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Hernandia ovigera, hernandia. Named after Francisco Hernand (1514-1578), a
Spanish botanist who was highly paid for his research into American natural history, but
whose labor did not yield fruits equal to the expenditure (compare the fruits of
Hernandia). Handsome tree native to the East Indies, sometimes used for canoes. The seeds
can be burned like kukui but with the production of much smoke. 1 -
habit, 2 - leaf and fruit, 3,4 - fruit, smaller than expected, is found inside the inflated
green (later pink) sphere, 5 - female flower, 6 - female flower, 7 - side
view of open male flower and bud of female flower, note inferior ovary
with sheathing connate bracteoles that eventually become the inflated
sphere containing the fruit, 8 - male flower, note glands at base of
filaments similar to those in Lauraceae. |
