MUSACEAE 



149 



DIOSCOREA sp. aff. D. NUMMULARIA Lam. 



Ubium nummularium floriferum Rumph. Herb. Amb. 5: 445, t. 163. 



This is not represented in our Amboina collections. Miquel, 

 Fl. Ind. Bat. 3 (1858) 572, cites this plate with the preceding 

 one under Dioscorea nummularia Lam. Hasskarl, Neue Schlus- 

 sel (1866) 144, cites the Rumphian name, but not the plate. 

 The figure presents a plant with oblong-ovate, prominently acu- 

 minate, 5-nerved leaves, which are rounded at the base, in aspect 

 somewhat resembling some forms placed under Dioscorea num- 

 mularia Lam., but with the stems prominently spiny. I have 

 a single Philippine specimen, Wenzel 1120 from Leyte, that 

 Burkill has identified as a form of Dioscorea nummularia Lam., 

 which has spiny stems, but otherwise all the material of typical 

 Dioscorea nummularia Lam. that I have seen is entirely un- 

 armed. In aspect the two forms figured by Rumphius are very 

 distinct, but the differences may be more apparent than real. 

 Possibly the differences in the presence or absence of spines on 

 the stems may be due to the fact that the figure of Ubium num- 

 mularium frugiferum presents only the upper part of the plant, 

 while that of Ubium nummularium floriferum presents also the 

 lower part of the plant, the upper part being unarmed. Regard- 

 ing this form Mr. Burkill writes as follows : 



Figure 163 is unrecognizable. It may be a very badly drawn Dioscorea 

 of the D. nummularia alliance. The type of the inflorescence, the opposite 

 leaves, and the characters of the underground parts all permit of this view, 

 in which case we need not suppose that the foliage is that of a Stemona, 

 but that the artist was very careless in making the drawing. Indeed the 

 foliage looks as if it were withered when the drawing was made. 



MUSACEAE 



MUSA Linnaeus 



MUSA PARADISI ACA Linn. Sp. PI. (1753) 1043. 



Musa domestica Rumph. Herb. Amb. 5: 125, t. 60. 



Musa uranoscopos Rumph. Herb. Amb. 5: 137, t. 61, f. 2. 



Musa alphurica Rumph. Herb. Amb. 5: 138, t. 61, f. 3. 



No attempt is here made to refer the numerous forms of the 

 banana described by Rumphius to the various named varieties 

 and forms of this species. Under Musa domestica Rumphius 

 describes sixteen forms, four of which are figured; these for 

 the most part are indicated by their native names. Rumphius 

 described as distinct "species" Musa uranoscopos and M. alphu- 

 rica, the former being reduced by Warburg to subsp. troglody- 

 tarum (Linn.) Baker, and the latter to subsp. sapientum (Linn.) 

 0. Kuntze; Musa troglodytarum Linn.,' Sp. PI. ed. 2 (1763) 



