398 



The Red Bays 



Besides the trees here described, our flora contains the Spice-bushes (Benzoin), 



and the Pond-spices {Malafoenna), shrubs with deciduous leaves. Our tree 

 genera are botanically distinguished as follows: 



Flowers panicled, not involucrate; leaves evergreen; flowers perfect. 



Calyx-lobes persistent, the tube not enlarged in fruit. i. Per sea. 



Calyx-lobes deciduous, the tube enlarged in fruit. 2. Ocotea. 

 Flowers racemose or vunbellate, involucrate. 



Leaves deciduous, some of them lobed; flowers racemose, imperfect. 3. Sassafras. 



Leaves persistent, entire; flowers umbelled, perfect. 4. Umbelltdaria. 



I. THE RED BAYS 



GENUS PERSEA GARTNER 



ERSEA includes about 50 species, mainly trees, natives of warm-tem- 

 perate and tropical America; they have entire evergreen leaves and 

 small panicled, perfect flowers. The calyx is 6-lobed; there are 12 

 stamens, the iimer series of three reduced to stalked, gland-like stam- 

 inodes, the three outer series perfect with 4-celled and 4-valved anthers. 



Fruit large, edible, 8 to 18 cm. long; introduced Mexican tree. 

 Fruit small, less than 2 cm. long, inedible. 



Yotmg twigs glabrous or very sparingly hairy. 



Young twigs densely .hairy. 



1. P. Persea. 



2. P. Borhonia. 



3. P. pubescens. 



Fig. 351. — Alligator Pear, 



I. ALLIGATOR PEAR 



Persea Persea (Linnaeus) Cockerell 



Laurus Persea Linnaeus. Persea gratissima Gaertner 



A native of Central America, this tree has 

 been extensively planted and cultivated for its 

 valuable fruit in all parts of tropical America,, 

 and it has run wild in southern Florida. It at- 

 tains a maximum height of about 15 meters, with, 

 a trunk up to 6 dm. in diameter, and is the type 

 species of the genus. 



The rather thin bark is light gray and fissured. 

 The young twigs are yellow-green, silky, becoming 

 gray and smooth. The leaves are oblong to oval 

 or obovate, rounded or narrowed at the base^ 

 hairy when young, smooth and finely netted- veined 

 when old, i to 2 dm. long, their stalks 4 to 6 cm. 

 long. The small, green flowers are in leafless 

 hairy panicled small clusters, the inner sepals 4 



