EUPHORBIACE^. 237 



V. EXO^CAKIE^. 



98. Excsecaria L. — Flowers moncecious or more rarely diascious, 

 apetalous, often 2-3-raerous. Sepals 2, 3 of male calyx (of whicli 1 

 is posterior), very rarely 4, free or moTe or less high, connate, imbri- 

 cate, sometimes small or very minute, incised or glanduliform, or 

 more rarely rudimentary or 0. Stamens usually 2,3, alternating with, 

 a like number of sepals, more rarely 1, or 4-15-; filaments central 

 free or oftener more or less bigh connate in central cylindrical column, 

 very rarely conical ; anthers extrorse, short ; cells long adnate, de- 

 hiscing by longitudinal clefts, sometimes short poriform. Calyx of 

 female flower as in male. Germen sessile or very short stipitate ; 

 cells usually 2, 3, alternating with sepals, ovule in cells solitary de- 

 scendent ; mieropyle extrorse superior, usually obtected with short 

 small obturator ; style more or less high, ramifi.ed sometimes nearly 

 to base ; branches terete or more rarely laminiform-compressed, stig- 

 matiferous within, patulous or oftener recurved or revolute. Fruit 

 capsular, usually 2-3-coccous ; columella more or less elongate, some- 

 times obsolete, base often horizontally dilated in 3-angular-cornute 

 carpophore. Seeds at mieropyle variously or not arillate-incrassate ; 

 chalaza basilar or sometimes more or less ventral ; albumen copious 

 oily; radicle of straight, vertical, more rarely oblique or sub-horizontal 

 embryo much narrower than foliaceous cotyledons. — Trees, shrubs or 

 more rarely under-shrubs or herbs ; juice often milky ; leaves alter- 

 nate, rarely opposite or sub-verticillate simple ; limb often glandular- 

 dentate or furnished with basilar variously formed glands ; stipules 

 membraneous entire, lacerate, or glanduliform, more rarely ; flowers 

 spicate or racemose, terminal or more rarely axillary or lateral ; 

 female sessile or pedicellate, the inferior in inflorescence androgynous ; 

 others male, either 1-bracteate or glomerate or cymose in each bract; 

 bracts and bractlets usually, like the leaves, 2-glanduliferous at base. 

 {jAll trop. and suh-trop. regions.). See p. 133. 



99. Senefeldera Mart.^ — Flowers monoecious (nearly of Excm- 

 caria)', male calyx obovoid, shortly 3-lobed, imbricated. Stamens 

 6-8, or fewer by abortion, inserted in conical thick receptacle, free 

 2 -seriate ; anthers extrorse, 2-rimose. Female flowers (of Excaecaria) 



1 In i^Vom (1841), ii..Be«S?. 29.— Kl. in ^nc/js. feUera Endl. O-en. Suppl. ii. 88. — H. Bn. 

 Arch. vii. 184.— M. Abg. Prodr. 1153.— Setme- Evphorh. 635, t. 9, fig. 30, 31. 



