844 



Seven Year Apple 



The wood is light, rather hard, moderately close-grained and pinkish brown; 

 the bark is astringent and has been used as a febrifuge. The plant is occasionally 

 used for ornament and deserves to be more extensively planted in wet soil. 



The generic name is Greek, meaning head flower. There are about 7 species 

 known, all of which are indigenous to America or Asia, C. occidentalis being the 

 type. 



vm3 



IV. SEVEN YEAR APPLE 



GENUS GENIPA [TOURNEFORT] LINN^US 



Species Genipa clusiifolia (Jacquin) Grisebach 



Gardenia clusiifolia Jacquin 



SMALL tree or shrub of sandy or rocky coasts of peninsular Florida, 

 the Keys, the Bahamas and Cuba, attaining a height of 7.5 meters, 

 with a trunk diameter of 1.5 dm. It receives its common name from 

 the supposition that it requires seven years in which to mature its 

 fruit, which remains on the branches for a long time. 



It is much branched with a dense round head. The bark is about 4 mm. 



thick, white and warty. The twigs are 

 thick, stout and pithy, dull gray and 

 marked by prominent leaf scars. The 

 leaves, which are clustered near the tips 

 of the twigs, are thick and leathery, 

 obovate to wedge-shaped, 5 to 15 cm. 

 long, rounded, notched or pointed, 

 tapering to the short stout leaf-stalk 

 which is I to 2 cm. long; they are green 

 and shining above, paler and promi- 

 nently veined beneath and smooth on 

 both sides. The flowers are white and 

 like the young leaves turn black on dry- 

 ing; they are in close, few-flowered, 

 axillary cymes; the calyx-tube is top- 

 shaped, 8 to 10 mm. long, with 5 or 6 

 awl-shaped lobes shorter than the tube; 



Fig. 767; — Seven Year Apple. 



corolla somewhat fleshy, tubular, 1.5 to 2 cm. long, smooth, the lobes spreading, 

 lanceolate or oblong-lanceolate, shorter than the tube ; stamens joined to the corolla- 

 tube, their anthers narrow and sessile; ovary i -celled; style stout. The fruit is 

 a large, thick-skinned, pulpy berry, ovoid to obovoid, 5 to 7 cm. long, scarcely 

 edible; seeds numerous, flattened and angular; the seed coat is rather fibrous. 



The wood is hard, close-grained, rich dark brown, sometimes streaked with 

 orange; its specific gravity is about 1.03. It takes a fine polish. 



