20 6 Baker . — ^4 Synopsis of the 
30-40 ft. high. Stem ventricose at the base, non-stoloniferous. 
Leaves oblong, acute, bright green, reaching a length of 20 ft. 
and a breadth of 3 ft. ; petiole short, broad, deeply channelled. 
Peduncle short ; flowering panicle globose ; bracts densely im- 
bricated, ovate, 9-12 in. long, dark claret-brown. Flowers 
whitish, 1J-2 in. long, arranged in two rows, up to 20 in 
a row. Ovary cylindrical, above an inch long ; calyx lingu- 
late, 3-lobed at the apex ; petal short, tricuspidate, with a large 
linear central cusp. Sixth stamen rudimentary. Fruit coria- 
ceous, dry, 2-3 in. long. Seeds 1-4, black, glossy, transversely 
oblong, nearly an inch broad, with a prominent raised border 
round the hilum. Mountains of Abyssinia, southward to hills 
south of the Victoria Nyanza Lake. Niam-Niam land, 
Schweinfurth ! Native name, Ensete. The pith of the young 
stems is much used as food by the Gallas and other tribes ; 
also the young heads. For a full account see Bruce’s Travels 
in Abyssinia, vol. vii. p. 149 (figured in his Atlas, tab. 89); 
Grant, in Trans. Linn. Soc. XXIX, 153, and Duchartre, in 
Sagot’s Monograph, pp. 5-9. Grant’s plant from Waganda, 
with a stem like two great drums placed one upon another, and 
Heuglin’s from Semen, with stolons, will likely prove distinct 
species. It is the most hardy of all the cultivated species, 
growing freely in the open air in the Mediterranean region, and 
flowering freely at Kew in a cool conservatory (Temperate 
House). The seeds are commonly made into necklaces. 
2. M. ventricosa, Welw. Apont. 585, No. 45. Not stoloniferous. 
Whole plant 8-10 ft. long. Stem much swollen, 4 ft. diam. at 
the base. Leaves oblanceolate-oblong, acute, bright green, 
4-5 ft. long, much thicker in texture than in M. sapientum , 
with a pale red midrib ; petiole very short and stout. Panicle 
drooping, dense, oblong-lanceolate, nearly as long as the leaves ; 
peduncle very short and stout ; bracts at the base of the spike 
1-1J ft. long, lanceolate ; those of the fertile clusters oblong, 
8-9 in. long, about 3 in. broad ; flowers about 15 to a cluster. 
Fertile flowers 2 in. long; ovary cylindrical, under an inch 
long. Calyx 3-lobed, longer than the ovary. Petal ovate, 
entire, not tricuspidate, J in. long. Fruit like that of M. Ensete . 
Seeds as large as those of M. Ensete , dull black, with a broad 
hollow at the hilum. Angola ; province of Pungo Andongo, 
