Sapotaceae. 



base; calyx persistent, coriaceous, deeply 4 to 5 parted; corolla little longer 4 to 5 mm, 

 urceolate, divided into twice as many lobes as the calyx; staminodia none; stamens 

 inserted at the base of the corolla, as many as lobes; ovary hairy 4 to 5 celled; style 

 angular; fruit a somewhat fleshy black shining olive-shaped berry with a thin fibrous 

 endooarp, about 16 mm long, 1- rarely 2-seeded, the single seed ovoid, with thick, bony, 

 shining, pale brown testa; hilum obliquely basal, leaving a broad roundish deep scar; 

 embryo axillary, cotyledons oblong, obtuse, radicle very short, inferior. 



The Keahi is a medium-sized milky tree with a roundish crown, and rough 

 drooping branches. The leaves resemble somewhat those of the Sapota pear, or 

 more so the Alaa (Sideroxylon sandwicense) , and is hardly distinguishable from 

 it when without fruit or flower. 



The flowers are borne all along the branchlets and very densely. It is a very 

 prolifically bearing tree and can be found loaded with the black, olive-shaped 

 shining fruits during the months of May to August. It inhabits the very dry 

 regions on the leeward sides of most of the islands, and is very common on 

 Lanai, where it grows in company with Sideroxylon sandwicense, S. spathu- 

 latum, the leaves of which look all very much alike and when not in fruit are 

 exceedingly difficult to distinguish. On Molokai it is also common, as well as 

 on the Island of Maui on the slopes of Haleakala, district of Kahikinui, while it 

 has so far not been found on Hawaii. Together with Sideroxylon, Nothoces- 

 trum, Suttonia, Osmanthus, Reynoldsia, Gardenia, Antidesma, Bobea Hookeri, 

 and Rauwolfia, it forms the typical dry forest at the lower elevation on Mt. 

 Haleakala, on the lava fields of Auahi. 



The Keahi is peculiar to the Hawaiian Islands. As far as can be ascertained, 

 the natives made no use of this tree, though the wood is quite hard and durable, 

 while the fruits are not edible. 



SIDEROXYLON L. 



Flowers occasionally polygamous; calyx lobes 5 to 6, imbricate; corolla broad-cam- 

 panuLite, with short or longer tube and 5 to 6 obtuse or acute segments. Staminodia 

 D to 6, petaloid, or only scale-like to filiform. Stamens 5 to 6, with short or long fila- 

 ments and ovate to lanceolate anthers. Ovary glabrous or pubescent, 5 to 2 celled. Stj'le 

 short or long, with small stigma. Berry ovoid to globose, usually small or often large, 

 with thin pericarp, with 5 to 2 seeds, more often one-seeded. Seeds with shining hard 

 testa and elongate linear hilum; albuminous. Cotyledons broad, flat. — Trees with usually 

 coriaceous leaves, with and without stipules, and small sessile or peduncled flowers. 



A genus of over 100 species, occurring in the tropical and subtropical regions 

 of the old and new world. In the Hawaiian Islands the genus is represented by 

 several species usually growing in the dry districts on the lee sides on the various 

 islands. Originally only two species were known from Hawaii, to which the 

 writer had added two new ones. 



"What has been said of the polymorphism of the genus Pittosporum in Hawaii, 

 holds also good for the genus Sideroxylon. 



The tremendous variations which we find in the species growing in Hawaii 

 make it indeed difficult to separate all these forms satisfactorily. The fruits 

 of the Hawaiian Sideroxyla are of various shapes and colors, the largest fruits 



381 



