884 USEFUL PLANTS OK (U'AM. 



HciTalcnr iiiciscil. ul'lcii irregular in sliapt'; llowefK small, in iianiciid lunlu'ls; pedicfls 

 jointed close under the (lowers; ])anie]os 7.5 to 15 cm.; Itraets minute, deciduous; 

 styles 2 liarcly .".), persistent on the lateially ((Hiipressed fruit, re(nive(l. 



Widely spread in India, the .Malay .\rchi)iela<ro, and the islands of tlie racilic. 

 C'uilivated ill \ illa.ires and planted n(>ar houses. In Java it is used in the plai'e of 

 celery and parsley an<l as I'ood. The mot has an agreeable and strongly aromatic 

 smell, tastes like j)arsley, and is used as a diuretie. In Fiji the l)ark is scraped off 

 and is used medicinally by the natives." 

 Ivi:i'i:kicn(i:s: 



Xotliojxnid.i- Jniliciisinii ( L. ) Mi(|. Fl. iml. I'.at. 1 ' : 7(i5. 1855. 



Panax /rut irosinii L. Sp. IM. ed. 2. 2: \r-,\:\. 17(53. 



Nupe (Guam). 



.\ climbing plant, not identified, the stems of which are used for lashing together 

 tlu- framework of houses and sheds. When recpiired for use they are rendered 

 flexible l)y heating. After the lashing is wrapped they contract and ])ecome rigid ami 

 hard, so that they can not l)e unbent but must be cut if it is desired to remove them. 

 They are durable if kept dry. Another ])lant with a more slender stem, used in the 

 same way, is called "fianiti." 

 Nutgrass. See Cypcrux rohuidns. 



Nyctaginaceae. ForR-o'ci.ocK family. 



This family is represented in Guam by MlrahiHx jahijia ami Boerhaavia (lijf'um. 



Nypa fruticans. Nipa palm. 



Family riioeiiicaceae. 



Local na.mes. — Nipa ((uiam, I'hilippines); Parran (Ponape); Ballang (Sulu 

 Archipelago). 



An interesting, stemless, unarmed palm with pinnate leaves often growing to a 

 length of 20 feet. Flowers nioniecions, axillary, inclosed in a spathe; fruit a one- 

 seeded drupe growing in clusters as large as a man's head. 



This plant was introduced into (iuam from the Philippines for the sake of its 

 leaves, which make excellent thatch. It has established itself at the mouth of nearly 

 every stream in the island where the water becomes brackish, its graceful giant 

 leaves rising from the water's edge forming a striking feature of the landscape. The 

 ]ilant is of interest to the geologist from the fact that fossil nuts of an allied species 

 are found in England in the tertiary formations at the mouth of the Thames, where 

 they once floated about and embedded themselves in the mud as they now do in 

 Guam and the Philipj^ines. 



For thatching, the leaflets are stripped from the rachis and formed into a thick 

 fringe (tagon) on a reed. After having been thoroughly dried the thatch is secured 

 to the framework of the roof by lashings of pandanus leaves split up the middle and 

 deprived of their stiff keel. Two men work at a time on each reed, beginning at the 

 eaves and working toward the ridge, which is covered with a sort of braided matting 

 secured in place by pins passing under the ridge-pole and projecting on each side. 

 The nipa is far superior to and more durable than cocoanut thatch, and is used for 

 the better houses of the islanil. 



IVeparations are made for thatching very much as for a corn-husking with 

 us. The housewife begins saving up dulces and other good things months before- 

 hand. The nipa leaves are collected, made into fringe, and allowed to dry. 

 Pandanus leaves are collected and cured and stripped of their spiny-keeled 

 midrib. When all is ready relatives and neighbors are invited to assist, a pig 

 or a l)ullock is killed, and the work goes on amid feasting, tuba drinking, and 



'-Seemann, Flora Vitiensis, p. 115, 1865-1873. 



