224 



N. Ord. LAURACEvE. 

 Tribe Laurinece. 



Genus Cinnamomum, Burman. 



224. Cinnamomum zeylanicum, Breyn. in Ephem. Acad. 

 Nat. Our., Dec. I, ann. 4, p. 139, 140 (ex Hayne). 



Cinnamon. 



fifyn.Laurus Cinnamomum, Linn. &many authors. L. Cassia, Bwm. and 

 other authors ; not of Nees. 



Figures. Steph. & Ch., t. 127; Nees, t. 128; Hayne, xii, tt. 20, 21; 

 Berg & Sch., t. 5 c ; Bot. Mag., 1. 1636 ; Wight, Ic. PL Ind., tt. 123 

 128; Bedd., Fl. Sylv., t. 262 (C. Wightii, Meissn.). 



Description. An evergreen tree, usually of small size; bark 

 pale-brown ; the young twigs slightly quadrangular, smooth . 

 Leaves opposite, spreading or drooping, stalked; the pedicels 

 channelled above ; blade 4-6 inches long, oblong-ovate, rounded 

 at the base, bluntly acuminate at the apex, but often somewhat 

 irregular in outline, coriaceous, shining, bright green above, 

 glaucous beneath, with 3 or 5 strong nerves from the base, only 

 the midrib reaching the apex, especially prominent beneath, con- 

 nected by transverse anastomosing veins, entire. Inflorescence 

 large, terminal, definite, panicled, much branched, the lower 

 branches coming off from the axils of the upper leaves ; ultimate 

 branchlets di- or trichotomous ; flowers rather distant, terminal, 

 ebracteate. Perianth deeply divided into 6 oblong, rather blunt, 

 equal lobes, imbricated in two rows, about J inch long, finely 

 downy outside, more densely so within; the upper half of the 

 lobes usually breaking away by a transverse fission from the rest 

 of the perianth. Andrcecium consisting of 9 antheriferous stamens 

 and 3 staminodes, perigynous, the outer whorl of 6 opposite the 

 segments of the perianth, introrse, the inner whorl of 3 opposite 

 the outer segments, extrorse and with a small, stalked, obcordate- 

 conical " gland " on either side of the filament at its base, fila- 

 ments hairy, short, anthers oval with 4 cells, 2 placed above 



