XEROPHYLLUM 



XYLOPIA 



3525 



segms. scarcely equaling the stamens. Calif, to Brit. 

 Col. June, July. B.R. 1613 (erroneously as X. seti- 

 folium}. F. TRACY HuBBARD.f 



XIMENIA (named after Francis Ximenes, Spanish 

 monk, who wrote on plants of Mex. in 1615). Olacdcex. 

 Glabrous or tomentose shrubs or trees, one of which, X. 

 americana, occurs native in S. Fla. and is a tropical fr. 

 of minor importance. Branches usually thorny: Ivs. 

 alternate, entire, subcoriaceous, usually fascicled: fls. 

 whitish, arranged in short axillary cymes or rarely 

 solitary; calyx small, 4-5-toothed or -lobed, unchanged 

 in fr.; petals 4-5, valvate, narrow, bearded inside; sta- 

 mens twice the number of petals; ovary 3-celled at 

 base or higher, ovules 3: drupe ovoid or globose, flesh 

 pulpy. About 5 species, natives of the tropical regions 

 of the world. Here belongs the hog plum which grows 

 wild throughout the tropics, and in the U. S. is native 

 to Fla. south of Tampa Bay. The fr. is about an inch 

 long, shaped like a plum, and the pulp is sweet and 

 aromatic. The "stone" which incloses the seed is 

 proportionately very large. The fr. is borne on a small 

 tree, each branch of which ends in a thorn about Hin. 

 long. The frs. are generally eaten, but although it is 

 fairly common in Fla. it is not cult. The species has 

 been suggested by the American Pomological Society as 

 worthy of cult, with a view to improvement. 



americana, Linn. HOG PLUM. Also called "moun- 

 tain" or "seaside plum" and "false sandalwood;" 

 "wild olive" in Jamaica. Tropical fruit-bearing tree: 

 Ivs. 2-3 together, oblong, obtuse, short-petioled: 

 peduncles 2-4-fld., shorter than the Ivs.: fls. small, yel- 

 low; petals thick, lanceolate, rusty-hairy within: fr. 

 yellow; nut white, globose. Tropics. The "hog plum" 

 of Jamaica is Spondias littea. F. TRACY HuBBARD.f 



XYLOBIUM (Greek, wood and life, in allusion to the 

 substance on which the plants grow). Orchiddcese. 

 Epiphytic herbs, grown in the warmhouse. 



Stems short, with many sheaths, soon thickened into 

 fleshy pseudobulbs, which are 1-2-lvd.: Ivs. large or 

 elongated, plicate- veined, contracted to the petiole: 

 scapes erect, simple, arising from the base of the 

 pseudobulb: fls. racemose, medium-sized or rather large, 

 very shortly pedicelled; bracts linear, usually rather 

 long; sepals subequal, erect, finally spreading, lateral 

 broader than the dorsal, forming a chin; petals similar 

 to the dorsal sepal if not smaller; labellum some- 

 what articulate with the foot of the column, lateral 

 lobes erect, surrounding the column, midlobe short, 

 broad, surface smooth, lamellate or callous at the base; 

 pollinia 4, ovoid: caps, oblong, erect. About 30 species, 

 natives of Trop. Amer. 



bractescens, Kranzl. (Maxittdria bractescens, Lindl.). 

 Pseudobulbs conical, elongated, sulcate: Ivs. broad, 

 folded: scape 3-sheathed; raceme elongated, few-fld. : 

 sepals oblong-lanceolate, they and the similar but 

 smaller petals dull yellow; lip reddish brown, 3- 

 lobed. Peru. 



brachystachyum, Kranzl. Pseudobulbs almost glo- 

 bose, slightly narrowed above, 1-lvd. : If. oblong, acute, 

 3-nerved, thick, shining, petiole sulcate, blade 10 by 

 about 4 in.: raceme very short, few-fld.: dorsal sepal 

 broad ovate-oblong; lateral ones much larger, outside 

 dull purple; petals oblique at base, oblong above, dull 

 purple outside, yellow spotted purple inside; lip simple, 

 obovate-oblong, rather acute, slightly fiddle-shaped. 

 Brazil. G.C. III. 40:302 (desc.). 



decolor, Nichols. (MaxUldria decolor, Lindl.). Pseu- 

 dobulbs clustered, oblong, compressed, 1-2 in. long, 

 bearing a single If.: If. 12-15 in. long, oblong-lanceo- 

 late, plicate and acuminate at both ends: scapes erect, 

 many-fld.: sepals and petals sulfur-colored or shaded 

 with white; lip whitish, obsoletely 3-lobed, obtuse. W. 

 Indies. B.M. 3981. B.R. 1549. 



elongatum, Hemsl. (MaxUldria elongdta, Lindl.) 

 Pseudobulbs cylindrical, elongated, about 6 in. long, 

 2-lvd.: Ivs. lanceolate, 3-ribbed: scape erect, 2-sheathed, 

 many-fld., infl. a dense oblong raceme: sepals and 

 petals pale yellowish white, linear, acuminate; h'p ovate- 

 oblong, very fleshy, purplish brown. W. Indies. 



leontoglossum, Benth. (MaxUldria leontogldssa, 

 Reichb. f.). Pseudobulbs fusiform, congregated, 1-lvd.: 

 If. petioled, elliptic-lanceolate, acute, plicate: scape 



4017. Xerophyllum aspbodeloides growing near the 



margin of a pond. 



stout, bearing an oblong or cylindrical, dense and nod- 

 ding raceme: fls. yellow, spotted with maroon; dorsal 

 sepal oblong, lateral sepals oblong-lanceolate; petals 

 similar to lateral sepals; lip oblong, lateral lobes nar- 

 row, midlobe rotundate fleshy and marked with pur- 

 ple-brown. Colombia. B.M. 7085. 



squalens, Lindl. (MaxUldria squdlens, Hook.). Pseu- 

 dobulbs stout, 2-3 in. long: Ivs. 9-12 in. long: scapes 

 densely fld. : sepals and petals yellowish white, petals 

 and midlobe of lip streaked with purple, lateral lobes of 

 lip deep purple. Venezuela. B.M. 2955. 



X. aetiwm, Hort., is offered in the trade. X. perundnum, Hort., 



F. TRACY HUBBARD. 

 XYLOPHYLLA AKBflSCULA, Swartz: Phyttanthus speciosus. 



XYLOPIA (from the Greek Xylopikron, bitter wood). 

 Annonacese. Shrubs and trees grown mostly for their 

 fruits, and also for spices and other products. 



The genus resembles other Annonacese in having 

 alternate distichous entire Ivs., and fls. with 6 petals 

 in 2 series, but distinguished by the form of the torus, 

 or receptacle, which has a concavity in the middle 

 including the carpels, surrounded by a ring of stamens 

 borne on the convex portion of the receptacle: infl. 

 instead of being extra-axillary or If.-opposed, as in 

 many other genera of the family, consists of short- 

 stemmed or sessile fls. growing from the axils of the 

 Ivs., either solitary or in clusters of 2 to several: calyx 



