LORANTHACEAE 167 



Plate 38. 



A. Loranthus oleifolius Cham. & Schlecht. I. Twig with buds and open flowers, 

 parasitic on shrub of Royena pattens. 2. Perianth-segment with stamen. 3. Fruiting 

 twig, the uppermost fruit germinating. 4. Seed with germinating embryo, the pericarp 

 removed. 5. Seed in long, section. 



B. Fiscum minimum Harv. I. Piece of stem of Euphorbia polygona (not coloured), 

 with entire fruiting plant (nat. size) of the parasite. The fruits are many times the size 

 of the plant itself. 2. Plant with two buds. 8/1. From specimens collected near 

 Port Elizabeth by Mr J. L. Drege. 



C. Viscum capense L. f. 1. Twig of female plant, parasitic on a branch of 

 Rhus lucida L., showing also two germinating seeds. 2. Twig of female plant in flower. 

 3. Female flower. 3/1. 4. Section through female flower*, p. Perianth. 5. Twig of 

 male plant in flower. 6. Male flower with two bracts. 4/1. 7. Transverse section 

 through perianth and anthers of male bud. 8. Anthers with numerous pollen chambers. 

 4/1. 9. Long, section through fruit (pseudoberry). 2/1. (Note the green embryo.) 

 p. Pericarp, en. Endosperm. 10. Seeds germinating, one with two embryos. 



Loranthus. 



This genus of parasitic shrublets has its headquarters in Tropical Africa, 

 where over 200 species occur, while South Africa (excl. of Rhodesia) possesses 

 about 15. They live on various indigenous trees and shrubs, e.g. Acacia, Rhus, 

 Grewia, Euphorbia etc. and adapt themselves also to many introduced trees, 

 viz. poplars, willows, oak, apple, pear, fig, pomegranate etc. 



An interesting case has come under the author's observation, where 

 Melianthus comosus, a herbaceous or at any rate not woody plant, was infested by 

 Loranthus namaquanus. The host plant is known as "kruidje-roer-me-lliet" 

 [see Vol. 11] and occurs almost anywhere along the watercourses of the Karoo. 

 Although it possesses injurious properties, the farmers do not experience any 

 loss through it, as the animals do not touch it on account of its unpleasant 

 smell. The Loranthus, however, like the common mistletoe {Viscum), is eagerly 

 eaten by the animals, and the farmers state that they have lost goats, which 

 had eaten some Loranthus that was growing on the Melianthus. If the animals 

 had really not eaten some of the Melianthus together with the Loranthus, 

 this occurrence would indicate that the poisonous principle had passed from 

 the host into the parasite growing on it. 



Occasionally some species of Loranthus reach a considerable size, clumps 

 up to three feet in diameter having been observed by the author on some 

 willows along the Groote River near Ladismith (C. C.). 



As the flowers of all the South African species are brightly coloured and 

 often very numerous, the bushes of Loranthus form very showy objects and 

 attract various kinds of sun birds. The buds open gradually with slits at 



The tissue of the ovule passes so gradually into that of the wall of the ovary that 

 one cannot readily discriminate between them. The dark portion in the centre of the 

 figure represents the tissue which contains the embryo-sac. 



