Gnetum.] 
CLXIV. GNETACE.E. 
GYMNOSPERMEi®: 
Order CLXIV. GNETACE^ 
Trees or shrubs, branches jointed. Leaves opposite. Flowers 
in spikes (or cones), unisexual. Males tubular or of 2 to 4 sepals. 
Anthers 2 to 8, sessile or sub-sessile, on a column of connate fila¬ 
ments. Female, ovule erect with 2 or 3 coats, one produced into a 
style-like tube with a round mouth. Seed drupaceous albuminous. 
Genera 3, very dissimilar in habit. Europe, Asia, Africa and i 
genus cosmopolitan in hot regions. 
1. GNETUM, Linn. 
Tall Hanes or shrubs or trees. Leaves large, usually coriaceous. 
Flowers in whorls in axils or cup-shaped bracts and surrounded 
with hairs, in solitary panicled axillary spikes. Male flowers, 
perianth club-shaped tubular; stamen i; anther i-celled. Female 
flowers, no perianth. Ovule ovoid or globular, inner integument 
produced into a tube. Seed thinly drupaceous pink or red, rarely 
brown and dry. Species about 32, Africa, Asia, Polynesia, America. 
Trees and shrubs erect. 
Big tree ....... 
Shrub: branches slender .... 
Woody climbers. 
Seeds sessile not stalked; spikes simple. 
Seeds drupaceous, red, ’5 in. long. 
Spikes stout, very woolly 
Spikes slender, not very woolly. 
Spikes about i in, long. 
Leaves narrow, 3 in. long, 1-5 in, wide 
Leaves broader, 3 in, long, 2 in. wide; 
stout climber .... 
Spike I ft. long, whorls distant 
Seed I in. long ...... 
Seed 3 in. long, brown, corky 
Spikes branched; seed narrow at base 
Seed distinctly stalked. 
Stout woody lianc; leaves coriaceous . 
Slender climber; leaves thin membranous 
(1) G. Gnemon 
(2) G. Brunonianum 
(3) G, macrostachyum 
(4) G. campestre 
(5) G. sylvestre 
(6) G. longispica 
(7) G. penangense 
(8) G. Wrayi 
(9) G. latifolium 
(10) G. Kingianum 
(11) G. tenuifolium 
(i) G. Gnemon Limi. Mant. 125. 
A big tree wth elliptic-lanceolate dark green leaves, 5 in. long, 
275 in. wide. Spikes simple or panicled, about 2 in. long. Ovule 
I in. long. Seed ovoid. Hah. A number of trees in Penang and 
in a few gardens in Singapore. The Buah Maninjau of the Malays. 
Disirib. Malay islands. Use. The seeds are eaten like nuts. 
FI.M.P., 5 ^ 
