818 



OCHNACE^E. V. CASTELA. CORIARIEiE. I. CORIARIA. 



LIN. SYST. Dioecia, Monogynia. Calyx small, 4-cleft. Petals 4, 

 alternating with the teeth of the calyx. Male flowers ; stamens 

 8, inserted with the petals and equal in length to them. Anthers 

 inverse. Pistil abortive, minute. Female with 8 abortive 

 stamens. Ovary 4-lobed, seated on a circular disk. Lobes 4, 

 distinct, drupaceous, 1 -seeded, rising from a fleshy gynobase. 

 Style 1, or hardly any, crowned by 4 recurved stigmas. Drupes 



4, at length free. Seed inverted, with a superior radicle and 2 

 leafy cotyledons. Albumen sparing. Small shrubs with alter- 

 nate branches, which are spiny at the apex, alternate entire 

 leaves, and small, axillary, yellow flowers. 



1 C. DEPRE'SSA (Turp. 1. c. p. 79. t. 5. A.) leaves oval-oblong, 

 sessile, somewhat cordate at the base ; spines axillary. Jj . S. 

 Native of St. Domingo between Monte Christi and St. Yago. 

 Flowers purplish. 



Depressed Castela. Shrub 2 feet. 



2 C. ERE'CTA (Turp. 1. c. p. 80. t. 5. B.) leaves lanceolate, 

 stalked ; spines infra-axillary. \} . S. Native of Antigua. 



Erect Castela. Shrub 2 feet. 



3 C. NICHOLSONI (Hook. bot. misc. 3d part, p. 271. t. 54.) 

 leaves elliptical, mucronulate, silky and hoary beneath, as well 

 as the branches ; spines axillary ; stamens hairy. J? . S. Native 

 of Antigua, where it is called Goat-bush by the Negroes. Flowers 

 small, copper-coloured, dioecious. The whole plant is very bitter. 



Nicholson's Castela. Shrub 4 feet. 



Cult. See Gomphia for culture and propagation. 



ORDER LXIII. CORIARIE'-iE (plants agreeing with Coriaria 

 in important characters). D. C. prod. 1. p. 739. 



Flowers hermaphrodite, monoecious or dioecious. Calyx (or 

 perigone) of one campanulate 10-cleft sepal, the 5 outer lobes 

 are ovate, larger than the 5 inner ones, which are callose, alter- 

 nating with each other. Petals wanting. Stamens 10, pro- 

 truding from the torus, 5 of which are between the outer lobes of 

 the calyx and angles of the ovary, and the other 5 between the 

 inner or callose lobes of the calyx, and the furrows of the ovary. 

 Filaments filiform. Anthers oblong, 2-celled. Ovary seated 

 on a thickish torus, 5-celled, 5-angled. Style wanting. Stigmas 



5, long, awl-shaped, rising from the top of the ovary. Carpels 

 5, when at maturity almost free, approximate, indehiscent, 1- 

 seeded, surrounded by large glandular lobes. Seed pendulous. 

 Albumen wanting. Embryo straight, with a superior radicle, 

 and 2 fleshy cotyledons. Shrubs, with somewhat tetragonal, 

 opposite or tern branches. Leaves opposite, simple, 3-nerved, 

 entire, ovate or cordate. Leaf bud scaly. Racemes of flowers 

 terminating the branches and branchlets, leafy at the base, sim- 

 ple : pedicels opposite or alternate at the tops of the racemes, 

 furnished with bracteas at their base, and usually with two in 

 their middle. The proper place which this order should occupy 

 in the natural system is very doubtful. It has been referred to 

 Terebinthacece by old authors, but on account of the hypogy- 



nous insertion of the stamens and straight embryo, it cannot 

 belong to it. By Jussieu it was referred to Atriplices, on account 

 of its want of petals, but it has no other analogy with that order. 



I. CORIA'RIA (from corium, a hide. C. myrlifolia is con- 

 siderably astringent, and is used not only in tanning leather, but 

 in dying black colours). Niss. in act. par. 1711.1.12. D. C. prod. 

 1. p. 739. 



LIN. SYST. Dioe'cia, Decdndria. Character the same as that 

 of the order. 



1 C. MYRTIFOLIA (Lin. spec. 1467.) leaves ovate-lanceolate, 

 acute, triple-nerved, on short petioles, smooth ; racemes rather 

 erect. ^ . H. Native of the south of Europe and north of 

 Africa, in hedges and bushy places. Lam. ill. t. 822. Duham. 

 arb. 1. t. 73. Wats, dend. brit. t. 103. Flowers hermaphro- 

 dite, monoecious or dioecious, greenish. This shrub sends up 

 many stems from the root, and is therefore useful to fill up 

 vacancies in shrubberies and plantations. 



Myrtle-leaved Coriaria. Fl. May, Aug. Clt. 1629. Shrub 

 4 to 6 feet. 



2 C. MICROPHY'LLA (Poir. diet. 6. p. 87.) leaves ovate, blunt- 

 ish, 5-nerved, almost sessile ; racemes nodding. Tj G. Native 

 of Peru. Flowers greenish. 



Small-leaved Coriaria. Shrub 3 to 6 feet. 



3 C. SARMENTOSA (Forst. prod. p. 377.) sarmentose, diffuse ; 

 leaves cordate-ovate,' acuminated, quite entire, 5-nerved, on 

 very short stalks ; racemes nodding. Tj . G. Native of New 

 Zealand. Hook. bot. mag. t. 2470. Flowers brownish-green. 



Sarmentose Coriaria. Fl. May, Aug. Clt. 1823. Shrub 3 

 to 6 feet. 



4 C. RUSCIFOLIA (Lin. spec. 1467.) leaves cordate-ovate, acute, 

 sessile, many-nerved ; racemes nodding, cylindrical. f? . G. 

 Native of Peru, and of Chili, at Conception. Feuill. per. 3. p. 

 17. t. 12. Leaves usually tern on the branches, but opposite 

 on the branchlets. Flowers hermaphrodite, greenish. 



Butcher' s-broom-leaved Coriaria. Shrub. 



5 C. PHYLICIFOLIA (Humb. in Willd. spec. 4. p. 819.) leaves 

 subcordate, oblong, acute, stalked, 3-nerved, veiny ; peduncles 

 hispid. T? . G. Native of Peru. Flowers greenish. 



PhyUca-leaved Coriaria. Shrub. 



6 C. THYMIFOLIA (Humb. in Willd. spec. 4. p. 819.) leaves 

 oblong, acute, stalked, 3-nerved ; petioles and peduncles hispid, 

 fj . G. Native of Peru. Hardly distinct from the preceding. 



Thyme-leaved Coriaria. Shrub. 



7 C. ATROPURPU RE A (Moc. et Sesse, fl. mex. ined. D. C. 

 prod. 1 . p. 740.) leaves cordate, ovate, acute, sessile, 3-nerved ; 

 racemes terminal, cylindrical, simple, fj . G. Native of Mexico. 

 Flowers with 5 petals and 5 styles, dark-purple. 



Dark-purple-fiovfered Coriaria. Shrub. 



Cult. The hardy species, C. myrti/blia, will thrive in any 

 common soil, and is readily increased by cuttings of the roots or 

 by suckers. The other species will all require the protection of 

 a green-house ; they will thrive very well in a mixture of sand, 

 loam, and peat ; and cuttings planted in the same kind of soil 

 will readily strike root under a hand-glass. 



END OF VOL. I. 



LONDON : 



GILBERT & RIVINOTON, PRINTERS, ST. JOHN'S SQUARE. 



