AGAVE 
225 
are commonly grown as ornamental trees. A. ohioensis Michx. 
( = glabra Willd.) is the buckeye of the U. S. Trees with large winter 
buds, covered with resinous scale leaves, and containing the next 
year’s shoot and infl. in a very advanced state. The bud expands 
very rapidly in spring. In A. parvijiora Walt, transitions from scale 
to perfect leaves may be seen, showing the former to be the equiva- 
lent of leaf bases. Leaves opp., exstip., palmate ; the blades when 
young are hairy and hang downwards. Infl. mixed, the primary 
structure racemose, the lateral branches cymose (cincinni). The 
upper firs, are <? with rudimentary ovary, and open first. The $ firs, 
are protogynous, and when they open the ripe stigma protrudes, whilst 
. the sta. are bent down ; later on these move up to a level with the 
style. Self-fertilisation may occur. The chief visitors are bees. On 
the corolla when young are yellow spots, which later on turn red 
(cf Fumaria, Diervilla, &c.). K (5) ; C 5 or 4 zygomorphic ; A 8—5 
introrse; disc extrastaminal, often one-sided; G (3), 3-loc., with 
2 ovules in each loc. Fruit a leathery capsule, usually 1 -seeded, 
3-valved ; seed large, exalbuminous (cf this fruit with that of Castanea). 
Aeiihionema R.Br. (incl. Eunomia DC.). Cruciferae (11. 6). 50 sp. 
Medit. Fruit lomentose in some sp.; in others, e.g. A. heterocarpum 
J. Gay, there are two kinds of fruit, one many-seeded and dehiscent, 
the other one-seeded indehiscent. (Solms in Bot. Zeit. 1901, p. 61.) 
Aethusa Linn. Umbelliferae (6). 1 sp., A. Cynapium L. (fool’s 
parsley), Eur. (incl. Brit.). 
Afzelia Sm. (Intsia Thou.). Leguminosae (11. 3). 8 sp. trop. As., Afr. 
Aganosma G. Don. Apocynaceae (11. 4). 4 sp. Ind. to Phil. Is. 
Agapanthus L’Herit. Liliaceae (iv). 3 sp. S. Afr. A . umbellatus 
L’Herit. common in gardens. Umbel cymose. Seeds winged. 
Agapetes G. Don (incl. Paphia Seem.). Ericaceae (ill. 8). 30 sp. 
Nepal to Austr. and Fiji. 
Agathis Salisb. {Dammar a Lam.). Coniferae (Arauc. 1 a; see C. for 
genus characters). 4 sp. Malaya to N.Z. Evergreen dioecious trees; 
the fruit takes two years to ripen. Several of these plants give copals 
or animes, hard resins used in making varnish, &c. A . Davimara 
Rich. ( D . orientalis Lamb.) in the Malay and Phil. Is., yields 
Manila copal. A. australis Steud. in Austr. and N.Z., is the Kauri 
or Cowrie pine, yielding a similar resin (kauri-copal) ; the best pieces 
are dug out of the soil, often at a distance from any trees now living. 
(Cf. Wiesner, Die Rohstoffe, 2nd ed. pp. 253, 264.) 
Agathosma Willd. Rutaceae (iv). 100 sp. S. Afr. 
Agave Linn. Amaryllidaceae (11). 100 sp. trop. Am. and S. U. S. 
A. americana Linn. (Century plant, Maguey or American aloe) is the 
most familiar sp. There is a short stem, which grows in thickness in 
a similar manner to that of Yucca, bearing a rosette of large fleshy 
leaves coated on the surface wdth wax ; only two or three leaves are 
formed in a year. During a period of from 5 to perhaps 100 years 
(hence the name Century plant), depending on climate, richness of 
15 
W. 
