EUPHORBIACE^E 651 



yellow-green, hirsute on the outer surface, T V long, and divided nearly to the base into 

 5 ovate acute boat-shaped lobes deciduous from the fruit; stamens about 8, inserted on 

 the borders of the slightly lobed pulvinate concave disk; filaments unequal in length, rather 

 longer than the calyx-lobes and a little longer than the broad-ovoid emarginate pilose 

 extrorse anthers, with broad ovate acute connectives; ovary sessile, hirsute, 1-celled, 

 crowned with a broad sessile slightly stalked oblique pulvinate stigma, wanting in the 

 staminate flower. Fruit ripening in the autumn, deciduous at maturity from its stout 

 erect stalk much enlarged at apex and \' long, ovoid, 1' long, ivory-white, with thick dry 



Fig. 590 



mealy flesh closely investing the light brown stone narrowed at base into a long point, 

 with bony walls f ' thick and penetrated longitudinally by large fibro- vascular bundle-chan- 

 nels; seed oblong, rounded at the ends, nearly \' long, covered with a thin membranaceous 

 light brown coat marked by conspicuous veins radiating from the small hilum. 



A tree, occasionally 30-40 high, with a trunk sometimes a foot in diameter, stout 

 usually erect branches forming an oblong round-topped head, and stout branchlets light 

 green tinged with red and covered with pale scattered caducous hairs when they first ap- 

 pear, becoming ashy gray and roughened by numerous elevated circular pale lenticels and 

 later by the large prominent orbicular leaf-scars displaying the ends of 3 conspicuous fibro- 

 vascular bundles. Winter-buds minute, obtuse, partly immersed hi the bark and coated 

 with brown resin. Bark of the trunk about \' thick, smooth, milky white and often marked 

 by large irregular gray or pale brown patches. Wood heavy, hard, not strong, brittle, 

 close-grained, and brown streaked with bright yellow, with thick yellow-brown sap- 

 wood. 



Distribution. Florida, Flamingo near Cape Sable (C. T. Simpson), Cocoanut Grove 

 (Miss 0. Rodham), Dade County, on Key West, Key Largo, Elliotts, Lower Metacombe 

 and Umbrella Keys. One of the rarest of the tropical trees of Florida; on the Bahamas. 



2. Drypetes lateriflora Urb. Guiana Plum. 



Leaves appearing in Florida in early spring and falling during their second year, oblong, 

 acute or acuminate at apex, gradually narrowed at base, and entire, when they unfold thin 

 and covered with scattered pale hairs, and at maturity subcoriaceous, dark green and lus- 

 trous, 3'-4' long and \'-\\' wide, with a conspicuous light-colored midrib, rounded above, 

 and pale obscure primary veins arcuate and united near the slightly thickened revolute 

 margins and connected by slender reticulate veinlets; petioles slender, grooved, |' in length. 

 Flowers on pedicels shorter than the petioles, opening late in the autumn or in early 

 winter on branches one or two years old, in the axils of leaves or from leafless nodes, in 



