628 



HISTORY OF THK VEGETABLE KINGDOM. 



of a in-oper integument, covering a fleshy or 

 liorny endosperm, whicli contains an iixile and 

 homotrope embryo. 



Tliis family, from which Iiave been removed 

 several of the genera placed in it hy Jussieu, is 

 composed of the following: berbcris, mahonia, 

 tcandinia, leonticc, caulopht/llum, epimedium, and 

 diplii/Ueia. 



The berries of berberis vulgaris are iicid, and 

 used as a preserve, but the other species are of 

 little interest. 



MENisrERME-B, Jussieu. Tliis family is com- 

 posed of sarmentaceous and climbing shrubs, of 

 which the alternate leaves are generally simple, 

 rarely compound. The flowers are small, uni- 

 sexual, and most commonly dioecious. The 

 calyx is composed of several sepals, arranged by 

 threes, and forming several seiies. This is also 

 the case with the corolla, which, however, is 

 sometimes wanting. The stamina are monadel- 

 phous or free, of the same number as the petals, 

 or of double or triple the number. The pistils, 

 which are often very numerous, are free or 

 united at their inner side, and are one-delled, 

 containing one or more ovules. The fruits are 

 small, compressed, oblique, somewhat reniform, 

 monospermous drupes. The seed which they 

 contain is composed of an embryo bent upon 

 itself, and generally destitute of endosperm. 



The genera are mcnispermum, coccidus, cissam- 

 pelos, abuta, lardizabala, &c. 



Columbo, menispermmn pahnatum, is astrin- 

 gent and tonic, and several species of cocctdus are 

 1,'mployed as tonics in Brazil. Cocculus Indkns, 

 the seed of menispermitm cocculus, is used in 

 India for poisoning fishes. They are all natives 

 of the tropical parts of America and Asia. 



OcnxACE-«, De Candolle. Woody plants, very 

 smooth in all their parts, having alternate leaves, 

 fumished with two stipules at their base, pedun- 

 culate flowers, very rarely solitary, or moi-e com- 

 monly disposed in branched I'acemcs. Their 

 peduncles are articulated towards the middle of 

 their length. They have a calyx with five deep 

 divisions, which are laterally imbricated previ- 

 ous to their expansion ; and a corolla of from five 

 to ten spreading petals, imbricated during pr.-c- 

 floration. The stamina vary from five to ten, 

 and even more, having their filaments free, and 

 inserted like the petals beneath a very promi- 

 nent hypogynous disk, on which the ovary is 

 inserted. The ovary is depressed at its centre, 

 and appears fomied of several distinct pistils 

 ranged around a central style, which seems to 

 arise immediately from the disk. The style is 

 simple, and bears at its summit a variable num- 

 ber of stigmatiferous divisions. The fruit is 

 composed of the cells of the ovary, which are 

 separated from each other, and form so many 

 drupaceous carpels, supported upon the disk or 

 (?ynob.^sis, which has become enlarge!, These 



carpels, of which several are sometimes abortive, 

 are unilocular, monospermous, and indehiscent. 

 Their seed contains a large erect embryo desti- 

 tute of endosperm. 



To this family are referred the genera oclina, 

 gonipMa, walhcra, mcesia, &c. 



They are ornamental yellow flowered shrubs. 

 The root and leaves of ivcdkera serrata are tonic 

 and stomachic. 



RuTACE^, Adr. de Jussieu. ZygopliyllecB &xA 

 diosmeie. Brown. Simarid)eiF, liicli. A large 

 family, composed of trees, shrubs, or herbaceous 

 or frutescent plants, having opposite or alternate 

 leaves, very frequently marked with transparent 

 dots, with or without stipules. Flowers gene- 

 rally hermaphrodite, very rarely unisexual. 

 Calyx of from three to five sepals, -united at the 

 base. Corolla of five petals, sometimes united 

 together and ibrming a pseudo-monopetalous 

 corolla, more rarely wanting. Stamina five or 

 six, some of them occasionally abortive, and of 

 various forms. The ovary is composed of from 

 three to five carpels, more or less intimately 

 united, and forming so many more or less pro- 

 minent ribs. Each cell contains frequently two, 

 more rarely one, or a considerable number of 

 ovules, inserted at their inner angle, and there 

 foiTning two rows. The styles are free or 

 united. The fniit is sometimes simple, forming 

 a capsule, opening into as many scptiferous 

 valves as there are cells; sometimes and more 

 commonly it separates into as many cocca or 

 carpels, which are usually monospennous and 

 indehiscent, sometimes slightly fleshy, or diy 

 and opening into two incomplete valves. 



The numerous and rather heterogeneous spe- 

 cies, have been divided into five tribes: — 



1. Zygophyllex : flowers hermaphrodite, cells 

 of the ovary containing two or more ovules ; as 

 trihtdus, fagonia, guaiacum, zvgophi/llmn, &c. 



2. RuTACE/E : flowers hermaphrodite ; two or 

 more ovules in each cell ; leaves alternate, as 

 rvia, peganum, Ike. 



3. DiosME^ : flowers hermaphrodite ; two or 

 more ovules; as dictamiins, diosma, boronia, 

 ticorea, galipea, S:i. 



4. SiJiAHUBE/E : flowers hermaphrodite or uni- 

 sexual ; cells with a single ovule; carpels dis- 

 tinct, indehiscent; as simaricba, quassia, simaba, 

 &c. 



6. Xanthoxyle/E : flowers unisexual ; cells 

 containing from two to four ovules; embryo 

 placed at the centre of a fleshy endosperm, as 

 gahezia, aylantlius, brucea, xanthoxylum, todda- 

 lia, ptelea, &c. 



The plants of this family are generally char- 

 acterized bj' being intensely bitter, as rue; angm- 

 tiira, quassia, and others are acrid, or aromatic. 

 The guiacums are stimulating and tonic. 



PiTTOsroREJE, Brown. Shnibs sometimes .sar- 

 mentaceous and twining, with simjile and alter 



