71 RISTICA AROMAcolour.
Branches in regular equidistant verticils, nearly
liorizonial, witii their extremities often drooping.
Leaves alternate, sub-bifarious. short-petioled, elliptic, entire,
smooth on both sides, but paler underneath ; when bruised
faintly aromatic; length from three to six inches, and from
one to two and a half broad,
MALE.
Raccnu a.illarj-, often a-cleft near the apex, with divisions
spreading.
Flo,vers numerous, on ascending, clavate, pedicels, nearly as long
as the peduncles.
Bractcs of the pedicels solitary, minute, one-flo^vered, caducous;
of the flowers also solitary, but larger, fleshy, more permanent,
and embrace two-thirds of the base of the calyx.
CalyK one-leaved, pitcher-shaped. MouLh S-toothed.
Corol none,
Filamen! single, rising in the centre of the calyx, and nearly of the
same length, thick, linear, oblong, and obtuse. AiUhers, ni
general about nine pairs, linear, adjoined lengthways to the
upper half of the filament, but their chief bond of connection
appears to be at their lower extremities.
FEMALE flowers in general upon a separ;
P^rfOTc/« axillary, solitary, rather longer than the
in blossom ascending, c
s, while
Cahjx
Corol
that of the Howei
; in the male.
, the male.
...uvc, Slyle very short, composed of two coalesced
portions, each crowned with a diverging obtuse sUgma.
Drupe round, fle.shy, size of a peach, and also somewhat downy,
marked with a suture which passes between the styles, onecelled,
wl.en ripe two-partible, opening spontaneously from
affixed to the base of the cell, covered
with a yellow, multifid, coriaceous aril [mace] marked with
farrows corresponding with the divisions of the aril, otherwise
smooth ; of a datk brown colour, and tolerably hard.
JVw/w(common nutmeg,) like the nut of a roundish-ovate shape,
also furrowed, affixed by its apex, but the embryo is placed
in the base, which consists of a small bifid point, lodged between
two,'variously convolute, fleshy-farinaceous, fragrant,
and gratefully aromatic lobes.
EXPLANATION OF THE FIGURES.
Fig. 1- A sprig of the male tree in blossom. Piatural size,
a. One of the male flowers, and its bracte x.
h. The same laid open, to show the stamina,
c. A perpendicular section of the columnar filament.
d. A t n of the same, )f anthers
e. An anterior view of one pair of the anthers detached frc
the column.
f. A back view of the same.
e, A section of one of the lobes.
These s ; all magnified, particularly the last foi
Fig, 2. A sprig of the female tree, with flo'
their various stages. Natural size.
h. One of the flowers magnified, and laid open,
pistil.
i. The ripe fruit opening, which exposes to v.c
spread over the shell of the nutmeg,
k. Half of the mace is he II back, I
the
1, The shell cut round, with the entire nutmeg resting in it,
m, A perpendicular section of the seed, or nutmeg, exposing the
embryo, or rudiment of the future plant, lodged in its base,
n. The same embryo magnifted ; the point o becomcs the root,
5, taken fro
and + the stem.
OBSERVATIONS.
It is now well known that the description of this pi;
Supplementum Plantarum of the younger
Sonnerat, is that of another species.
La Marck's description, so far, at least, as relates to the stamens
and style, appears to me to have been taken from the flowers of
some other species of Myristica, which he received from the Isle
of France, for the true nutmeg. Consequently the .sort they have
been long cultivating there, with so much care, is not the real
Band.! nutmeg ; which the Dutch so long, and so ellectunlly monopolized.
For I can scarce think it possible, that any botanist
could consider the thick firmly consolidated filament of the male
flower of the true nutmeg, to be composed of from si.\ to twelve
smaller partible filaments, joined in one bundle ; nor are there the
smallest rudiment of any smaller fih.mems, connecting the linear
anthers to the column (filament) in the centre ; nor are the anthers
themselves united, scarce even the two lobes which compose the
pair, as I have cidled them.
The foregoing description, and accompanying figures arc taken
from growing pLints in the Honourable Company's Botanic
Garden at Ciilcalln. and from numerous specimens (preserved in
spirits and otherwise ;) collected and sent from Great Banda, Banda-
Neira, Pulo Ay, &c. Molucca Islands, since they were conquered
b y the English, in February. 1796.
At Bencoolen, where this tree was introduced in 1 798, they
have -rown with the greatest luxuriance ; for in five years they
had arrived at from ten to fourteen feet in height, when (in
October andNoveraber, 1 802) two hundred and forty-seven trees,
out of about six lumdred, blossomed. About half of these were
completely male ; the rest female ; and were expected to ripen
their fruit in February, and March, 1 804.
In thé Botanic Garden at Calcutta, where the young trees are
about the same age, the most luxuriant are from six to ten feel
high, and in April, 1803, three male trees only blossomed, for the
first time.
At Prince of Wales' Island, where by far the
plantations are formed, they arc in a middle state
coolen and Bengal.
n Ben-
Since writing the above [nowjaiiuary, 1805] the trees at Bencoolen
have produced quantities of ripe nutmegs, of a good quality.
Those at Prince of Wales Island, so far as I can learn, have not
produced any fruit. In the Botanic Garden at Calcutta, two trees,
seven and-a-half years old, and ten and twelve feet high, bore
only male flowers for the two first ye;,rs of their blossoming.
Lately (at the close of 1S04) they have produced only female
flDwers, some of which have proved fertile.
275. MUSA SAPIENTUM.
Linn. sp. pi. ed. Willd. A,p 894
Spadix drooping. Spatkes ovate, many-flowered, deciduous,
[those of the Fevialc kcrmapkrodiU flowers of the wild plant, often
wither and remain till the seeds are ripe, but in the cultivated
varieties they are always deciduous.)
Bala, Rheed Mai. p. 17. t- 12, 13. and H.
Musa. Rumpk.Jmb. 5, p. 125./. 60.
Ram-Kulla, Wally-Kulla, Ram-jacki-allia-kulh, are the name.s
the wild Banana and PlmUain are known by at Chitlagong;
where they are found indigenous, in the forests, and blossom
during the rains.
Codali, or Cadali, the Sanscrit name of the cultivated iJaiiflfia.
Kulla, Keyla, or Kayla, are the Hindu and Bengali names of
the cultivated Banana, and Katcli kulla, the Planlain.
Aretti, theTelinga name ofthecaltivated.B<i7!aJ!a, andKomaretti
the cultivated Plantain.
OBSERVATIONS.
The varieties of the Banana cultivated over India are very
numerous ; but fewer of the Plantain, as I have hitherto obtained
knowledge of only three, whereas. I may safely say. not less than
ten times that number of the former have come under my
inspection.
Their duration, culture, habit, and natural character, are already
well known, I will therefore confine myself to (what I think]
the original wild Musa, from which. I conclude, all the cultivated
varieties (of both PlaiUaiii and Banana] proceed.
In the course of f»vo years, from the seed received from Ckittagong,
these attnined to the usual height of the cultivated sorts, which
is about ten or twelve feet. They blossom at all seasons; though
generally during the rains ; and ripen their seed in five or six
months after, when the plant perishes down to the root, which
long before this time has produced other shoots; these continue
to grow up, blossom, &c. in succession for several years. Their
leaves arc exactly as in the cultivated sorts,
DESCRIPTION.
Spadix simple, drooping.
Spatkes partial, numerous, ovate, concave, smooth, crimson on the
inside; outside darker coloured those (say 6 or S) nearest
the base of the spadix embrace a double row Jamie lurmo.-
/i/wrfiVif flowers, and are not always deciduous, but sometimes
wither, and remain till the seeds are ripe- All the rest, and
they are very numerous, expanding in succession for two or
three months, embrace similar double rows o{abortive or male
hermaphrodite flowers, \Ahich with their spatlies, are always
deciduous.
Calyx no other than the just-mentioned spathes.
Corol of two dissimilar petals; the exteiior with unequally 5-toothed
apex, which soon becomes revolutc. Inner (sometimes called
the nectary.) half the length of the exterior, when forcibly
expanded nearly round, but in their natural state oblong,
and deeply concave, with emarginate apex, and an incurved,
uniform point.
Filaments (in both flowers) five, with sometimes the rudiment of
a sixth. Anthers in the male hermaphrodite linear, and as long
as the filaments, in the female hervtaphTodilemMuic. and without
pollen.
Gma inferior, oblong, 3-celIed, with 4, 5, or 6 rows of ovula in
each, regularly attached to a central, fleshy receptacle (axis,)
by their growth they are forced from the regular situation in
which they are found in the germ, their insertions cannot
then be easily traced ; in the male hermaphrodite abortive.
Sti/le cylindric. Stigma 3-lobed, large and clammy.
Berrj/ oblong, tapering to each end. of a soft, fleshy consistence,
smooth and yellow, marked longitudinally with five ribs,
S-celled, the partitions distinct, but soft and pulpy, and no
doubt disappear when dry, and long kept.
Seeds numerous, size of a small pea, round-turbinate, tubercled,
exterior, half dark chestnut colour, or blackish ; towards the
umbilicus, which is a large, circular cavity, light brown.
Integ>ivient single, ?cc. as described and figured by Gartner,
vol. \.p. 28.C. 11.
276. ALPINIA LINGUIFORMtS.
Spikes radical, lin
broad, and spurless,
open. Lip[
OBSERVATIONS.
A native of the interior pans of Bmigal, where it blossoms
during the early and latter parts of the rains,
DESCRIPTION,
Root perennial, throwing off numero.ts suckers, which run both
above and under the surface of the earth; by which this
species is soon multiplied.
Stcvis many, erect, or nearly so,
smooth; 4-6 feet high.
Zrawibifarious, sessile on thei
both sides: length 12-24 inches, by 4-5 broad. Sheaths
smooth, and rise a little above the insertion of the leaf
Spikes radical, solitary, the apex only rising above the soil, laxly
imbricated with oblong, obtuse, smooth, exterior and interior,
one.flowered, green bractcs; besides the interior proper,
tubular, thin, colourless bracte or inferior calyx.
Calyx superior, tubular, length of the tube of t
3-toothed, and split well do^
middle upwards deep red.
Corol: exterior ¿on/ir of three, sublanceolate, obtuse, red segments.
Lip sublinguiform, the base broad, and rises incurved, forming
an envelope for the stamen ; from thence projects nearly
horizontal, into a long, linear, bifid lamina, with curled
margins; colour yellow, with a little red down the centre.
Staviina as in the genu.s.
Germ hairy, 3-celled : ovules many, attached to one fleshy receptacle
in the inner angle. Style embraced at the base by the
neetarial bodies, which are in this species bidentate.
Stigma large, and red.
IS thick as a man's forefinger,
sheaths, lanceolate, smooth on
side ; colour from the