RHAMNACE&. 85 



II. gouania. 



21. Gouania L. — Flowers hermaphrodite or polygamous ; recep- 

 tacle concave obconical or urceolate. Sepals 5, inserted at mouth 

 of receptacle, valvate. Petals same in number alternate cucullate. 

 Stamens 5, oppositipetalous, inserted with perianth and superior. 

 Disk epigynous interior to perianth and stamens, 5-gonal or 5-lobed ; 

 lobes sometimes very prominent produced to horns or layers more or 

 less connate internally at the base with the sepals. Germen inferior 

 and adnate to concavity of receptacle, 3-locular ; style central 

 divided more or less deeply into 3 branches stigmatose at apex. 

 Ovule in cells 1, suberect (of Rhammis). Fruit inferior coriaceous, 

 crowned with sepals and disk, vertically 3-alate ; wings wide rotund ; 

 cocci of endocarp 3, woody or sub-membranous, finally separate from 

 6-partite columella and indéhiscent, externally alate at margin. 

 Seeds obovate compressed or plano-convex ; testa hard nitid ; coty- 

 ledons of sparsely albuminous embryo somewhat flat ; radicle short 

 inferior. — Shrubs oftener scandent cirrhiferous, glabrous or tomen- 

 tose; leaves alternate, entire or dentate, penninerved or 3-plinerved 

 at base, petiolate ; stipules oblong, sometimes large, deciduous ; 

 flowers in spikes or terminal and axillary glomeruliferous racemes ; 

 rachis often changed into a cirrhus. {All trop, regions.) See p. 59. 



22. Reissekia Endl. 1 — Flowers of Gouania ; germen inferior, 

 3-4-loeular. Fruit inferior, 3-4-gonal coriaceous; lobes compressed 

 membranously alate; 3-4-coccous within; wings finally 2-partite 

 and spongily reticulate ; cocci crustaceous, separate from 6-8-partible 

 columella. Seeds and all other characters of Gouania. — A scandent 

 much-branched cirrhiferous shrub ; branches slender angular ; leaves 

 alternate cordate serrulate, sub-3-nerved at base, petiolate ; stipules 

 minute ; flowers " in axillary compound umbelliform cymes ; pedi- 

 cels long. 3 {Brazil. 4 ) 



1 Gen. n. 5747— B. H. Sen. 386, n. 37. — Reiss. Mart. Fl. Bras. Shamn. 112, t. 26, 40. 



2 Small, golden. — Gouania smilacina Sm. Rees Cyclop, xvi. n. 8. 



3 A genus very near to Gouania, differing in its — G. cordifolia Radd. Mem. Soc. delta Scienz. 

 fruit and also its inflorescence, which is quite Moden. xviii. 39 (1820). — Celastrus umbellatus 

 that of Melinus (differing in its apterous fruit). Velloz. Fl. Flam. 98 ; ii. t. 137. 



4 Spec. 1. R. smilacina. — R. cordifolia PteUD. 



