834 



MYRTACE^E. XXVI. JOSSINIA. XXVII. MYRTUS. 



Eugenia tinifolia, Lam. diet. 3. p. 204. Perhaps sufficiently 

 distinct from J. buxifolia. Pedicels 3-4 lines long. 



Tinus-leavcd Jossinia. Tree or shrub. 



C J. BUXIFOLIA (D. C. 1. c.) leaves ovate-oblong, bluntish, 

 coriaceous, glabrous, on very short petioles, with reflexed mar- 

 gins, pale beneath ; pedicels solitary, slender, shorter than the 

 leaves, exactly axillary ; calyxes clothed with silky velvety 

 down. \i . S. Native of the Island of Bourbon, on the moun- 

 tains, where it is called Bois de neflecommun. Eugenia buxifolia, 

 Lam. diet. 3. p. 204. Myrtus Borbonica, Spreng. syst. 2. p. 481. 

 Pedicels 7-8 lines long. Flowers small. Fruit unknown. 



Box-leaved Jossinia. Shrub. 



7 J. COTINIFOLIA (D. C. 1. c.) leaves ovate or roundish, obtuse, 

 rather coriaceous, with somewhat revolute margins, on very short 

 petioles, full of pellucid dots, glabrous on both surfaces, pale 

 beneath; pedicels 1-3 together, axillary, or supra-axillary, very 

 slender, a little shorter than the leaves. Jj . S. Native of the 

 Island of Bourbon, on the mountains. Eugenia cotinifolia, 

 Jacq. obs. 3. p. 3. t. 53. Myrtus cotinifolia, Spreng. syst. 2. 

 p. 481. exclusive of the country. Leaves an inch long. Pedi- 

 cels 8-10 lines long ; in some specimens always solitary. 



Cotinus-leaved Jossinia. Shrub. 



8 J. CASSINOIDES (D. C. 1. c.) leaves ovate, acutish at both 

 ends, coriaceous, glabrous, full of pellucid dots ; pedicels 2-3- 

 together, filiform, shorter than the leaves; lobes of calyx 

 roundish. Tj . S. Native of Madagascar. Eugenia cassi- 

 noides, Lam. diet. 3. p. 205. Myrtus cassinoides, Spreng. syst. 

 2. p. 481. 



Cassine-liJce Jossinia. Tree. 



Cult. All the species of Jossinia are worth cultivating, for 

 the sake of their beautiful foliage, as well as for their flowers, 

 which are rather large and white. Their culture and propaga- 

 tion are the same as that recommended for I'sidium, p. 833. 



XXVII. MY'RTUS (from /uupov, myron, perfume ; /uuproj of 

 the Greeks ; Myrtus of the Dutch ; and almost the same in every 

 European language). Lin. gen. 617. Gsertn. fruct. 1. p. 184. 

 t. 38. D. C. prod. 3. p. 138. Myrtus species of Kunth. 

 Myrtus, Tourn. inst. t. 409. 



LIN. SYST. Icosandria, Monogynia. Tube of calyx sub- 

 globose ; limb 5-parted, rarely 4-parted. Petals 5, rarely 4. 

 Stamens free. Berry 2-3-celled, nearly globose, crowned by the 

 limb of the calyx. Seeds numerous in each cell even when ma- 

 ture, rarely solitary, bony, reniformly incurved. Embryo curved, 

 with very short semicylindrical cotyledons, which are much 

 shorter than the radicle. Shrubs. Leaves opposite, full of pel- 

 lucid dots. Pedicels axillary, 1-flowered. In the most part of 

 the species the flowers and seeds are unknown, it is therefore 

 doubtful whether many of them belong to the genus. A great 

 many of them probably belong to the genus Myrcia. 



SECT. I. LEUCOMY'RTUS (\EUKOC, white, and /uuproc, myrlos, 

 a myrtle ; in reference to the white flowers of the species). 

 D. C. prod. 3. p. 238. Flowers white. Seeds curved in the 

 manner of a horse-shoe ; when mature disposed irregularly in 

 the cells. 



* Flowers 4-clefl, with few stamens. 



1 M. NUMMULA'RIA (Poir. diet. 4. p. 407. exclusive of the 

 country) pedicels axillary, solitary, 1-flowered, shorter than the 

 leaves, bibracteolate under the flowers ; leaves roundish, shin- 

 ing, small, glabrous; stem creeping; calyx 4-cleft. fj . G. 

 Native of the Maclove or Falkland Islands, and at the Straits 

 of Magellan 1 . Gaud. ann. sc. nat. 5. t. 2. f. 5. Lucet-musque, 

 Pernet. voy. 2. p. 58. 



Money-rvort-\\ke Myrtle. Sh. creeping. 



2 M. VACCINOIDES (H. B. et Kunth. nov. gen. amer. 6. p. 



130.) pedicels axillary, solitary, 1-flowered, shorter than the 

 leaves, bibracteolate at the apex ; leaves small, elliptic-ovate, 

 acute, coriaceous, veinless, glabrous ; branchlets hairy ; calyx 

 4-lobed ; stamens 8. T? . S. Native of Peru. Leaves 3-4 

 lines long. Petals ciliated. Berry subglobose, 2-3-celled. 

 Seeds few, rather reniform. Embryo of M. communis. Allied 

 to J\I. nummularia. 



Wlnrtle-berry-like Myrtle. Sh. 1 ft. 



3 M. MYRSINOIDES (H. B. et Kunth, nov. gen. amer. 6. p. 

 132.) pedicels axillary, solitary, 1-flowered, bibracteolate at the 

 apex ; leaves small, obovate, somewhat emarginate, rather co- 

 riaceous, reticulated, shining, and are as well as the branches 

 glabrous; flowers 4-cleft, octandrous. Jj . G. Native of Peru, 

 in cold parts between Ayavaca and Guancabamba. A much- 

 branched shrub. Leaves 4-5 lines long. Fruit unknown. 

 Nearly allied to M. vaccinoides. 



Myrsinc-like Myrtle. Sh. G ft. 



4 M. MICROPHY'LLA (Humb. et Bonpl. pi. equin. 1. p. 19. 

 t. 4.) pedicels axillary, 1-flowered, shorter than the leaves, 

 bearing 2 bracteoles under the flowers ; leaves oval, acute, 

 coriaceous, glabrous above, and clothed with adpressed silky 

 down beneath ; calyx 4-cleft, hairy. fj . S. Native of the 

 cold mountains of Saragura, near Loxa. Habit of Phylica or 

 Erica. Petals white, ciliated. Margins of leaves revolute, 4 

 lines long. Berry red, globose, 2-3-celled. Ovula 2-4 in each 

 cell. Embryo like that of E. communis, according to Kunth. 



Small-leaved Myrtle. Sh. 3 ft. 



* Flowers 5-cleft, polyandrous. 



5 M. COMMU V NIS (Lin. spec. p. 673.) pedicels solitary, 1- 

 flowered, about the length of the leaves, bearing 2 linear brac- 

 teoles under the flowers ; calyx 5-cleft ; leaves ovate or lanceo- 

 late, acute. Tj . F. Native of the south of Europe, on ex- 

 posed rocks. Berry roundish, 2-3-celled. Seeds reniform. 

 Embryo arched, with a long radicle, and small, equal cotyledons. 

 Gsertn. fruct. 1. p. 184, t. 38. Lam. ill. t. 410. Duham. ed. 

 nov. 1. p. 43. Corolla white. The common myrtle is well 

 known as an elegant evergreen sweet-scented shrub, but unfor- 

 tunately just too tender to abide our winters in the open air, 

 without some protection. It was a great favourite among the 

 ancients, and was sacred to Venus. Myrtle wreaths adorned 

 the brows of bloodless victors, and were the symbol of autho- 

 rity for magistrates at Athens. Both branches and berries were 

 put into wine, and the latter were used in the cookery of the 

 ancients. The myrtle was also one of their medicinal plants. 

 All parts of it are astringent, but it is discarded from modern 

 practice. 



A. melanocarpa (D. C. prod. 3. p. 239.) fruit blackish. This 

 variety of myrtle is frequent in the south of Europe, and in 

 gardens, where there are varieties of it with double flowers anil 

 variegated leaves. 



J'ar. a, Romana (Mill. fig. t. 184. f. 1.) leaves ovate; pedi- 

 cels longer. The common broad-leaved or Roman myrtle. It 

 is sometimes called flowering myrtle, because it flowers more 

 freely in England than any other variety. 



Var. ft, Tarenlina (Mill, diet.) leaves ovate ; berries rounder. 

 The box-leaved myrtle. Flowers small, and open late in the 

 autumn. Leaves small. 



Var. y, Itdlica (Mill, diet.) leaves ovate-lanceolate, acute; 

 branches more erect. The Italian or upright myrtle. 



Var. I, Bce'tica (Mill, diet.) leaves lanceolate, acuminated. 

 The orange-leaved myrtle. Blackw. t. 114. 



Var. t, Lvsitanica (Lin. spec.) leaves lanceolate-ovate, acute. 

 M. acuta, Mill, diet. Clus. hist. 1. p. 66. f. 1. The Portugal 

 myrtle. The nutmeg myrtle appears to be only a variety of this. 



Var. ft, Bvlgica (Mill, diet.) leaves lanceolate, acuminated. 

 1 



