140 
WEIGHT: THE GENUS DIOSPYROS 
of open flower 10 mm.; corolla throat is wide and covered 
with silky unicellular hairs on both surfaces. 
Stamens 24-30-40-64 (very unequal numbers), form 
epipetalous ring around abortive pistil or occupy central 
position; very unequal in length, often united throughout 
greater part of filament; usually in pairs, average length 
8 mm.; anthers free, equal in length, reddish-brown rectan¬ 
gular outline when mature, glabrous, attenuate apex; fila¬ 
ments united, white, short, and covered on all surfaces with 
long unicellular hairs ; pollen grains circular, even outline, 
brownish-yellow, fenelv granular contents. 
Pistil usually occurs as a flattened circular central 
apiculate disc, or as a bunch of hairs positioned on the 
receptacle ; in several cases the pistil assumes large dimen¬ 
sions with ovary many-celled. 
Female inflorescence arises as globular structure in axil 
of normal foliage leaf, 1-5 flowers, subsessile or cymose; 
peduncle 10 mm. long, 4 mm. diameter, covered with yellow¬ 
ish-white hairs which rapidly turn to brownish-red ; bracts 
usually 4, 10 mm. long, brown, bluntly acuminate ap ex 
covered with unicellular hairs ; lower two form an opposite 
pair at right angles to aatero-posterior axis, upper two are 
larger, and arranged one on each side at right angles to the 
6rst pair, but at different levels. 
Flowers occur one in the axil of each bract, but the 
upper pair usually drop ; very frequently the lower pair do 
the same, thus reducing the inflorescence to a peduncle show¬ 
ing four leaf scars along its length and terminated by the 
oldest and fruiting flower ( cf D. Gardneri). (See pi. IX., 
larger than in male and largest in Ceylon Dios- 
pyrosgroup, measuring20 mm.high,30mm.diameter when 
Calyx 3-4-o-lobed, accresce 
comes horizontal shortly after 
margmsare recurved; segments 
nt in young flower, but be- 
fertilization, and finally the 
ovate, tapering towards apex. 
