Palmae. 27 
palm and another species known as Washingtonia robusta, also culti- 
vated in Honolulu, but less common. 
If . filifera differs from IV. robusta in the much stouter trunk, 
stirrer leaves and in the leafstalks, which are spiny only at the base, 
while //*. robusta, contrary to what the name implies, has a tall but 
more slender trunk, smaller and flaccid leaves, and petioles armed 
with spines up to the leaf segments. The ligule in IV. filifera is 
triangular in shape, with membranous projections on the margins, a 
peculiarity missing in // . robusta. The latter species may be found 
in several places in Honolulu ; fine specimens occur in the grounds 
of Ainahou, the former residence of the late Governor Cleghorn. 
Single specimens can be seen about town, as on Keeaumoku Street in 
Mr. W. M. Giffard's grounds, on Wyllie Street up Nuuanu Valley, 
in Mrs. Jaeger's garden near Beretania and Punahou Streets, and 
elsewhere. See Plate XI. 
The Washingtonias are desert palms, growing wild in the ex- 
tensive mesas of the Colorado Desert, the soil of which is stony, 
calcareous, clayey or silicious, according to the nature of the rock 
from which the soil is derived. 
The above species were once referred to the genus Brahea and 
even to Pritehardia, a decidedly Polynesian genus, with most of its 
species peculiar to the Hawaiian Islands. 
Sabal Blackburniana Glazebrk. 
The trunk of this species of Palmetto is columnar-cylindrical, 
thick, and reaches a height of about forty feet, and a diameter of 
over one and a half feet. The trunk is naked, that is not clothed 
with the bases of the petioles. 
The leaves are suborbicular and exceedingly large, w T ith many 
segments, and a petiole of seven feet in length. The spadix is much 
shorter than the fronds, and branches three times, with the flowers 
densely set. The flowers are relatively large; the black shiny 
fruits are the largest in the genus. They are obpyriform, the vertex 
is rounded, while the base is very pointed, and symmetrical. The 
seeds are brown shining, globose and depressed. 
This species occurs as a native exclusively in the Bermuda Isl- 
ands but has been planted in gardens a great deal owing to its 
beauty and ornamental value. It is one of the most distinct species 
of the genus Sabal which possesses about eighteen species. It differs 
from Sabal palmetto in its large dimensions, short spadix and ob-pear 
shaped fruits. This species is much less common in Honolulu than 
