SECHIUM. 
293 
with the pedicel slightly intruse. Sep. smooth gr. herbaceous 
remote stiff nan’ow ovate-acuminate or lanceolate, erect in bud, 
afterwards stellately spreading or ascending, about \ the length 
of pet. and contrasting strongly with the latter by their leafy 
char, and col. Cor. very pale gr. or in /3. cream-col., of a thickish 
waxy substance or appearance, thickly and shortly (like the 
cal. -cup) crystalline or glandular-pubescent inside and at the 
edges, smooth outside, 5-fid down to the rim of cal. -cup, the 
lobes thickish ovate often rather obtuse, erecto-patent flat, not 
reticulate but with about 10 close-set parallel straight simple 
equal nerves or lines ; the throat with a ring of 10 simple pores 
( foveolce ) exuding honey, 2 at the base of each segment. Anth. 
3-5 mostly 4 sinuous distinct or umbellate ; fil. united down- 
wards into a smooth single stalk or column combined at the 
base with the cor., as in Malva or Lavatem, and slightly glan- 
dular. Fem. fl. towards the ends of the branches, mostlv soli- 
tary, sometimes 2 binate on one stalk, on a short thickly mealy- 
pubescent axillary pedicel at the outer base of the stalk of the 
male rac. and opening some time before the development of the 
latter, having an abortive leaf and branchlet with fl.-buds un- 
developed at its outer base, and thus placed between the inner 
male rac.-stalk and the said abortive fl.-bud-branchlet, — the 
whole 3 being between the leaf-stalk and the tendril-stalk. 
Cal. and cor. 5-fid, the latter down to the rim of cal.-cup, both 
lobes and cup like those of the male fl. but the lobes narrower 
and rather longer, with the foveolce or pits in the throat much 
larger, forming a distinct raised crown-like ring of cells with 
raised rib-like partitions at the bottom of the cup around but 
apart from the style-column, whilst the cup instead of being 
sessile on the pedicel is stalked upon the ov. or joined to the 
latter by a short distinct cylindric or angular mealy gr. equal 
slender brittle neck. Styles completely united to the very top 
into a single simple even smooth or very minutely glandular- 
puberulous cylindric w. column. Stigmas combined into a flat- 
topped umbrella-like single pale yellowish calyp triform head 
with deflexed sides and incurved or involute 10-toothed edges, 
the 10 teeth combined into mostly 4 lobes or sets ; the whole 
resembling the pilous of Leotia lubrica (Scop.) or the fr. of a 
Marchcmtia , but more flat-topped. Ovary, except a smooth ir- 
regularly wrinkled scar-like transverse gr. space at base of the 
neck or stalk to the cor., thickly and shortly mealy-pubescent like 
its short pedicel (in /3. from the first mealy-w. or cream-colour), 
compressed turbinate or clavate, indistinctly or irregularly 5- 
grooved or lobed towards the top, uniformly 1-celled; ovule 
single erect attached by the middle of one edge to the wall of 
its cell. Fr. more or less compressed obovate or shortly cla- 
yate, very solid hard and heavy, pale gr. in a, cream-col. or w. 
in /3, 3-6 in. long, 2|-3 broad at top, umbilicate and distinctly 
