CUCURBITACE^E. XI. ELATERIUM. XII. MOMORDICA. 



35 



seeds winged? flat, tridentate at tlie base, ex Kunth. O- F. 

 Native of South America, in the hot regions of the province of 

 Caraccas, on the shore of Lake Tacarigna, in Laguna de Valencia ; 

 and in the Island of Cura, at the height of 690 feet. Lam. ill. 

 t. 743. Jacq. amer. 241. t. 154. icon. pict. p. 118. t. 232. Co- 

 rolla yellow. Fruit size of an olive. 



Carthagenian Squirting Cucumber. Fl. June, July. Clt. 1823. 

 PI. cl. 



3 E. TAMNOIDES (Willd. enum. p. 950.) leaves cordate, acu- 

 minated, remotely serrated, smoothibh above, and hairy beneath ; 

 flowers yellowish ; female flowers having the tube 'of the calyx 

 campanulate above the ovarium ; petals 4-7, ovate ; style very 

 short ; stigma large, flat ; fruit 2-valved, few-seeded ; seeds un- 

 known. 0. F. Native of Mexico. E. hastatum, Brouss. but 

 not of H. B. et Kunth. 



Tamus-like Squirting Cucumber. Fl. June, July. Clt. 1 820. 

 PL tr. 



4 E. HASTA'TUM (H. B. et Kunth, nov. gen. amer. 2. p. 120.) 

 leaves cordately sinuated, triangularly hastate, acuminated, den- 

 ticulated, rather scabrous above, and glabrous beneath ; tendrils 

 simple or bifid ; male flowers racemose, pedicellate, minute ; 

 fruit oblong, reniform, muricated, 2-valved, size of an olive ; 

 seeds 6, roundish, compressed, tridentate at the base. Q. F. 

 Native of Mexico, on the declivities of the burning Mount 

 Jorullo, and the temperate regions near Patzcuara, at the height 

 of 1620 or 3390 feet. Habit of Melolhria pendula, according 

 to Kunth. 



Hastate-leaved Squirting Cucumber. PI. tr. 



5 E. QUADRIFIDUM (D. C. prod. 3. p. 310.) stem, peduncles, 

 petioles, and tendrils downy ; leaves cordate, orbicular, 7-angled ; 

 tendrils bifid, pilose ; male flowers umbellate ; calyx long, 

 tubular, articulated towards the base, and dilated at the apex, 

 with the limb hardly evident ; petals 4, linear-lanceolate, acute ; 

 female flowers hardly pedunculate, like the male ones ; style fili- 

 form, crowned by an ovate stigma; fruit very pilose. O- F. 

 Native of Mexico. Moc. et Sesse, fl. mex. icon. ined. Flowers 

 white. 



Quadrtfid Squirting Cucumber. PI. tr. 



6 E. BRACHYSTA'CHYUM (D. C. prod. 3. p. 310.) leaves 3- 

 lobed, quite entire, ciliated : middle lobe oblong, acuminated ; 

 flowers cream-coloured ; male ones in spikes ; tube of calyx 

 campanulate at the apex ; female flowers with a very gibbous 

 hispid calyx, and a short neck, which is campanulate at the 

 apex; capsule oblique, incurved, echinated with 8-10 long soft 

 prickles, 2-3-valved, larger than those of the other species. 

 O- F. Native of Mexico. 



Short-spiked Squirting Cucumber. PI. tr. 



7 E. TORQUA'TUM (D. C. prod. 3. p. 310.) leaves somewhat 

 peltately cordate, 5-lobed, denticulated ; terminal lobe the 

 longest, and acuminated ; tendrils trifid; flowers greenish-white ; 

 males ones in racemes : female ones solitary, echinated at the 

 base, with the neck long and bell-shaped at the apex ; petals 

 oblong, bluntish ; capsule oblong, 2-valved, acuminated, echi- 

 nated, with soft prickles. . F. Native of Mexico. Fl. mex. 

 icon. ined. 



Collared Squirting Cucumber. PI. tr. 



8 E. TRIFOLIA'TUM (Spreng. syst. 3. p. 47.) leaves ternate, cut. 

 O- F. Native of Virginia. 



Trifoliate-leaved Squirting Cucumber. PI. tr. 

 Cult. Sow the seeds in a hot-bed in spring, and put the 

 plants out as directed for Gourds, p. 42. 



XII. MOMO'RDICA (from mordeo, to bite ; the seeds have 

 the appearance of being bitten). Lin. gen. no. 1477. Juss. 

 gen. 395. Gaertn. fr. 2. p. 48. t. 88. f. 4. D. C. prod. 3. p. 31 1. 

 Elaterium and Sicyos species of authors. Amordica, Neck. 



elem. bot. no. 392. Poppj?a, Neck. 1. c. no. 391 Ecbalium, 



Rich. 



LIN. SYST. Monofcia, Polyadelphia. Flowers monoecious, 

 white or yellow, on filiform unibracteate peduncles, perhaps 

 always. Male flowers with a 5-cleft calyx, and a very short 

 tube. Corolla 5-parted. Stamens in 3 bundles ; anthers con- 

 nate. Female flowers with 3 sterile filaments, or probably 5, 

 joined in 3 bundles, a trifid style, and a 3-celled ovarium. Fruit 

 usually muricated, (perhaps always) opening elastically at matu- 

 rity, and expelling the seeds. Seeds compressed, reticulated, 

 perhaps always. 



1 M. BALSA'MEA (Lin. spec. 1453.) leaves palmately 5-lobed, 

 toothed, glabrous, shining ; fruit roundish-ovate, attenuated at 

 both ends, angular, tuberculated, orange-coloured, splitting ir- 

 regularly and laterally ; bractea cordate, toothed, in the middle 

 of the peduncle ; aril red. Q. F. Native of the East Indies. 

 Lam. ill. t. 794. f. 1. Charantia, Lob. pempt. t. 670. Ludvo. 

 ect. t. 127 Blackw. herb. 6. t. 539. a. b. Flowers yellow. This 

 plant is famous in Syria for curing wounds. They cut open the 

 unripe fruit, and infuse it in sweet oil, and expose it to the sun for 

 some days until the oil becomes red. It is applied to a fresh 

 wound on cotton. The Syrians esteem this next to balsam of 

 Mecca. The plant is also used to form arbours or bowers. 



Balsam Apple. Fl. June, July. Clt. 1568. PL cl. 



2 M. MURICA'TA (Willd. spec. .4. p. 602.) leaves somewhat 

 palmately 7-lobed, cordate at the base ; lobes remotely toothed, 

 acuminated ; tendrils almost simple ; fruit ovate, acuminated, 

 muricated ; bractea cordate, quite entire. . F. Native of the 

 East Indies. Pavel, Rheed. mal. 8. t. 10. 



Muricated Momordica. Fl. June, July. Clt. 1817. Pl.tr. 



3 M. CHARA'NTIA (Lin. spec. 1438.) leaves somewhat pal- 

 mately 7-lobed, dentate, rather hairy ; tendrils downy ; fruit ob- 

 long, acuminated, angular, tuberculated, copper-coloured or red ; 

 pulp yellow and soft ; bractea cordate, quite entire, below the 

 middle of the pedicel ; seeds oblong, tuberculated (ex Rumph) ; 

 arillus of a reddish blood-colour. O- F. Native of the East 

 Indies. Sims, bot. mag. t. 2455. Rheed. mal. 8. p. 17. t. 9. 

 Papareh of the Hindoos. Corolla yellow. Seeds wrinkled 

 very irregularly, yellow bay-coloured, and irregularly tubercled 

 towards the margin. Allied to the preceding species, but very 

 distinct. 



Var. /3, abbreviate (Ser. in D. C. prod. 3. p. 311.) fruit 

 shorter than that of the species, very ventricose, beset with 

 acute tubercles. M. Zeylanica, Mill. diet. 3. ex Lam. diet. 4; 

 p. 239. 



Charantia or Hairy Momordica. FL June, July. Clt. 1710. 

 PL cl. 



4 M. ROXBURGHIA'NA ; downy ; leaves cordate, palmately 

 7-9-lobed, and lobately toothed ; tendrils simple ; peduncles 1- 

 flowered, solitary, bearing a bractea under each flower ; fruit 

 long, muricated. Q. H. Native of the East Indies, in Patna. 

 M. charantia/3 of authors. M.muricata, Roxb. but not of Willd. 



Roxburgh's Momordica. PL tr. 



5 M. SENEGALE'NSIS (Lam. diet. 4. p. 239.) leaves deeply 

 palmate, somewhat serrated, pale and villous beneath ; fruit 

 ovate, mucronate, tubercular, orange-coloured or red. (). F. 

 Native of Senegal. 



Senegal Momordica. Fl. July, Aug. Clt. 1822. PL cl. 



6 M. CILI'NDRICA (Lin. spec. 1433.) stem 5-angled ; leaves 

 cordate, somewhat lobate, angular, toothed ; flowers yellow ; 

 fruit cylindrical, very long, rather villous, reticulated ; bractea 

 quite entire at the base of the pedicel ; seeds black. O. F. 

 Native of Ceylon and China. Willd. spec. 4. p. 605. The fruit 

 of the species, according to Rumphius, does not open elastically, 

 being composed of so many reticulated tough fibres. 



Cylindrical-fruited Momordica. PL tr. 

 F 2 



