MYRTALES. 523 



'Species, 250, represented in the United States by a few small herbs of 

 the genera Lythrum, Cuphea, etc. 



Lawsonia inermis, a shrub of Western Asia, has long been in culti- 

 vation in Egypt and the adjacent countries. From its leaves the cos- 

 metic Henna or Kheima, so much used for coloring the hair and nails, 

 is made. 



Punica granatum, the Pomegranate of India, is a bushy tree, six to 

 nine metres high (20-30 feet), bearing deciduous leaves, and yellowish 

 fruits about the size of an apple. The pulpy interior of the latter is 

 prized for making cooling drinks ; from it a wine is also made. Pome- 

 granates have long been grown in the countries about the Mediterranean 

 Sea, and are now cultivated in the warmer parts of America. 



Lagerstr&mia regince, the Jarool or Blood wood tree of India, is highly 

 valued for its blood-red wood, which, being exceedingly durable in 

 water, is much used in shipbuilding. 



L. Indica, a common green-house shrub from India,is cultivated under 

 the name of Crape Myrtle. 



Sonneratin acida, an Indian tree, yields a most valuable fuel. 



Physocalymma floribunda, the Tulip tree of Brazil, yields a fine 

 wood much us- d for inlaying. 



Order Melastomaceae. Trees, shrubs, and a few herbs, of the 

 tropics. Species, 1800. We have in the United States but one genus, 

 Rhexia, represented by half a dozen species. A few are cultivated in 

 green-houses. 



Order Myrtaceee. The Myrtle Family. Trees and shrubs (rarely 

 Lerbs), with mostly opposite glandular-dotted leaves; stamens, many. 

 A large and very difficult order of 1800 or more species, which are dis- 

 tributed throughout the tropics and the Southern Hemisphere. 



Many of the species yield excellent fruits. 



P&idium pomiferum and P. pyriferum, of the West Indies, and P. 

 Caltleyanum, of Brazil, bear apple- or pear-shaped fruits called Guavas, 

 highly esteemed for dessert, and for preserving. All are now exten- 

 sively grown in tropical climates. 



Eugenia ma j accensis, the Malay Apple, and E. Jambos, the Rose 

 Apple, both of the East Indies, furnish important fruits to the people 

 of the far East . 



E. pimenta, a West Indian tree, is there cultivated for its berries, 

 which are gathered and dried before ripening, constituting the Pimento 

 or Allspice of commerce. 



E. aromatica, the Clove Tree of the Moluccas, now extensively cul- 

 tivated in the East and West Indies, is prized for its spicy flower-buds,, 

 which are gathered before opening and then dried, in which state they 

 are known as Cloves. 



Bertholletia excelsa, of tropical America, is a tree thirty to forty-five 

 metres high (100-150 feet), bearing woody-shelled fruits, ten to fifteen 



