290 



RESEDACE^E. II. OCHRADENUS. DATISCEJE. I. DATISCA. FLACOURTIANE^E. 



LtN. SYST. Polyandria, Trigynia. Calyx rotate, 5-toothed, 

 replete with an annular gland or rather disk. Petals wanting. 

 Berry many-seeded. A small shrub, with numerous twiggy, 

 straight, smooth branches. Leaves linear bluntish, furnished 

 on each side with a glandular tubercle. Flowers in spikes, yel- 

 low. Peduncles at length becoming spinescent. 



1 O. BACCA'TUS (Delile. 1. c.) Jj. F. Native of Upper 

 Egypt. 



.Saccate-fruited Ochradenus. ' Shrub 1 foot. 



Cult. See R. cdorata frutescens for the culture and propaga- 

 tion of this plant. 



ORDER XVII. DATI'SCE^ (this order only contains the 

 genus Datisca.) R. Br. in Clapp. and Denh. trav. appendix. 



Flowers dioecious from abortion. . Male flowers with the 

 calyx of 5 linear equal acute sepals. Corolla wanting. Sta- 

 mens about 15, inserted in the receptacle, very short; anthers 

 oblong, obtuse, much longer than the calyx, 2-celled, bursting 

 inwards. Female flowers, with a superior, erect, bidentate, 

 minute, permanent calyx. Corolla none. Ovary oblong, in- 

 ferior. Styles 3, short, cloven ; stigmas simple, oblong, shaggy. 

 Capsule prismatic, crowned by the permanent styles, with 3- 

 valves and 1-cell, with a hole at the top as in Reseda. Seeds 

 small, numerous, ranged along 3-4 or 5 placentarious nerves in 

 the capsule. Albumen pale, fleshy. Embryo straight, terete, 

 with very short cotyledons, and a long thick centrifugal radicle. 



This order comes very near to Resedacece, but differs in the 

 seeds being furnished with albumen, in the flowers being apeta- 

 lous, in the calyx being adherent, and in the fruit being inferior. 

 Large coarse perennial herbs, having the appearance of hemp, 

 with pinnate leaves and long spiked racemes of insignificant 

 flowers, resembling those of some species of Reseda ; they ap- 

 pear to be yellowish-green from the colour of the anthers. Ripe 

 seeds of these plants are easily introduced in a living state from 

 their native countries on account of the copious albumen. The 

 genus Tetrdmelis of R. Br. belongs to this order, and is remark- 

 able in the quaternary division of every part of the dioecious 

 flower. The plant is a native of Java. 



I. DATI'SCA (meaning unknown.) Lin. gen. 530. Juss. gen. 

 445. Gaert. fruct. 1. t. 147. t. 30. 



LIN. SYST. Dice da, Polyandria. Character the same as that 

 of the order. 



1 D. CANNABI'NA (Lin. spec. 649.) leaflets deeply serrated, 

 pale-green ; stem and leaves smooth, If. . H. Native of Can- 

 dia and some other parts in the south of Europe. Alp. exot. t. 

 294. Mor. hist. 3. p. 433. sect. 11. t. 25. f. 3-4. 



Bastard Hemp. Fl. June, Aug. Clt. 1739. PI. 4 feet. 



2 D. HI'RTA (Lin. spec. 1469.) leaflets deeply serrated, larger, 

 more alternate, and more decurrent and confluent at the base 

 than in the last species ; stem hairy. I/ . H. Native of Pennsyl- 

 vania. Flowers in terminal panicles. 



//airy-stemmed Bastard Hemp. Fl. June, Aug. Clt. ? PL 3 to 

 4 feet. 



3 D. NEPAIE'NSIS (D. Don, prod. fl. nep. p. 203.) leaflets 5, 

 ovate-lanceolate, serrated ; male flowers octandrous ; stem and 

 leaves smooth, i; . H. Native of Nipaul. This species differs 

 from D. cannabma, in the male flowers having 8 anthers, not 

 10-15, as well as in the stigmas being much shorter. 



Nipaul Bastard Hemp. Fl. June, Aug. PI. 3 to 4 feet. 

 Cult. These plants will grow under any circumstances, and 



are easily increased by dividing at the root when dormant. 

 They are only fit to be planted in shrubberies. 



ORDER XVIII. FLACOURTIA'NE^E (plants agreeing with 

 Flacourtia in many important characters). Rich, in mem. mus. 

 1. p. 366. B.C. prod. 1. p. 255. 



Sepals 4-5-7. (f. 55. &.), definite in number, connected a little 

 together at the base. Petals equal in number with the sepals 

 and alternating with them, very rarely absent (f. 55. a.). Sta- 

 mens inserted into the thalamus or receptacle, equal in number 

 with the petals, but sometimes double or multiple that number 

 (f. 55. 56. a.) and sometimes these are changed into necta- 

 riferous scales. Ovary ovate-globose, free, sessile (f. 55. c. 

 f. 56. d.) or on a very short stipe. Style absent, or when pre- 

 sent filiform (f. 56. f.). Stigmas equal in number with the 

 valves of the ovary, more or less distinct (f. 56. e.) from each 

 other. Fruit 1 -celled (f. 56. g.) sometimes indehiscent and 

 fleshy, sometimes capsular, 4-5-valved, filled with a fine pulp 

 inside. Seeds few, thick, usually inwrapped in a dry thin pulpy 

 pellicle ; these seeds are fixed to the valves of the capsule, not to 

 the margin as in Capparidece, nor to a longitudinal line as in 

 Violariece and Passifloreee, but with the placentas branched in the 

 disk of the valves, and the seeds adhering somewhat irregularly, 

 and as if it were areolately, to these branched placentas. Albu- 

 men fleshy, rather oily. Embryo straight, slender, with the 

 radicle turned towards the hilum. Cotyledons flat, oval, leafy. 

 This order contains small tropical trees or shrubs without sti- 

 pulas. The leaves are alternate, simple, feather-nerved, usually 

 entire and coriaceous, on very short footstalks. Peduncles ax- 

 illary and many-flowered. Flowers small, insignificant, often of 

 distinct sexes, they are yellow, white, or greenish. Fruit when 

 fleshy eatable. This order is allied to Cappandece and Rese- 

 dacece, but it differs from these- as well as from all dicotyledonous 

 plants in the seeds being fixed to branched parietal placentas. 

 Nothing is known of the properties of the plants contained in 

 this order. The seeds are difficult to introduce in a living state 



from their native countries. 





 Synopsis of the genera. 



TRIBE I. 



PATRISIE'JE. Flowers hermaphrodite, apetalous. Sepals 5. 

 Fruct capsular or baccate, 



1 RYAN;E V A. Flowers with a petaloid urceolus between the 

 stamens and the pistil. Fruit baccate, indehiscent. 



2 PATRI' SIA. Urceolus wanting. Fruit capsular, dehiscent, 

 papery, 3-5-valved. 



TRIBE II. 



FLACOURTIE'^E. Flowers dioecious (f. 55. a. b. f. 56. a. d.Jfrom 

 abortion, apetalous (f. 56. a. f. 55. a.). Fruit baccate (f. 55. c. 

 f. 56. a 1 .), indehiscent. 



3 FLACOU'RTIA. Stamens densely crowded upon a hemisphe- 

 rical, glandless torus (f. 55. a.). Stigmas 4-9 (f. 55. &.). 



4 ROU'MEA. Stamens not inserted upon a dilated torus 

 (f. 56. a.}, girded at the base by crenated glands. Stigrrlas ca- 

 pitate, depressed (f. 56. c.) 



