THE PALM FAMILY. 



323 



« gravatana," or blow-pipe, the weapon used wlion 

 hunting game, and through which they blow their 

 small-poisoned arrows with wonderful precision. It 

 is common throughout the region of the Rio Negro. 



Kentia. — A family of smooth pinnate-leaved 

 Palms of great beauty, and perhaps the very best of 

 their class for decorative purposes. The plants were, 

 until recently, named Arecas ; sufficient differences 

 were, however, found to establish them into a 

 genus. In Aveca, the growth from the seed is 

 erect ; in Kentia, it is, or should be, decumbent. In 

 ArecUj the seeds, when cut, have rings and layers of 

 different colours, like a Nutmeg, whilst the seeds of 

 Kentia are solid and horny. 



Kentias have been called green-house Palms, and 

 they win succeed in such a structure in the summer 

 time, or even in the open air ; they, however, are 

 most beautiful when grown in the stove. 



The flowers are borne on long, branched spikes, 

 the male and female organs in separate flowers, and 

 each female flower is supported by two males. 



ornamental Palms, distinguished from the genus 

 Livistona by having a three-seeded fruit ; the male 

 and female flowers are produced on separate trees. 



K. australis — a sleuder, ele* 

 gaut, pinnate-leaved ^Jlant, 

 with narrow leaflets nearly 

 flat, and of a deep green 

 colour. Lord Howe's 

 Island. 



K. Baueri — this is an old 

 iababitantof our gardens, 

 and makes its stem very 

 slowly ; it is known also 

 by th.e names of Areca 

 Baueri arid Seaforttiia 

 robusta. It is a handsome 

 and useful plant for any 

 situation, either in or out- 

 doors in the summer time. 

 Norfolk Island. The cor- 

 rect name is BhopalostyUs 

 Baueri. 



K. Belmoreana — this is 

 popularly known as the 

 "Curly Palm," and is a 

 plant of great heauty ; the 

 leaves are very much 

 arched, almost recurved, 

 the dark green crisped 

 leaflets giving it a very dis- 

 tinctive character. Lord 

 Sowe's Island. 



£. Fosteriana — a robust and 

 rapid - growing species ; 

 very similar in the young 

 state to the other spe- 

 cies. The correct name is 

 Howea^ Forsteriana. 



K. gracilis — very graceful ; 

 very similar to Geonoma 

 gracilis. Thecorrecfcuame 

 is Kentiopsis divaricata. 



K. Lindenii— a fine robust- 

 growing plant; also known 

 as Cyphokentia Lindenii, 

 and Cyphokentia macro- 

 carpa. It is a bold plant, 

 with large, arching, pin- 

 nate leaves, and reddish- 



hrown petioles ; leaflets 

 sessile ; the young en- 

 tirely of rich deep crim- 

 son, which chauges with 

 age to intense dark olive- 

 green. New Caledonia. 

 The correct name is £en- 

 tiopsis maerocarpa. 



K. saiDida — the Maori name 

 of this Palm is "Nikau," 

 aud like many other abori- 

 gines in the Palm regions, 

 they use the young flower- 

 spikes as a culinary vege- 

 table. "We are told " it is 

 the most southerD plant 

 of its order, occurring as 

 far as lat. SS^" 22' south; 

 whereas 38° is the limit of 

 Palms in Australia; 38^ 

 in South America, and 

 30^ in Africa." It is a 

 robust plant, with a stout 

 stem, which is twelve or 

 fifteen feet in height; 

 leaves pinnate, four to 

 six feet in lengtb ; leaflets 

 narrow, furnished with a 

 grey scaly tomentum on 

 the under side. A rather 

 slow-growing, but very or- 

 namental plant. New Zea- 

 land. The correct name 

 is Khopalostylis sapida. 



K. Wendlandiana — a slen- 

 der-stemmed species of 

 quick growth; its long 

 arching leaves are pin- 

 nate, the leaflets slightly 

 toothed, broad, and bright 

 shining green. An ex- 

 tremely ornamental plant, 

 and of hardy constitution. 

 North Australia. The cor- 

 rect naoie is Hydriastele 

 "Wendiandi. 



L. Verschaffeltii, sometimes 

 called L. aurea — stem 

 stout, fifteen to twenty 

 feet higli when mature ; 

 petioles smooth, rich yel- 

 low with a glaucous tinge 

 at the base, two or three 

 feet in length, bearing 

 large fan-shaped leaves 



three to four feet across, 

 and divided into narrow 

 pointed segments. Island 

 of Eodriguez. 

 L. Commersonii— very simi- 

 lar in habit to the pre- 

 ceding, but a little larger 

 in aU its parts. Round 

 Island, Mauritius. 



Iiieuaia. — A small family of fan-leaved Palms 

 of great beauty, slender in the stem ; some, indeed, 

 scarcely making any. Licuala is a native name, and 

 the plants belonging to the genus delight in an 

 abundance of water. The stems of some species are 

 brought to this country for walking-sticks. 



plant, leaves nearly orbi- 

 cular, with a wedge- 

 shaped base ; much 

 plaited, the ede^es divided 

 into narrow bi-lobed seg- 

 ments; the upper side is 

 rich shining green, pale 

 below. Pacific Islands. 



L. horrida — a stout-growing 

 handsome plant ; the pe- 

 tioles armed with very 

 large and stout spines. 

 Java. 



L.peltata — this species also 

 yields the "Penang law- 

 yers " ; petioles armed 

 with large, sharp, black 

 spines ; the plaited fan- 

 shaped leaves are prae- 

 morse at the edges ; 

 deeply divided and intense 

 deep green. Pulo Penang. 



L. acutifida— this and all 

 the members of the family 

 are slow-growing. Tlie 

 stems are from six to 

 eight feet high, about an 

 inch thick except at the 

 base, where theyaremuch 

 swollen; these are sur- 

 mounted with a beautiful 

 crown of fan - shaped 

 leaves. The stems of this 

 species yield the walking- 

 sticks known in this coun- 

 try as *' Penang lawyers." 

 Pulo Penang 



L. elegans— stem slender, 

 petioles between two and 

 three feet hi^h, bearing 

 stout black spines on the 

 edges. Sumatra. 



L. grandis — sometimes 

 Ji no wn as Pritchardi a . 

 This is a magnificent 



Livistona. — This genus is not named in honour 

 of David Livingstone, but after Patrick Murray, 

 of Livingston, N.B. It comprises numerous species 

 of highly-ornamental fan-leaved Palms. The flowers 

 are perfect, and produced on branching spikes from 

 amongst the leaves. Fruits one-seeded. 



Xiatania. — This appears to be a native name ; it 

 is a small family of handsome fan-leaved, highly- 



L, altissima — stem stout and 

 tall ; petioles some six 

 feet ioDg, armed on the 

 edges with large recurved 

 sharp black spines, the 

 base enclosed in a rough 

 network of brown fibres. 

 Isle of Sunda. 



L. australis— this plant is 

 often, but erroneously, 

 called Corypha Australis. 

 It attains a height of a 

 hundred feet, carrying an 

 immense symmetrical 

 head of I'frge fan-shaped 

 leaves. Stem stout, bear- 

 ing the Bcnrs of the fallen 

 leaves ; the base of the 

 petioles, which are several 

 feet long, is enclosed in a 

 moss of fibrous network. 

 Leaves nearly circular, 

 three to four feet in dia- 

 ■ meter. ' In a young state 

 this is perhaps the most 

 useful Fan Palm for 



general decorative pur- 

 poses. Austraha. 



L. Borbonica — this is the 

 most familiar name of this 

 plant, but it is more cor- 

 rectly named L chinensis. 

 It is a most useful species 

 in all its stages ; and 

 though hardy enough for 

 the green-house, or even 

 ox^en air in summer, it 

 prefers the stove during 

 the winter months. 

 Leaves much plaited, 

 divided at the edges, a 

 bright and cheerful shade 

 of green ; petioles armed 

 with short refiexedspines. 

 China. 



L. Hoogendorpii — the stem 

 stout ; petioles long, deep 

 brown, enclosed at the 

 base in a network of dark 

 fibres. The large fan- 

 like leaves are nearly cir- 

 cular, divided into long 



