84 CAMELLIA OH TEA FAMILY. 



XX. TERNSTRQEMIACKE, CAMELLIA or TEA FAMILY. 



Trees or shrubs, with, alternate, simple, feather-veined leaves, 

 and no stipules ; the flowers large and showy, mostly axillary, 

 regular, with both sepals and petals imbricated in the bud; 

 the very numerous stamens with filaments more or less united 

 at the base with each other and with the base of the corolla ; 

 ovary 5-oo-celled, with one or more seeds in each cell. Petals 

 5 or 6 or even more, commonly more or less united at their base. 



* Woody climber ; styles many ; fruit a berry. 



1. ACTINIDIA. Ovary many -celled ; the styles as many and divergent from their base. 



Seeds small. Leaves bristly hairy, thin. 



* * Erect shrubs or trees; styles 1-6 ; fruit a woody dehiscent pod. 

 +- Some of the inner stamens distinct. 



2. CAMELLIA. Style 3-5-cleft. Seeds large, usually single in each cell of the thick and 



woody pod. Leaves smooth, evergreen, serrate. 



- -- Stamens all united at the base. 



3. 8TUAKTIA. Stamens uniformly united by a short ring at the base of the filaments. 



Seeds 2 in each cell, wingless. Leaves thin and deciduous. Flowers white, 2'-4' wide. 



4. GORDONIA. Stamens in 5 clusters, on a cup on the white petals. Style columnar; 



stigma 5-rayed. Seeds several, more or less winged. Leaves coriaceous or thickish. 



1. ACTINIDIA. (Greek : a ray, from the radiate styles.) 



A. polygama, Planch. Leaves elliptic, acuminate ; flowers solitary or 

 as many as 3 together, white, fragrant, 1' wide ; berry edible. Japan. 



2. CAMELLIA. (For G. Camellus, or Kamel, a missionary to China 

 in the 17th cent.) 



* Numerous separate inner stamens within the ring formed by the united 

 bases of the outer. 



C. Japdnica, Linn. JAPAN CAMELLIA. With oval or oblong, pointed, 

 shining, sharply serrate leaves, and terminal or nearly terminal flowers, 

 simple or double, red, white, or variegated, of very many varieties. The 

 only common species ; flowers through the winter, hardy only S. 



C. Sasdnaua, Thunb. Leaves obtusely serrate, and flowers smaller. 



C. ret/culata, Lindley. Differs from the preceding in having acuminate, 

 veiny leaves, not shining, and flowers rose-red, to 9' wide. 



* * Separate inner stamens, as many as the petals (5 or 6). 



C. Thea, Link. TEA PLANT. Leaves oblong or broadly lanceolate, 

 much longer than wide ; the white flowers (!' or more broad) nodding 

 on short stalks in their axils. Includes T. VIRIDIS and T. BOHEA. 



3. STUARTIA. (Named for John Stuart, the Lord Bute at the time 

 of the American Revolution.) Ornamental shrubs. 



* Style 1 ; pod not sharply angled. 



S. Virginica, Cav. Shrub 8-12 high, with finely serrate leaves soft- 

 downy underneath, pure white petals, purple stamens ; pod globular. 

 Low country, from Va., S. 



