THE PALM FAMILY. 



139 



Inflorescence, a simple or compound spadix, contained 

 in a spathe. Flowers small, hermaphrodite, monoecious 

 or dioecious, consisting of 3 sepals and 3 petals. Sta- 

 mens 3 to 6, or numerous. Pistil simple, seated on a 

 3-celled ovary, generally by abortion 1 -seeded. Fruit a 

 hard nut, covered with a fleshy, fibrous, or scaly rind. 



With the exception of grasses, few plants are of more 

 importance to man than palms, more especially with re- 

 ference to the inhabitants of the torrid zone and conti- 

 guous regions, being rarely found beyond 40° N. and 

 35° S. lat. About J 000 species are enumerated. They 

 abound in tropical America, Africa, India, and other 

 countries. Some species are very gregarious. Palms 

 have been called the " princes of the vegetable kingdom," 

 and although but few were known, and those but imper- 

 fectly, in the time of Linnaeus, yet that great naturalist 

 fancied that the country of palm trees was the first abode 

 of our race, and that man was naturally palmivorous. 

 Be this as it may, their economic uses are manifold. 



The aspect of palm trees being very difi'erent from the 

 trees of Europe led to their being early sought after as 

 objects of curiosity, and in 1768 five species are recorded 

 as growing at Kew. Fifty years later, their number had 

 increased to twenty-two, and although not growing under 

 very favourable circumstances, several had attained a 

 size to merit their being spoken of as the " Great Palms 

 of Kew." Thirty years later, they had the chance of be- 

 coming really great, for in 1 848 they were placed in the 

 noble " Palm-house" specially erected for their recep- 

 tion. Lofty and spacious palm-houses have also been 

 erected in the Edinburgh and Dublin botanic gardens, 

 thus showing that palms are much admired in this 

 country. 



