The Torchwoods 



575 



buds are small, and white hairy. 

 The leaflets are sessile, elliptic 

 to obovate, 2.5 to 7.5 cm. long, 

 usually blunt, sometimes sharp- 

 pointed, rounded or broadly 

 wedge-shaped at the base and 

 margined with small round teeth, 

 bright green and smooth above, 

 paler and somewhat hairy be- 

 neath; the slender leaf-stalk is 

 from 2 to 4 cm. long. The 

 flowers which appear from 

 April to June, are small, green- 

 ish, the petals 2 or 3 times as 

 long as the calyx, about 6 mm. 

 long, the filaments hairy at the 

 base. The fruit is about 18 mm. 



Fig. 530. California Hop Tree. 



in diameter, almost circular; the wing rounded or notched, rarely somewhat heart- 

 shaped at the base. 



IV. THE TORCHWOODS 



GENUS AMYRIS LINN.EUS 



]MYRIS comprises about 15 species of unarmed trees or shrubs of tropi- 

 cal America. They abound in fragrant resinous substances, and 

 have been used as aromatics and stimulants. 



They have either alternate or opposite, usually compound leaves 

 which are conspicuously glandular-punctate. The flowers are perfect or polyga- 

 mous, white, and borne in terminal or axillary panicles. The calyx is umshaped 

 and 4-lobed ; the 4 petals are imbricated ; stamens 8,. inserted on the disk, their 

 filaments exserted; anthers ovate, introrse and opening lengthwise; ovary i-celled, 

 rudimentary or sterile in the staminate flowers; style terminal, short arnone; stigma 

 capitate; ovules 2, suspended from the top of the cavity. The fruit is an aro- 

 matic, ovoid or obovoid drupe with a papery stone which is one-seeded; seed pen- 

 dulous, without endosperm; the embryo is small. 



The name is Greek in allusion to their aromatic or balsamic properties; the 

 type species is A. elemijera. In addition to the arborescent species a shrub, Amyris 

 parvijolia A. Gray, occurs on our Mexican border. 



Leaflets shining beneath; ovarj' smooth; fruit globose. 



Leaflets dull beneath; ovary hairy; fruit obovoid to oval-elliptic. 



1. A. ekmijcra. 



2. A. balsamijcra. 



