig. 2Q7) or several spathes, in 

 the latter case one for each branch. The flowers are sessile or 

 even embedded, regular, generally unisexual (monoecious or 

 dicecious) with the usual diagram (Fig. 278) ; the perianth is in- 

 conspicuous, green or yellow, persistent, and more or less leathery 

 or fleshy. 6, rarely 3 or many stamens. The 3 carpels remain 

 either distinct or form one, generally 3-locular, ovary. The style 

 is short. There is one ovule in each carpel. Often during ripening 

 2 carpels with their ovules are aborted. The fruit is a berry, 

 drupe or nut, generally one-seeded, with a large horny or bony 

 endosperm with hard thick-walled cells (e.g. Date-palm). In 

 some (e.g. Cocoanut) it is thin-walled, soft, and oily; in several 

 " ruminate." 



When germination commenced in the Cocoanut, Date, etc., the apex of the 

 cot \ledon remains in the seed and developesinto a spongy mass to withdraw the 

 endosperm ; in the Cocoanut it attains a considerable size (Fig. 299 C) and 



1 [Although unbranched stems are characteristic of the Palms, yet branched 

 specimens are recorded from some eleven genera. The branches are developed 

 from lateral buds, which in many instances only develope when the terminal 

 bud has been destroyed. A few Palms develope axillary branches at the base 

 of the stem ; these form rhizomes, and give rise to clusters of aerial stems.] 



