SANTALACEAE:. 



The family Santalaceae, which consists of 26 genera and about 250 species, is 

 divided into two groups: Holoparasites or genuine, and Hemiparasites or half 

 parasites. To the latter group, among others, belongs the genus Santalum, which 

 is represented here in the Islands by several species. The Hemiparasitic Santala 

 root in the ground and partly extract nutriment from the roots or stems of other 

 plants by means of haustoria or suck-organs. It has been proved in Santalum 

 album, the Indian Sandalwood, that it can exist and grow in soil perfectly devoid 

 of foreign roots. Botanists are of the opinion that parasitism in this group must 

 have played an important part in the existence of these plants in previous pe- 

 riods, on account of the large number of haustoria on their rootlets, and the 

 small number of which succeed in bringing about adhesion to roots of other 

 plants; while in genuine parasites, as the Loranthaceae, no such extravagant 

 endowment is to be found. The opinion has been expressed that these Hemipara- 

 sites, which root in the ground, form an intermediate step to those para- 

 sites which live on tree branches, rather than being reduced forms of the latter 

 or genuine root parasites. 



The Santalaceae are distributed over the tropics and the temperate zone. A 

 majority of the genera occurs only in dry regions and comparatively few belong 

 to regions with heavy precipitation. 



In Hawaii the family is represented by two genera, Exocarpus and Santalum ; 

 of the former two species are to be found, while of the latter four or five species 

 occur in the mountains of all of the Hawaiian islands. 



It may be of interest here to remark that in the days of Vancouver, Sandal- 

 wood was the main export from these Islands, which was shipped to China. An 

 interesting account is given in regard to Sandalwood export from the South Pa- 

 cific islands to various parts of the world, in Seeman 's Flora of the Fiji Islands. 



The Chinese term the Sandalwood Tanheong. i. e., scented tree. The Hawaiian 

 Islands are called Tan-skan or Sandalwood mountains by the Chinese, on account 

 of the Sandalwood trade which was carried on with China. 



SANTALUM Linn. 



Flowers hermaphrodite, perigone 4 to 5 lobed. Tube of perigone campanulate or ovate. 

 Lobes of perigone free to the discus, each lobe with a tuft of hair at its base. Stamens 

 inserted at the base of the perigone, and shorter than the latter; filaments short. Discus 

 drawn out into fleshy, spathulate triangular lobes, between the stamens. Ovary at first 

 superior, later on partly inferior. Style simple, stigma short, 2 to 4 lobed. Ovules 

 2 to 4, pendulous. Drupe, ovoid to globose crowned with the scars of the fallen lobes; 

 exocarp thin, somewhat fleshy and hard rugose endocarp. Seeds ovoid to globose. 

 Embryo in the center of the albumen, obliquely embedded; radical longer than the 

 cotyledons. Glabrous hemiparasitic trees or shrubs with opposite rarely alternate, entire 

 leaves, and relatively large panicles or racemes which are either terminal or axillary 

 Bracts not present. 



The genus Santalum consists of about 10 species which are all closely related 

 and occur in East India, on the islands of the Malayan Archipelago, on the 

 islands of the Pacific and in Australia. 



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