I 12 



TREES GROWING IN MOIST SOIL. 



small tree or shrub, often only a bush, and when in full foliage 

 appears as though it were weighted down with the abundance 

 of its large, shining leaves. In the valley of the Mississippi 

 the tree is very common, and about that district its fruit is sent 

 in large quantities to the markets. Before it is fully ripe it 

 emits, as do the other parts of the tree, a peculiar and disagree- 

 able odour. 



The papaw is a cautious little character and mistrusts the 

 vagaries of the wind. To perform the office of cross-fertiliza- 

 tion it relies with greater faith on the insects, for they can 

 assuredly be attracted by their appetites. At the base of the 

 inner petals, therefore, the flowers secrete abundant nectar. 

 The stamens are raised in a hemispherical mass from the cen- 

 tre of the bell-shaped flowers, and from it the stigmas protrude. 

 As the insect squeezes his body through the small opening be- 

 tween the stamens and the inner petals in search of the feast, 

 he is, no doubt, quite unconscious that the stigmas are eagerly 

 taking from him the golden pollen which he has attracted at 

 his last stopping place. 



JAMAICA CAPER TREE. {Plate L,) 



Cdpparis J a maicthiszs, 



FAMILY SHAPE HEIGHT RANGE TIME OF BLOOM 



Caper, Trunk,, straigkiy slender. iZ-2o/eet. Southern Florida. April, May. 



Bark: dark reddish brown; irregularly broken. BraticJdets : angular. 

 Leaves: simple; alternate; oblong-lanceolate or elliptical; growing on peti- 

 oles about a quarter of an inch long ; rounded and notched at the apex, 

 rounded at the base ; entire ; dark yellowish green and lustrous on the upper 

 side, jKder below and rough from the presence of tiny scales ; the midrib con- 

 spicuous. Flowers: white; fragrant; growing at the ends of the branches in a 

 terminal cluster. Sepals: recurved. Corolla: with four rounded petals which 

 become purple as they fade. Stamens: long; numerous; with purple filaments 

 and yellow anthers. Pods: two to several inches long; brownish red when 

 ripe and containing several kidney-shaped seeds. 



There is an inspiration to be had from the pure, white flow- 

 ers of the Jamaica caper tree, with their long filaments as deli- 

 cate and misty in colouring as the threads of a spider's web. 

 Their fragrance also seems to be quite in harmony with the 

 warm, luxurious atmosphere upon which they lean. In the 



