250 NATURAL HISTORY UF PLANTS. 



sepals decurrent at base beyond insertion. Germen sessile, sur- 

 rounded at base by glands (staminodes ?) few or co , o-locular ; style 

 branches 3, peripheric and discrete at base, inserted round vacant 

 apex of germen, from the base or only at the apex, suddenly dilated 

 into an ovoid-compressed mass inwardly and longitudinally sulcate 

 stigniatiferous ; ovules in cell 2-nate, sometimes as if with thick 

 obturator very small. Capsule, sometimes outwardly suberose; cocci 

 3, 2-valved, 1-2-spermous ; seeds smooth, arillato at mieropyle ; 

 cotyledons of albuminous embryo^ foliaceous elliptical, 5-plinerved 

 at base. — Glabrous shrubs, often partly lavender- coloured leaves op- 

 posite entire coriaceous penninerved ; flowers ^ at summit of twigs or 

 in the axils of the upper branches eomposite-cymose, each cyme 1- or 

 2-sexual ; female central ; male peripheric. (N. Caledonia?) 



142. Bureavia 11. Bn.* — Flowers dioecious apetalous (nearly of 

 Dissiliaria) ; male sepals 4, inserted on shortly depressed conical 

 receptacle, alternately imbricated. Stamens 8-12 ; filaments free 

 erect ; exterior aggregate inserted round glands in irregularly 4-6- 

 agonal disk, and encircling more interior stamens 2 (or more rarely 

 3, 4); anthers extrorse, 2-rimose. Female flowers 3-4-merous; 

 receptacle thick conical ; sepals short rather thick at base, imbricated. 

 Disk hypogynous annular submembraneous unequally imbricated at 

 apex. Germen thick sessile ; cells 3, 4, oppositisepalous ; style 

 branches 3, 4, thick, fleshy, subelliptical, the middle inwardly sul- 

 cate, more or less patulous ; ovules 2-nate and smaller by thick obtura- 

 tor. Fruit subdrupaceous, 3-4-coccous ; exocarp coriaceoiis subfleshy 

 solubile from endocarii ; cocci solute fi-om ligneous columella dilated 

 at apex; seeds 1,2, crowned with the filiform very densely comose 

 lobes of ariP springing from the mieropyle as well as from the hilum 

 and persistent obturator ; testa otherwise uitid ; ^ cotyledons of copi- 

 ously albuminous embryo' wide plane. — Small trees; leaves o^jposite 

 P'tiolate exstipulate simple coriaceous penninerved; male flowers in 

 crowded fasciculate composite-cymiferous racemes in axils of upper 

 sometimes falling leaves ; bracts and bractlets opposite ; female 

 axillary or springing from wood subsessile, solitary or glomerate few 

 bracteate ; fructiferous pedicels short thick. {N. Caledonia,^) 



1 Green. ^ Black or very dusky. 



2 White, small crowded. ? Virescent. 



^ Species 2, of which 1 is olig.^ndrous. =* Spec. 2. H. Bn. loc. cit. 84 ; in Adansonia, 



* In Adansonia, xi. 83. ii. 215 {Baloghia P). — M. Akq. Prodr. 1117, n. 



5 Yellowish. 2 (Codiœum ?). 



