236 NORTH AMERICAN FLORA [Volume 25 



Panicle-rachis or raceme-rachis simple, the panicles sometimes clustered. 5. P. lalifolia. 

 Panicle-rachis much-branched. 



Petals nearly twice as long: as the sepals ; Mexican. 



Leaflets few, mostly 3-9 ; panicle and its branches elongate. 6. P. polyanlha. 



Leaflets numerous, mostly 21-25 ; panicle and its branches short. 7. P. xalapensts. 



Petals and sepals nearly equal in length ; Antillean. 8. P. pentandra. 



1. Picramnia Antidesma Sw. Prodr. 27. 1788. 



Pia annua tnandra Stokes, Bot. Mat. Med. 4: 535. 1812. 



A shrub or small tree, with copiously short-pubescent young twigs and young leaves. 

 Leaves mostly 1.5-3 dm. long; leaflets 2.5-12 cm. long, 7-21, the blades ovate, oval, elliptic, 

 or oblong, obtuse and more or less acuminate, or sometimes acute, at the apex, becoming 

 glabrous or with scattered hairs above, becoming nearly glabrous beneath except the mid- 

 rib, somewhat oblique and inequilateral at the base, short-petioluled ; panicles spike-like, 

 elongate, often 3-5 dm. long, exceeding the leaves, drooping ; sepals 3, ovate to oval, 1.5-2 

 mm. long, obtuse, pubescent; petals 3, oblong to lanceolate, 2-2.5 mm. long, greenish or 

 greenish-yellow ; stamens 3 ; berries obovoid to oval, 14-18 mm. long, orange, red, or 

 scarlet. 



Type locality : Jamaica. 



Distribution : Jamaica, Haiti (according to Swartz), southern Mexico, and Central America 



Illustrations : Sw. Fl. Ind. Occ. 1 : pi. 4 ; Sloane, Hist. Jam. pi. 21)9, f. 2. 



2. Picramnia quaternaria Donn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 20 : 3. 1895. 

 A small tree with minutely close-pubescent young twigs and young leaves. Leaves 

 1-2 dm. long ; leaflets 5-8 cm. long, 9-15, the blades oblong to lanceolate, obtuse, but some- 

 times slightly acuminate at the apex, becoming glabrous on both sides, oblique and very 

 inequilateral at the base, short-petioluled ; panicles raceme-like, elongate, solitary or two 

 together, equaling the leaves or exceeding them, spreading; sepals 4, ovate, about 1.5 

 mm. long, obtuse ; petals 4, lanceolate, 2-2.5 mm. long ; stamens 4 ; berries oval, 10-14 mm. 

 long. 



Type locality : Slopes of Volcan Fuego, Zaeatepequez, Guatemala. 

 Distribution: Guatemala. 



3. Picramnia tetramera Turcz. Bull. Soc. Nat. 

 Mosc. 36 1 : 598. 1863. 

 A shrub (?) or tree (?) with softly pubescent young twigs. Leaves pubescent ; leaflets 

 5-13, the blades lanceolate, obtuse and mucronulate at the apex, but acuminate, copiously 

 soft-pubescent beneath, inequilateral, very short-petioluled ; panicles longer than the leaves ; 

 sepals 4 ; berries (young) densely pubescent.* 

 Type locality : Mexico. 

 Distribution : Known only from the type locality. 



4. Picramnia brachybotryosa Donn. Smith, Bot. Gaz. 46: 110. 1908. 



A shrub with slightly pubescent young twigs and young leaves. Leaves mostly 2-3 

 dm. long; leaflets 3-9 cm. long, 11-15, the blades ovate to oblong-ovate or elliptic, acute 

 or obtuse but acuminate at the apex, becoming glabrous, somewhat inequilateral at the 

 base, short-petioluled ; panicles raceme-like, shorter than the leaves, the staminate ones 

 relatively very short ; sepals 4, deltoid or ovate-deltoid, about 1 mm. long ; petals wanting ; 

 stamens 4 ; berries not seen. 



Type locality : Near Coban, Guatemala. 



Distribution : Known only from the type locality. 



5. Picramnia latifolia L. Tul. Ann. Sci. Nat. III. 7 : 258. 1847. 



Picramnia umbrosa Seem. Bot. Voy. Herald 97. 1853. 

 Picramnia Carpinterae Polak. Linnaea 41 : 553. 1877. 



A small or medium-sized tree, with yellowish-pubescent young twigs and young leaves. 



Leaves mostly 2-4 dm. long; leaflets 6-14 cm. long, 9-11, the blades ovate to ovate-lanceo- 



* Characters taken from the original description ; no specimens were seen. 



