BERBERIS 
261 
BelHum Linn. Compositae (111). 6 sp. Medit. 
Bencomia Webb, et Berth. Rosaceae (in. 9). 2 sp. Canaries, Madeira 
(p. 148). 
Benincasa Savi. Cucurbitaceae (in). 2 sp. trop. As. The frt. of 
B. cerifera Savi. is eaten in curries. It has a thick coating of wax. 
Benthamia Lindl. (1830) = Amsinckia Lehm.; (i833) = Cornus Tourn. 
Bentinckia Berry. Palmae (iv. 6). 2 sp. Ind. 
Benzoin Nees = Lindera Thunb. do. Hayne = Styrax Linn. 
Berberidaceae. Dicotyledons (Archichl. Ranales). 11 gen. with 135 
sp., N. temp. (Berberis in trop. Mts. and S. Am.). Perennial herbs 
or shrubs, in the former case usually with sympodial rhizome. Firs, 
in racemes, £ , regular. The typical formula isP3 + 3 + 3 + 3,A3 + 3, 
G 1 ; the fir. is sometimes 2-merous. Of the 4 outer whorls, the two 
outer are perianth proper, the two inner “honey-leaves” usually with 
nectaries at the base (see Ranunculaceae). The former are often 
termed the calyx, the latter the corolla. The anthers are introrse, 
but in most cases open by two valves (cf. Lauraceae) at the back; the 
valve with the pollen on it moves upwards and turns round so that 
the pollen faces towards the centre of the fir. Cpl. always 1, with 
one or many ovules, in the former case usually basal, in the latter 
ventral. Fruit a berry, or a dry fruit opening in various ways. 
Embryo straight in rich endosperm. Chief genera: Podophyllum, 
Epimedium, Leontice, Berberis. Placed in Polycarpicae by Eichler 
(Warming). See next art. 
Berberideae (Benth.-Hook.) includes preceding order and Lardiza- 
balaceae. Placed in coh. Ranales. 
Berberis (Tourn.) Linn. Berberidaceae. 100 sp. N. temp., Andes, 
S. Am. B. vulgaris L. (the barberry) in Brit. Shrubs. The genus is 
divided into two sections. In § 1, Mahonia (Nutt.), the leaves are 
pinnate ; many sp. are cultivated in shrubberies. In § 2, Euberberis , 
the leaves are simple, but usually show a joint where the blade meets 
the petiole, seeming to indicate a derivation from a compound leaf. 
There are also ‘short’ and Tong’ shoots (cf. Coniferae) in this section, 
to which B. vulgaris belongs. The latter have their leaves meta- 
morphosed into spines (usually tripartite) ; transitions may often be 
seen. The former stand in the axils of the spines and bear green 
leaves and racemes of firs, (afterwards sometimes elongating to ‘long’ 
shoots). The fir. has the structure typical of the order; its pollination 
mechanism is interesting. The upper surface of the base of each sta. 
is sensitive to contact, and when it is touched by an insect in search 
of honey (secreted by the nectaries upon the bases of the inner 
perianth leaves) the sta. springs violently upwards, covering the side 
of the visitor’s head with pollen, which it may place on the stigma in 
the next fir. visited. The fruit is sometimes made into preserves. 
A very interesting point about the common barberry is its connec- 
tion with the disease known as rust 9 which occurs on wheat and other 
