2l6 



CLASSIFICATION 



ferior, seeds germinating while tlie fruits still remain 

 attached to the tree. The Order is well known from 

 the Mangrove trees that grow in the swamps of the 

 Sunderban. 



The germination of the seeds is most peculiar 

 (fig. 185). The radicle perforates the apex of the 



fruit and elongates 

 while the fruit still 

 remains on trees. 

 The elongated ra- 

 dicle is often i to 2 

 feet long, cliib- 

 shaped, and pointed 

 at the apex. When 

 the radicle is fully de- 

 veloped, the embryo 

 separates from the 

 tree and falls per- 

 pendicularly down 

 into the mud below 

 by its own weight, 

 and fixes itself there 

 by its pointed and 

 heavy end. Man-- 

 grove trees also 

 produce abundant 

 breathing-roots — an adaptation to their environment. 

 The Mangrove trees belong to the genus Hhizophora. 

 Kandelia, Bruguiera, and Ceriops are other common 

 genera of the Sunderban. 



Nat. Order 7. Combretacece. — Trees or shrubs, often 

 climbing. Leaves usually simple. Flowers polygamo- 

 dioecious or bisexual. Sepals usually connate, in a 

 4- to 5-lobed superior calyx. Petals usually 4 to 5, 

 epigynous. Stamens 4 to 5 in i whorl, or 8 to 10 in 



Fig. 185. — Mangrove— Chora {Rhizophora 

 conjugata) 



r, Radicle growing. 



