no ANNULS OF TÌIE ROYAL BOTANIC GAEDE-V, CALCUTTA, AXONACEIE OF BRITISH INDIA.
ii
ovate-lanceolate, acute or sub-acute, the base rounded; both surfaces dull when d r y;
the midiib impressed on the upper, veiy prominent on the lower; main nerves about 6
pairs, spreading, veiy faint; length 3 to 4 in., breadth l'2o to 1'6 i n . ; petiole '15 in.
Flowers bisexual, yellow and purple, '3 in. in diam., solitary or in short, few-flowered,
extra-axillary cymes; pedicels '3 in. long, with several basal stiigose bracteoles. Sepals
minute, glabrous, deltoid, their edges ciliate. Petals orbicular, concave, sub-acute,
glabrous; the outer valvate, spreading, yeliowdsb, not much larger than the inner; the
inner vaulted, but without claws, daik purple. Slamcns 12, in two rows. Ovaries
1 or 2, oblong-oblique, 2-ovuled; the stigma sessile. Carpels sub-sessile, obliquely subglobose,
apiculate when young, glabrous, -4 to '6 in. in diam. l^ocagoa coiiacea,
II. f . ty 'Ik. Fl. Br. Ind. i. 93.
Ceylon: altitude 3,000 iQiit,—Thwaites.
This plant appears to me to be i-ather an Orophea than a Bocagea, and I venture to
retain it in t h e former genus. The inner petals, it is ti-ue, are not clawed, as in typical
Orophea, but they are vaulted; while the anthers, and especially the 2-ovulate ovary and
small sessile stigma and ripe carpels, are quite those of Orophea. The outer petals,
moreover, appear to me to be valvate and not imbricate. Dr. H. Trimen, F.R.S.,
suggests {ia Kit.) that it might be advisable to establish a new genus for this plant.
Dr. Trimen informs me that, in its distribution, this is quite montane.
PLATE 151B. Orophea coriacea, Thwaites. 1, Flowering bi-anch; 2, carpels—O/
natural size; 3, flower with one of tlie outer petals removed; 4, iuner petal; 5 & 6,
andro-gyncecium; 7, flower with the petals and stamens removed; 8, anther; 9, section
of ovary—enlarged. [All copied from a drawing made in the .Veradeniya Herbarium and
kindly lent ly Dr. II. Trimen, F.R.S.)
IS. OiiOPHEA OBLiQUA, Moolc. fil. ^ Thoms. Fl. Ind. 112. A tree; young branches
rather slender, dark-coloui-ed. Leaves thinly coriaceous, shining, oblong-lanceolate to
elliptic-acute or acuminate, narrowed and slightly oblique at the base; lower surface
paler than the upper, reticulate; main nei-ves 5 to 7 pairs, spreading, inter-arching far
from the edge, faint; length 4 to 5*5 in., breadth 1*5 to 2-25 i n . ; petiole '15 in.
Peduncles leaf-opppsed, supiu-axillaiy or sometimes terminal, '4 to -5 in. long, 1- to
3-flowered; pedicels half as long, bracteolate at the base. Flowers bisexual, "25 in. in
diam., pui-ple. Sepals minute, lanceolate, Petals thick, glabrous, the outer valvate,
broadly ovate, obtuse; the inner slightly shorter, orbicular, valvate or slightly imbricate,
vaulted over the stamens and pistil, without claws. Stamens 6, in two rows; the
connective broad, flat, slightly longer than the broad dorsal anthers. Ovaries 3, oblong,
slightly oblique, glabrous, 2-ovuled; stigma sessile, broad, fiat. Ripe carpels sessile,
ovoid-globose, smooth, red, -5 in. in diam. Seeds 1 or 2, globular or slightly compressed
on one side, shilling, brown. Orophea? obliqua, H. f . ^ T., Thwaites' Emm.
PI. Ceyl. 8; Beddome Ic. PI. Ind. Or., t. 72.—Eocagea obliqua. Rook. fil. ^ Th. Fl.
Br. Ltd. i. 93.
Ceylon; at low elevations in the Galle and Katnapura districts.
Inasmuch as the inner petals of this plant are not clawed, and that they are often
slightly imbricate, it does not conform strictly to the characters of tlie genus Orophea as
previously understood. I have therefore ventured to modify the diagnosis of the genus
so as to aduiit this and the species 0. coriacea. Foi- in all respects, except the two just
111
mentioned, this plant has t h e characters of Orophea,leaves, stamens, ovaries, and
carpels being, in my opinion, quite those of this genus. , „ . ,
PLATE 152A. Orophea obliqua, II. f . ^ Th. 1, Flowermg branch; 2, ripe c a r p e J s -
of natural size; 3, flower-bud with outer petals opened up; 4, mature flower with tl)e
inner petals removed; 5 & 6, anthers; 7, pistil; 8, section of oy^ry-enlarffcd {AU
copied from a drawing made in the Peradeniya Kerharium and kindly lent by Dr. U.
Note-Imperfect Bpe<imens of a plant, wHch appears to be Orophea latifolm, Miq., havo been sent
from Perak by Mr. Eidley {No, 2985); but in the absence of full materiala I hesitate to inc.ude that
species here.
17. Mitrephora, Blums.
Trees. Lmses usually coriaceous, strOBgly ribbed, plaited in vernation. Fitwers
usually terminal or leaf-opposed, sometimes l-soxual. SepiA 3, orbicular or ovato. Petoft
6, 2-seriate, valvate; outer ovate, tliin, veined; inner clawed, vaulted, and cohering.
Sfamem oblong-cuneate; the antlier-cells dorsal, remote; tlio connective broadly tnincate
at the apex. Omrus oblong; style oblong or davate, ventrally furrowed; ovules 4 or
more, 2-seriate. Bijie carpila globose or ovoid, stalked or sub-sessile. Distrib.—Species
about 10; tropical Asiatic.
ilowers hermaphrodite.
Leaves pirbeseent or tomentose beneath; ripe carpels densely tomentose,
not 1. .Ji- lo'mulom.
Leaves glahrescent beneath.
Ripe carpels densely tomentose, not furrowed 2. Msingaai.
Rijie carpels mimitely tomentose, furrowed 3. Jf. gyand:flora.
Leaves quite glabrous iihen adult i- H- neymaim.
Flowers unisexual.
Ripe carpels ovoid, apiculate, rugulose 3. reticulata.
Ripe carpels globular, not apiculate, not rugulose 6. J/. macroi,hylla.
Ripe carpels sub-globular, sub-truncate at each end, rugulose . . . t. M. Frmmi.
1. MITEEPHOKA TOMENTOSA. Book. Jil ^ 27»»is. Fl. Ini. 113. A tree 20 to 40 feet
high; bra.nchlets and young parts genei-ally tawny-tomentose. Lemee coriaceous, oblonglanceolate,
ovate-oblong to elliptic, acute or shoi-tly acuminate, the base rounded; upper
surface shining, glabrous except the puberulous midrib; the lower softly pubescent or
even tomentoso; main nei-ves 10 to 1.5 pahs, oblique, rather stmight; length 3 to 7 in.,
breadth l'7ó to 3 i n . ; petiole -3 in. F.owers in small, tomentose, pedicelled, leaf-opposed
cymes; pedicels '25 to "6 in., each with a large amplexicairl bract. Sepals broadly ovate,
acute,'tomentose outside, glabrous inside, -3 in. long. Petals rather thick, tomentoso
outside; the outer nearly 1 in. long, ovate, acute, parallehnerved; the inner trapezioid
above, narrowed at the base, shor-ter than the outer. Ripe earfels sub-globose, densely
tawny-tomentose, 1 in. long when quite ripe; then: stalks 1 in. long. Seeds 2, thick,
plano-convex. Hooh fil. Fl. Br. Ind. i. 76; Kurs For. Fl. Burm. i. 44.