204 
EDIBLE PRODUCTS 
tubers, bulbs, &c. The most important food-stuffs are the 
fruits of the cereal grasses, whose seeds have a starchy 
endosperm, yielding a flour when ground. The chief are 
rice (Oryza), wheat (Triticum), oats (Avena), rye (Secale), 
maize (Zea), barley (Hordeum), to which may be added 
Coix, Eleusine, Euchlaena, Panicum, Pennisetum, Setaria, 
Sorghum, Zizania, and others. The seeds of many Legumi- 
nosae, which are rich in nitrogen, form valuable food-stuffs, 
e.g. pea (Pisum), bean (Vicia), lentil (Lens), Arachis, Cajanus, 
Cicer, Dolichos, Glycine, Lathyrus, Phaseolus, Voandzeia, 
&c. Other important seeds are those of buckwheat (Fa- 
gopyrum), coconut (Cocos), chestnut (Castanea), walnut 
(Juglans), &c., and mention may be made of Araucaria, 
Bertholletia, Brosimum, Carya, Caryocar, Castanospermum, 
Corylus, Dioon, Lecythis, Nelumbium, Pistacia, Telfairia, 
Trapa, &c. 
Many fleshy fruits form valuable food-stuffs. Regarded 
purely as foods probably the most important are the bread- 
fruit and jak (Artocarpus), plantain and banana (Musa), and 
date (Phoenix), but the following genera also yield fruits 
of great value : Anona (custard-apple, &c.), Ananas (pine- 
apple), Borassus (Palmyra-palm), Carica (papaw), Citrus 
(orange, lemon, &c.), Cucumis (melon, cucumber), Cu- 
curbita (pumpkin, marrow), Durio (durian), Eugenia (rose- 
apple, &c.), Ficus (fig), Fragaria (strawberry), Garcinia 
(mangosteen), Mangifera (mango); Morus (mulberry), Persea 
(avocado), Prunus (plum, cherry, apricot, peach, &c.), Psidium 
(guava), Punica (pomegranate), Pyrus (pear, apple, &c.), 
Ribes (gooseberry, currant), Rubus (raspberry, blackberry), 
Vitis (grape), &c. To these may be added a long list of 
minor fruits, chiefly tropical, and most of which have not, 
like the above, been improved by cultivation or selection, 
e.g. Aberia, Achras, Anacardium, Artabotrys, Averrhoa, 
Bactris, Benincasa, Blighia, Byrsonima, Celtis, Cereus, 
Chrysobalanus, Chrysophyllum, Citrullus, Coccinia, Cocco- 
loba, Debregeasia, Decaisnea, Dialium, Diospyros, Eriobo- 
trya, Eugenia, Feronia, Garcinia, Gaylussacia, Glycosmis, 
Hymenaea, Juniperus, Lantana, Lapageria, Litchi, Mac- 
adamia, Madura, Mammea, Mimusops, Monstera, Myrtus, 
Nephelium, Opuntia, Osmanthus, Pappea, Passiflora, Pere- 
