510 L"xxxi. EBENACE^ (hiern). [Boi/ena. 



style or style-branches Tisually half aB numerous as the ovules ; stig- 

 mas emarginate or punctiform ; ovules 4-10, solitary or in pairs (col- 

 lateral) in the cells of the ovary, pendulous, anatropous. Fruit coriaceous 

 or fleshy, indehiscent or rarely splitting in a valvate manner. Seeds 

 1-8, pendulous, globose or segments of a sphere ; testa thin ; albumen 

 cartilaginous or bony, copious, unifo* m or ruminated ; embryo ^-J of 

 the length of the seed ; cotyledons foliaceous, ovate ; radicle terete, 

 superior. — Shrubs or trees, not spinous, usually with hard wood, often 

 black in the centre. Leaves alternate or rarely subopposite opposite or 

 temate, simple, quite entire, shortly petiolate, exstipulate, evergreen 

 or deciduous. Inflorescence axillary or lateral, short ; flowers usually 

 small, white flesh-coloured reddish or yellowish, solitary or several toge- 

 ther. Fruit often edible. 



A Natural Order of 264 species, chiefly tropical and subtropical, most abundant 

 in the East Indies ; moreover about 60 fossil species have been published, a few of 

 which seem to be correctly referred to this Order; 2 fossil species have occurred in 

 the Libyan Desert, about 25° N. Lat., the geological age being Upper Cretaceous. 

 Flowers hermaphrodite. Stamens in one row .... 1. Kotena. 

 Flowers dioecious or rarely polygamous. Stamens usually 

 in 2 or more rows. 

 Calyx not accrescent. Staminodes usually absent 

 from the female flower. Inflorescence racemose, 



rarely paniculate 2. Euclea. 



Calyx often accrescent. Staminodes often present in 

 the female flower. Inflorescence cymose, not race- 

 mose, sometimes l-flowered. 

 Ovary 3- or 6-celled. Flowers usually trimerous . 3. Maba. 

 Ovary 4- or 8-celled. Flowers usually 4-5-merous . 4. Diospteos. 



1. BO YEN A, Linn. ; Benth. et Hook. f. Gen. PI. ii. p. 663. 



Calyx deeply lobed (in our species), often accrescent in fruit; 

 lobes 5 or rarely 4, more or less pubescent or silky. Corolla campanu^ 

 late or urceolate, shortly exceeding the calyx, 5 -cleft ; lobes obtuse, 

 reflexed. Stamens 10, uniseriate, inserted at the base of the corolla- 

 tube ; filaments short, glabrous j anthers lanceolate-linear, somewhat 

 hairy. Ovary conical, pubescent ; cells twice as many as the 2-4 

 styles or style-branches ; stigmas punctiform. Fruit globose ovoid or 

 oblong, coriaceous, indehiscent or splitting. Seeds as in the Order ; 

 albumen uniform. — Evergreen shrffbs or small trees with alternate 

 leaves, axillary peduncles and small hermaphrodite flowers. 



A genus of 13 species, aU confined to the Cape Flora, except the following : — 



Fruiting calyx patent or reflexed 1. E.pallens. 



Fruiting calyx appressed . 2. B. cistoides. 



1. R. pallens, Thunh. Prodr. PL Cap., pars prior, p. 80 (1794). 



A shrub or small tree, ranging from a few inches to 15 ft. in height ; 

 bark reddish brown ; branches silky pubescent or glabrescent, pallid. 

 Leaves obovate-elliptical, often narrowly so, usually obtuse at the 

 apex, narrowed towards the base into the petiole, coriaceous, silky 

 especially beneath or glabrescent, ^-2 by J-f in. ; petiole g^^-i in. 



