2 54 Plants and their Ways in South Africa 



and greenish. Honey glands in the flowers attract insects. 

 The flowers may be arranged in UQibels,' spikes, racemes, or 

 panicles. One of the largest orders of flowering plants ; 200 

 genera, 2500 species. Cosmopolitan. 



Series I. — Fruit a berry. Anthers opening toward the pistil. (Introrse.) 

 Smilax. — -Stems woody, climbing. Leaves normal, net-veined. 



Flowers dicEcious. 



Asparagus. — Stems generally woody, climbing or erect. Leaves 



small, bract-like, with one or several leaf-like branches in their axils. 



Series IL — Fruit a capsule. Anthers versatile, opening toward 

 the pistil. (Introrse.) 

 A. Rootstock not bulbous. Perianth lobes united. 

 B. Flowers in racemes. 



Kniphofia. — Leaves not fleshy. Perianth tube long. 

 Aloe. — Leaves fleshy. Perianth tube short, with conniving 

 segments. 

 BB. Flowers in umbels. 



Agapanthus. — Flowers blue or white ; corona wanting. 

 Tulbaghia. — Flowers greenish- or purple-brown ; corona 

 present. 

 AA. Rootstock not bulbous. Perianth tube cut down to the base. 

 Anthers swinging (versatile). 

 Bulbinella. — Flowers yellow or white. Filaments smooth. 

 Bulbine. — Flowers yellow. Filaments bearded. Ovules 

 more than two in a cell. 

 AAA. Rootstock bulbous or tuberous. Flowers in racemes or spikes. 

 B. Perianth cut down to the base. 



Bowiea. — Rootstock a partly underground corm. Stem 



climbing. Leaves small, soon falling. 

 Eriospermum. — Rootstock tuberous. Stem erect, usually 



with solitary leaf, after flowering. Seeds woolly. 

 Albuca. — Rootstock bulbous. Petals conniving but not 



united. Seeds flattened, crowded. 

 Eucomis. — Seeds not crowded. Raceme crowned by a 



rosette of leaty bracts. 

 Ornithogalum. — Perianth lobes spreading. Raceme not 

 crowned with bracts. Flowers never blue. 

 BB. Perianth lobes slightly united at base. The outer sometimes 

 free. 

 Lachenalia. — Perianth cylindrical. Outer segments usually 

 shorter. 



' The apparent umbels are really cymose. When the inflorescence 

 is racemose the flowers have no bracteoles. 



