TETRACERA. 



Gen. 271. Schreb. 359. .TiifT. 339. Lamarck Illuftr. 

 1.475. Gasrtii. t. 106. Rhinium ; Schreb. 701. Tigarea; 

 Aubl. Guian. 917. .TiifT. 339. I^amarck Illuftr. t. 826. 

 Euryandra ; Forft. Gen. t. 41. Sclireb. 367. .IiitT. 280. 

 See EuRYANDK A. ) — Clafs and order, Polyandria Tetragynia, 

 Linn. Willd. Rather Icnfandria Moiio^^yiiiti ; or Pent agynia, 

 according to the principles hiid down in Sni. Introd. to Bot. 

 ed. 3. 325. Nat. Ord. Senticofit, Linn. Rofaceic, JufT. 



Gen. Cli. Cal. Perianth inferior, of one leaf, in five or 

 fix deep, rounded, unequal fegments, permanent. Cor. 

 Petals from three to five, roundifh, concave, infcrted into 

 the calyx, and longer than its fegments. Stam. Filaments 

 numerous, inferted into the calyx, /liorter than the petals ; 

 anthers of two round lobes. Pifl. Germcns fuperior, from 

 one to three or four, ovate, quite diftinft ; Ityles vertical, 

 awl-{haped ; ftigmas obtufe. Perk. Capfules from one to 

 three or four, ovate, divaricated, each of one valve, burll- 

 ing along the upper edge, of one cell. Seeds folitary, 

 roundifh, attached to the bottom of the capfule, and clothed 

 with a jagged tunic from the bafe. 



EiT. Ch. Calyx in five or fix deep unequal fegments. 

 Petals four or five. Capfules burlHng at their upper edge. 

 Seeds folitary, tunicated. 



Obf. The capfules refemble follicles, but the feed is at- 

 tached to their bafe. 



Seftion I. Flowers ivhh a folitary germcn andjiyle. 



1. T. Jarmenioja. Trailing Tetracera. " Vahl Symb. 

 V. 3. 70." Willd. n. I. (Delima farmentofa ; I,inn. Sp. 

 PL 736. Burm. Ind. 122. t. 37. f. I. Piripu ; Rhecde 

 Hort. Malab. v. 7. loi. t. 54. Frutex indicus farmentofus, 

 foliis hifpidis rigidis, &c. ; Burm. Zeyl. 161.) — Leaves el- 

 liptic-oblong, ferrated, rough. Style folitary. Follicle 

 ovate, polilhed, briftly. — Native of Ceylon. — The Jlem is 

 flirubby, with trailing, round, leafy branches, rough with 

 minute briftly hairs. Leaves alternate, ftalked, very rough 

 on the upper fide with minute fcales, furnifhed with one rib, 

 and many ftraight, parallel, tranfverfe, obhque veins, which 

 latter are haii-y beneath. Panicles terminal, compound, 

 many-flowered, hairy. Calyx of the fruit reflexed, reddifh, 

 fringed. Follicle pointed, the fize of a fmall pea, brown, 

 highly polilhed, clotlied with ereft brilUy liairs. Seed black, 

 ftanding on a toothed cup-like tunic. 



2.T. tometitofa. Downy Tetracera. Willd. n. 2. (Ti- 

 garea dentata ; Aubl. Guian. 920. t. 351.) — Leaves ellip- 

 tical, pointed, with tooth-like ferratures ; fniooth above ; 

 downy beneath. Flowers dioecious. Style folitary. — Na- 

 tive of woods in Cayenne, flowering in January, and ripen- 

 ing its feed in March. The trailing (hrubby branched_y?«« 

 climbs to the tops of the higheft trees, from whence its pen- 

 dulous branches reacli almoft to the ground. The young 

 (hoots are downy. Leaves alternate, ftalked, four or five 

 inches long, and two or more in breadth ; their upper fur- 

 face fmooth and green ; the under filky and hoary. The 

 jlowers and fruit agree with the following. 



3. T. afpera. Harfli Tetracera. Willd. n. 3. (Tigarea 

 afpera ; Aubl. Guian. 918. t. 3J0.) — Leaves roundifli, 

 fomcwhat undulated, rough. Flowers dioecious. Style fo- 

 litary. — Frequent in the woods of Cayenne, bearing flowers 

 and fruit in January. Aublet fays it is fometimes fo 

 abundant as to render the forefts impaflable, from the en- 

 tanglement of its fiems and branches, which climb to the 

 tops of trees, and hang from thence to the ground. Their 

 Toughnefs, like that of the leaves, renders them the more 

 troviblefome and dangerous. The French call tliis Ihrub 

 Liane rouge, or red climber, from the colour of its de- 

 coftion, which the natives of the country confider as a 

 lemedy for venereal diforders. The leaves are alternate, 



ftalked, of a broad elliptical, or roundifh, figure, obtufe, 

 (lightly wavy at the margin, rough on both fides with 

 rigid, crooked, hoary hairs. Their ribs and veins like thofc 

 of the firft fpecies. The largeft leaves are three inches 

 and a half long, and three broad. Floiucrs in axillary 

 panicles, male on one plant, female on another. Calyx in 

 four or five concave, pointed fegments. Petals four or five, 

 white. Stamens numerous, fliort. jinthers yellow, their 

 two lobes feparated by a furrow. Pijlil abortive in the male 

 flowers, as the flatnens are without anthers in the female, 

 whofe germen is roundifti, with imcjlyle, and a broad blunt 

 flignta. Capfule folitary, rcddifti, rough to the touch, con- 

 taining one leed. jiublet. 



4. T. nitida. Poliftied Tetracera. " Vahl Symb. v. 3. 

 70." Willd. n. 8. — " Leaves lanceolate-oblong, rough, en- 

 tire. Style folitary." — Suppefed to be a native of Trinidad, 



mild. 



Willdenow has four more fpecies in this feftion, of which 

 his T. Doliocarpus, flritta, and Calinea, will be found under 

 our article Dolkkarpus ; and his T. obovata is our 

 Mappia. 



Seft. 2. Floiuers luith three or four germens andflyles. 



5. T. Euryandra. New-Caledonian Tetracera. " Vahl 

 Symb. V. 3. 71." Willd. n. 9. (Euryandra fcandens ; 

 Forft. Prod. 41.) — Leaves oblong, obtufe, fmooth, entire. 

 Styles' three. — Native of New Caledonia. Stem flirubby, 

 climbing. Leaves ftalked, two inches or more in length ; 

 paler beneath. 



6. T. volubilis. Serrated Rough Tetracera. Linn. Sp. 

 PI. 751. Hort. Clift'. 214. Willd. n. 10. (Arbor ame- 

 ricana convolvulacea. Broad leaf, :'. e. platyphyllos barba- 

 denfibus ditta, foliis ferratis ; Pluk. Phyt. t. 146. f. i.) — 

 Ijeaves obovate-oblong, ferrated, very harlh. Styles four. 

 Calyx filky within. — Native of the Weft Indies. The 

 branches are round, with a rough, dotted, membranous, de- 

 ciduous bark. Leaves alternate, ftalked, five or fix inches 

 long, and two and a half or three wide, obtufe, very rough, 

 like a file, with minute fcales, efpccially beneath ; each late- 

 ral rib, at leaft in the upper half of the leaf, terminating in 

 a ftiarp but (hallow ferrature. Panicles terminal, compound, 

 rough with ftarry hairs. Calyx har(b and hoary externally ; 

 briftly and filky within. Capfules unequal, ovate, tumid, 

 beaked, brown, fmooth and highly poli(hed ; rounded, not 

 deprefTed or keeled, at the fides. Seed fmall, black, in a 

 pale, finely laciniated, tunic. 



7. T. rotundifoUa. Round-leaved Tetracera. — Leaves 

 ronndifh-elliptical, entire, very liarfh on both fides. Styles 

 four. Calyx fmooth within. — Native of Guiana. We have 

 received fpecimens of this new fpecies from Mr. Rudgc and 

 Mr. Forfter, under the name of Tigarea afpera of Aublet, 

 our Tetracera afpera, fee n. 3, which, unlefs that author has 

 made feveral great miilakes, muft be a very different plant. 

 The prefent has always three or four flylrs, and as many cap- 

 fules ; and the leaves, though like Aublet's t. 350. in fhape, 



are quite entire, not undulated. They are harfli on both 

 fides, hke a very fine file, as is the branch in a lefs degree. 

 The panicles are terminal. The crt/y.v has a (hort, inverfely 

 conical, tube, and is hoary externally, fmooth and naked 

 within. The f/amens appear to be perfeft in the fame flower 

 v.'ith the four pijlils. Capfules three or four, oval, brown, 

 fmooth and (hining ; keeled and deprefted at the fides, lefs 

 tumid than the foregoing. Seed entirely enveloped in its 

 jagged tunic. 



8. T. lievis. Smooth Tetracera. " Vahl Symb. v. 3. 71." 



Willd. n. II "Leaves oblong, fmooth, pointed, nearly 



entire. Flowers terminal. Capfules four." — Native of the 

 Eaft Indies, Stem fhrubby. Leaves alternate, two or three 



inches 



