DEC. 1911.] MAKING.— OBSERV. ON THE FLORA OF JAPAN. 253 



decussate, larger in the superior ones. Flower solitary, terminal, 

 subsessile, erect, ebracteate, entomophilous. 



A monotjpic family, native of the temperate region of Japan. 



Mitrastetnonacese seem to come near Nepenthaceae, Rafflesiacese, 

 Hydnoracese, and also Aristolocbiacew. They are connected with 

 Raffiesiaceae and Hydnoracese m the parasitism, but in RafB.esiaceae 

 the flowers are often diclinous, the perigone is epigynous or 

 subepigynous, the anthers are one- or several-seriate, the ovary 

 is inferior, with a solid antheriferous or stigmatiferous discoidal 

 column, and the ovules are sometimes atropous ; and in 

 Hydnoracese the flower is bisexual, the perigone is 3-fi.d, the 

 anthers are 1- or 2-seriate, adnate to the perigone-tube, having 

 the bilocular longitudinal-dehiscing anther-cells, the ovary is 

 inferior with a sessile stigma, the ovules are atropous. Nepen- 

 thaceae differ in their racemose or paniculate inflorescence, 

 dioecious flower, parted perigone, longitudinally dehiscing anther, 

 several-celled ovary, capsular fruit, suffrutescent stem bearing 

 green and alternate leaves, and they are not parasitic. Finally, 

 Aristolochiaceae are distinguished by their superior perigone, 

 epigynous and gynandrous stamens, inferior several-celled 

 and several-ovuled ovary, green and alternate leaves, and they 

 are not parasitic. In having scaly simple stem and volva they 

 are like Balanophoracese, but the flowers are widely different. 



MITRASTEMON (sphalmate MITRASTEMMA) Makino, 

 gen. nov. in Bot. Mag., Tokyo, XXIII. (1909), p. 326 cum fig. 

 (Plate YII.) 



Flower hermaphrodite, regular, solitary, terminal, erect, 

 sessile or subsessile. Perigone inferior, gamophyllous, poculi- 

 form, close to the ovary, thickish but thinner towards the 

 mouth, smooth, shining, cream-pale, longitudinally many-nerved, 

 without transverse- venules, (nerves simple or sometimes branch- 

 ed, not close, disappear before reaching the margin, invisible 

 superficially), persistent ; mouth truncate, broad, entire or 

 obscurely ^subcrenate or subrepand. Corolla 0. Stamens in- 

 ferior and hypogynous, much exserted, erect, straight, cylindrically 

 mitriform, tubular, obtuse at the top, entirely capped upon 

 the gynq^cium with a loose vacancy above, closely placed 



