THALAMIFLORjF. 199 



gency, which renders some of them valuable in Brazil. Some of the 

 DiUenia are valued in India for their acid juices. 



Most of the species of Dilknia are very handsome, both as to foliage 

 and blossom ; and some of the larger kinds yield hard, durable timber ; 

 several species are cultivated in large collections of stove or greenhouse 

 plants in this country, where they are evergreen shrubs ; Delima and 

 Tetracera are stove climbers. 



MAGNOLIACE/E are trees or shrubs, often aromatic, with the leaf- 

 buds mostly sheathed by membranous stipules ; leaves alternate, simple ; 

 flowers regular, polyandrous, polygynous; thalamus convex, often elon- 

 gated ; calyx and corolla usually coloured alike, in three or more 3-merous 

 circles, imbricated; fruit of numerous dry or succulent, dehiscent or in- 

 dehiscent carpels ; seeds often with a fleshy testa like an aril, and sus- 

 pended by a long funiculus ; perisperm fleshy, homogeneous. Illustrative 

 Genera : Tribe 1. MAGNOLIE^: : carpels on a lengthened thalamus, leaves 

 scarcely dotted : Magnolia, L. Tribe 2. WINTERED : carpels in a circle ; 

 leaves with transparent dots ; stipules often wanting : Drimys, K. Br. 



Affinities, &c. Closely related to Dilleniaceee, this Order is distinguished 

 by the 3-merous flowers, and in many cases by its stipules; from the 

 Anonaceee it is separated by its imbricated corolla and its homogeneous 

 perisperm. The convolute stipules enclosing the leaf-buds of Magnolia 

 remind us of the stipules of Ficus and other Urticacese. In Magnolia the 

 course of development shows that the stipules arise from the edges of the 

 leaf-stalk, and that their originally free edges become combined to form 

 a sheath over the bud. The character of the flowers indicates a relation- 

 ship with Schizandracese. 



Number and Distribution. A small group of 8 or 9 genera, and 70-80 

 species, the greater number of which belong to the Southern States of 

 North America; some occur also in the West-India Islands, in Japan, 

 China, and India. Drimys and Tasmannia belong to the extreme south of 

 South America, to Australia, and New Zealand. 



Qualities and Uses. Bitter tonic properties in the bark and exces- 

 sively fragrant blossoms are the most striking qualities of the plants of 

 this Order, which are chiefly handsome trees or shrubs, with broad 

 shining foliage and often very large flowers. The barks of Magnolia 

 glauca, grandijlora, Frazeri, &c. are used in the United States as aromatic 

 tonics ; Michelia montana, Aromodendron elegans, and Liriodendron tuli- 

 pifera have similar properties. The odour of Magnolia grandiflora, and of 

 M. glauca and M. tripetala, is so powerful as to become very oppressive 

 in close places ; the last two often induce headache. The species of 

 Illicium are aromatic : Illicium anisatum, Star-Anise, is so called from 

 the flavour of aniseed in the whole plant, especially the fruit, which yields 

 an aromatic oil. /. floridanum has similar properties ; and the seeds of 

 /. religiosum are burnt by the Chinese for incense. The bark called 

 Winter's bark is that of "Drimys Winteri ; and other species of Drimys 

 and Tasmannia have similar aromatic and tonic properties. Some of the 

 larger species of Magnolia, Michelia, and other genera are valued as timber 

 trees in India. Many plants of this Order are cultivated in this country 



