(7) 



the maguey of the West Indies (a spiny-leaved relative of 

 the century plant, native of the West Indies, and used there 

 for hedges), on the southern bench ; this name maguey is also 

 applied in parts of the West Indies to species of Agave, which 

 will be found in house No. 6. 



Numerous representatives of the lily family, especially of 

 the genus Dracaena, will be found on the south bench, and 

 these are much used for ornamental planting in the tropics ; 

 here also are plants of the genus Sansevieria, the bow-string 

 hemps of Africa ; a valuable tough fiber is derived from their 

 leaves ; larger plants of the lily family will be found in the 

 adjoining house No. 4, a corner of this house being given 

 over to tall dracaenas and their relatives. 



The arrow-root family is illustrated by the arrow-root 

 {Maranta arundinaced), native of South America, but widely 

 cultivated in the West Indies, its roots furnishing the com- 

 mercial product ; Calathea comprises a large number of 

 tropical American plants noteworthy for their fine foliage, 

 and there are other genera represented. 



Here also will be found several species of the genus Costus 

 and of other genera of the ginger family, and some tropical 

 species of the Iris family and of the banana family, but most of 

 these are in the adjoining house, No. 4, growing too tall to 

 be accommodated in house No. 3. 



House No. fa. j jHere are brought together many kinds of 

 large tropical plants belonging to families also represented 

 in the smaller houses, but too tall to be grown on the 

 benches. The collection of bananas and their relatives 

 occupies the greater part of the space and one or more of the 

 specimens is usually in fruit ; the collection contains both the 

 edible, commercial bananas and the plantains, and also several 

 species whose fruit is not edible, but whose interest lies in 

 their decorative leaves and flowers. The stems and leaves 

 of all these plants contain some fiber, which is produced in 

 enormous quantities in the Philippine Islands from Musa 

 textilis, and is the well-known Manila hemp. The supply 

 of fruit for the United States comes mostly from Central 



