MELASTOMACE.E. LXXVI. MICONIA. 



791 



white stellate down ; leaves petiolate, oval, acuminated, obtuse 

 at the base, glabrous above, quite entire, 7-nerved, and mar- 

 gined with a slender nerve ; panicle terminal, rather spike- 

 formed ; having the flowers sessile along its branches. fj . S. 

 Native of the interior of Brazil. Melastoma stenostachyum, 

 Schrank et Mart. mss. This species comes very near M. holo- 

 sericea in the flower-bud, but differs in the nerves of the leaves 

 being 7, not 5, nor glandular on the upper surface. 

 Slender-spiked Miconia. Shrub 2 to 3 feet. 



16 M. FERRUGINA'TA (D. C. I. c.) shrubby ; branchlets thick, 

 angular, and are as well as the panicles, petioles, and under side 

 of leaves, densely clothed with stellate rather rufescent down ; 

 leaves petiolate, oblong, bluntish at both ends, coriaceous, quite 

 entire, 5-nerved, glabrous on the upper surface ; panicle ter- 

 minal, elongated ; flowers crowded on the short branches of the 

 panicle ; bracteas linear. Tj . S. Native of Brazil, in the 

 provinces of Minas Geraes and Pernambucco. Melastoma fer- 

 rugineum, Schrank et Mart. mss. Leaves when young clothed 

 with stellate velvety down. Calyx rather truncate, with an ob- 

 scurely 10-ribbed tube. Petals small, white. Fruit almost 

 globose. Petioles rather angular. 



Var. ft, latifolia (D. C. 1. c.) leaves oval-oblong, acutish. 

 Ij . S. Native of Brazil, in the province of Minas Geraes. 

 Melastoma Plukenetii, Schrank et Mart. mss. 

 Rusty Miconia. Shrub 6 feet. 



17 M. HERPE'TICA (D. C. 1. c.) branches terete, and are as 

 well as the petioles, panicles, and under side of leaves, as well 

 as on the upper side of young leaves, densely clothed with stel- 

 late, rather rufescent, soft down ; leaves petiolate, ovate, acu- 

 minated, entire, 5-nerved, or almost quintuple-nerved ; panicle 

 terminal, spike-formed : having the flowers crowded on its short 

 branches. Tj . S. Native of Brazil, in mountain fields in the 

 provinces of St. Paul and Minas Geraes. Melast. herpeticum, 

 Schrank et Mart. mss. Nearly allied to M. detergibilis, but 

 certainly distinct. Style longer than the stamens, not shorter as 

 in M. holosericea. 



Herpetic Miconia. Shrub 2 to 3 feet. 



18 M. DETERGI'BILIS (D. C. 1. c.) branches terete, and 

 are as well as the panicles, under side of leaves, and upper 

 side of the young leaves, densely clothed with soft, short, 

 velvety tomentum ; leaves petiolate, ovate-oblong, somewhat 

 acuminated, entire, obtuse at the base, 5-nerved, at length gla- 

 brous above and minutely dotted ; panicle terminal : having the 

 flowers sessile, and crowded along its branchlets, and axillary. 

 Tj . S. Native of Brazil, in the province of St. Paul, in ele- 

 vated fields and woods. Melastoma detergibile, Schrank et 

 Mart. mss. Berry violaceous. Perhaps only a variety of M. 

 holosericea, but the flowers are crowded on the shorter as well 

 as on the younger branches, not regularly disposed, as in that plant. 



Cleansing Miconia. Shrub 4 to 6 feet. 



19 M. HOLOSERI'CEA (D. C. 1. c.) branches terete, and are 

 as well as the petioles, panicles, calyxes and under side of leaves, 

 as well as the upper side when young, densely clothed with soft, 

 velvety tomentum ; leaves petiolate, oval-oblong, acute, obtuse 

 and rather cordate at the base, 5-nerved, glabrous above but 

 covered with very minute white dots ; panicle terminal : having 

 the flowers sessile and disposed in a secund manner along its 

 branches. Tj . S. Native of the West Indies, Guiana, and 

 Brazil. Melastoma holosericea, Lin. spec. 560. but not of 

 Swartz. Bonpl. mel. p. 52. tt. 23, 24. Melast. albicans, 

 Swartz, fl. ind. occ. 2. p. 786. ex Smith. Flower-buds and 

 fruit globose. Petals white. Anthers oblong, having their 

 connectives thickish and biauriculate at the base. Branches 

 and leaves usually naked through the summer. Berry 3-4- 

 celled, violaceous. Seeds cuneate, 3-sided. 



Var. a, obtusiuscula (D. C. 1. c. p. 182.) leaves ovate-oblong. 





Var. /3, acumincila (D. C. 1. c.) leaves elliptic-oblong, short- 

 acuminated. 



Var. y, ollongdta (D. C. 1. c.) leaves oblong, long-acumin- 

 ated, somewhat crenulately repand. Melastoma, Schrank et 

 Mart. mss. In Brazil, in the province of Goyaz. 



}\ hule-silky Miconia. Shrub 3 to 6 feet. 



20 M. ARGE'NTEA (D. C. prod. 3. p. 182.) branches angular, 

 hoary ; leaves petiolate, ovate, short-acuminated, somewhat den- 

 ticulated, 5-nerved, quite glabrous above, but white from to- 

 mentum beneath ; panicles terminal, spreading ; flowers very 

 numerous, on short pedicels ; calyx acutely 5-toothed. I? . S. 

 Native of the West Indies, on the Mosquito shore. Melastoma 

 argentea, Swartz, fl. ind. occ. 779. but not of Desr. Sloane, 

 jam. t. 196. f. 1. ex Swartz. Flowers white, decandrous. Berry 

 subglobose. 



Silvery Miconia. Shrub 6 feet. 



21 M. SERIA'LIS (D. C. 1. c.) branches terete, and are. as well 

 as the peduncles, outside of calyxes, under side of leaves, pe- 

 tioles and nerves on the upper side clothed with soft, white, 

 velvety tomentum ; leaves approximate, on short petioles, ob- 

 long, acuminated at both ends, triple-nerved, quite glabrous, 

 and shining above ; thyrse terminal, large, with its branches 

 bifid, and bearing 1 flower in the bifurcation, the rest of the 

 flowers sessile, and disposed in 1 series along the branches. Tj . 

 S. Native of Brazil. A showy species. Lobes of calyx very 

 blunt, glabrous inside. 



.fitw-flowered Miconia. Shrub 6 to 8 feet. 



22 M. PIPERICA'RPA (D. C. 1. c.) branchlets from compressed 

 to terete, and are as well as the petioles, panicles, and under 

 side of leaves clothed with small, white, velvety, stellate down ; 

 leaves petiolate, oblong, acuminated, quite entire, triple-nerved, 

 glabrous above ; racemes simple, terminal ; bracteas setaceous, 

 under the pedicels. Tj . S. Native of Brazil, in woods. Gal- 

 lasia pipericarpa, Mart. herb. Fruit globose, hardly so large as 

 a grain of pepper, a little ribbed. Limb of calyx wanting. 

 Seeds 2-3, smooth, large, obtuse at one end and angular at the 

 other, with a black hylum. 



Pepper-fruilcd Miconia. Shrub 2 to 3 feet. 



23 M. MELLI'NA (D. C. 1. c.) branches nearly terete, and are ' 

 as well as the rachis and petioles densely clothed with rufous, 

 scaly, branched down ; leaves petiolate, oblong, acuminated, 

 attenuated at the base, 3-5-nerved, serrated on the upper part, 

 densely clothed with stellate tomentum beneath, but at length 

 glabrous above ; panicles terminal : having the flowers crowded 

 on the branches ; lobes of calyx 5, short. T? . S. Native of 

 Brazil, in the provinces of Minas Geraes and St. Paul, in humid 

 parts of woods. Melastoma mellmum, Schrank et Mart. mss. 

 Petioles 3 lines long. Leaves 3 inches long, and an inch broad. 

 Nearly allied to M. herpetica. 



Honey Miconia. Shrub 6 to 8 feet. 



24 M. BRACTEOLA'TA (D. C. I.e.) branches somewhat tetra- 

 gonal, and are, as well as the petioles, panicles, and young leaves 

 on both surfaces, but in the adult ones only on the under, clothed 

 with rufous stellate down ; leaves petiolate, oblong, acuminated, 

 quite entire, 3-nerved, glabrous on the upper surface in the 

 adult state ; thyrse spicate, crowded ; bracteas linear, much ex- 

 ceeding the flower-bud. J; . S. Native of South America, 

 between Loxa and Caxamarca. Calyx bluntly 5-toothed. Pe- 

 tals 5, white. Capsule glabrous, 3-celled. Melastoma brac- 

 teolata, Bonpl. mel. t. 62. 



Bracteolate Miconia. Shrub 4 to 6 feet. 



25 M. LEUCOCA'RPA (D. C. 1. c.) branches bluntly tetragonal, 

 and are, as well as the panicles and under side of leaves, clothed 

 with very short granular stellate down ; leaves almost sessile, 

 broadly ovate, obtuse, coriaceous, quite entire, 5-nerved, gla- 

 brous above ; panicle terminal, having the flowers sessile, and 



