THE JUNCO FAMILY 



KCEBERLINIACE^ Engler 



HIS family consists of a single genus, with but one known species, 

 a tree or shrub occurring in northern Mexico and adjacent Texas; 

 it is a nearly leafless, spiny branched plant, without economic interest. 

 This curious plant has alternate, scale-like leaves, which are broad- 

 est near the apex and very soon deciduous. The very small flowers are perfect, 

 in short racemes near the ends of the branchlets, opening from March to June. 

 Their calyx consists of 4, rarely only 3, distinctly imbricated, deciduous sepals 

 ovate, blunt i mm. long; the corolla of an equal number of white obovate con- 

 volute petals 2.5 mm. long, which are somewhat clawed; stamens 8, shorter than 

 the petals, their filaments distinct, and thickened at the middle; the anthers are 

 oval, attached on the back, 2-celled, opening lengthwise; the ovar)-, of 2 united 

 carpels, is ovoid, 2-celled, and stalked, the style simple, awl-shaped; stigma termi- 

 nal and blunt ; ovules numerous, attached to the placenta in several rows. Fruit a 

 2-celled globose black berry, tipped with the persistent style; flesh thin; seeds i 

 to several in each cell, spirally twisted and wrinkled; endosperm thin. 



JUNCO 



GENUS KCEBERLINIA ZUCCARINI 

 Species Koeberlinia spinosa Zuccarini 



UNCO inhabits dr)% gravelly 

 regions bordering the Rio 

 Grande River and some of its 

 tributaries in Texas and adja- 

 cent Mexico, where it forms immense and 

 formidable thickets and attains a maxi- 

 mum height of 8 meters, with a trunk di- 

 ameter of 3 dm. The trunk is very short, 

 scarcely 2.5 meters tall before it begins to 

 branch into a dense head. The branches 

 are all terminated by firm, often curved 

 thorns, and covered with a fight green bark. 

 The bark of the trunk is thin, scaly and 

 red-brown. The twigs are short, alternate 

 and smooth. 



706 



Fig. 651. Junco. 



