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I14 PRINCIPES [Vol. Il THEEDITOR'S CORNER above Santa Barbara in California. The With this issue of PnrllcrpBs we are secondregular feature we are introduc- "Collec- inaugurating two new features which ing with this issue is entitled we hope will become a permanent part tor's Choice." Here a member of the of the journal. One of them we are en- Society will present a purely subjec- "Garden titling Tour." This will be a tive picture of his favorite palm, relat- trip to a garden where palms are a con- ing his experienceswith that particular spicuous or dominant part of the land- speciesand explaining what it means scape theme. We hope to present not to him as.a connoiseur of palms. Lest only the various speciesof palms that anyone doubt the appropriateness of "favorite are growing in the garden, but also a selectinga palm," let him re- discussion of how they are used and call that David Fairchild was not above what the companion plants are. In this selecting his favorite palm and pro- issue we are taken by Barry Osborne claiming it from the housetops. It was on a tour of Mme. Ganna Walska's Pigaletta elata, or more correctly Piga- 'olotusland" garden set in the hills letta lilaris. w.J.D. The genusGastrococos (Palmae-Cocoideae) H.rnor-r E. Moonn, Jn." The island of Cuba is the home of a scription of {lowers given by Morales, prickly palm sometimesfound in culti- prove deceptivewhen details of the in- vation, where it is generally known as florescenceand flowers are studied. Acrocomia armentalis or Acrocomia There are significant differences crispa. L. H. Bailey included the species which set Acrocom,ia crispa aparl Irom in his preliminary study of Acrocomia, all other speciesoI Acrocomia. Exam- using the name A, armentalis (Gentes ining the rachillae of the inflorescencein Herbarurn 4: 462. I94L). On the basis Acrocomia, one finds that the female of this study, but using an older epithet, flowers are few, restricted to the thicker the species was listed as Acrocomia basalpart of the rachilla. generallyac- crispa in a checklist of cultivated palms companied by two lateral male flowers (Principes 7: L24. 1963). more or less reduced in size, and the It has becomenecessary to study this group of three flowers, or triad, is sub- palm more closely to determine whether tended by a rather prominent bractlet or not the speciesproperly belongs in and appearsto be slightly sunken in the Acrocomia, whether it is best placed in rachilla. Male flowers are much more some other genus of the prickly palms numerous and are borne in a special- included in the tribe Bactrideae of the ized terminal portion of the rachilla. subfamily Cocoideae, or whether it Above the triads, except in A. crispa, should represent a distinct genus for one finds usually a few male flowers which the narne GastrococosMorales is borne in pairs, each pair subtendedby available. The habit and general aspect a rather prominent bractlet, but the of the fruit, which appearto have guided majority are borne singly, each sub- Bailey despite the excellent detailed de- tended by a prominent thin bractlet which is united with bractlets adjacent *From work relating to National Science Foun- dation Grant GB-3528. to it forming a little cup in which the 7e671 MOORE:GASTROCOCOS I. A group oI Gastrococoscrispa at Calabazar, Province o{ Havana, Cuba. Photo by L. H. Bailey. flower sits. When the {lowers are re- by a thin bractlet which is quite free moved, the upper portion of the rachilla from those adjacent to it, thus there is looks like a section of honeycomb. no appearance of a honeycomb when Acrocomia crispa, however,has male the flowers are removed. flowers borne in pairs throughout or If we compare flowers, another set of nearly throughout that portion of the diflerences becomes erident. The fe- rachilla above the basal triads. At the male flowers oI Acrocomia have a calyx tip of the rachilla one may find male composed of sepals which are distinct {lowers borne singly through the loss o{ and overlapping, a corolla o{ petals one in a pair. Each pair of flowers, or w hich are free and overlappi'ng or each flower when single, is subtended shortly united with each other by their ll il6 PRINCIPES lVol. inner {aces but then the margins are The six prominent staminodesare united free and overlapping at the base. Sta- with each other in a tube as long as or minodes (sterile stamens) are united lonser than the corolla-tube, to which with eachother basally in a 6-lobedtube they are united for about three-fourths which may be completelyfree from the their length, then distinct and triangular petals or united with them basally. The to awl-shaped. i"male flowers ol A. crispa' in contrast, The male flowers also differ. Those have short sepals united in a 3-lobed oI Acrocomia have distinct short sepals cup, thickish petals united with each and a prominent pistillode; those of I' other for some distance, then distinct crispa have sepals united in a low 3- with essentiallyvalvate triangular tips. lobed cup and a short deeply trifid pis- tillode. The petals are briefly united with the floral receptaclein both' Sta- men-filamentsin Acrocomia are inflexed at the apex in bud and the anthers are dorsifixed and versatile. In A. crispa, the stamen-filaments are erect, the an- thers basifixed. Though the fruit oL A. crispa gener' ally resembles that oI Acrocomia in shape and color, it is smaller than most and has a thin mesocarp which separates easily from a distinctly pitted endocarp. Acrocomia proper has fruit with a thick mesocarpof very short densefibers ad' herent to an essentially smooth or more rarely shallowly pitted endocarp. These fibers are removed from the endocarp only by considerable scraping with a scalpel. Taking these differences in sum, it appears clear that Acrocomin crispa diI' fers from all remaining speciesof the genus, including others in Cuba, in an assemblageof characteristicsdespite its seneral habital resemblance.Acrocomia L""o*", a genus which is readily char' acterized and recognizedeven from ra- chillae lacking flowers when A. crispa is removed. lf A. crispacannot be retainedin lc- rocomia, can it be placed in one of the other cocoid genera armed with prick- les? Astrocaryu'm,Bactris'and' Deswon- czrsdiffer markedly in having petals of 2. Gastrococos crispa (left) with persistent pistillate flowers united in a tubular 3- pr.ickles in rings on trunks, a tree of ftol- lobed. 3-toothed or even truncate cor- itonea regia to r.ight, Camaguey Province, olla as well as in other characteristicsso Cuba. Photo by J. A. G. Dary' 1967) MOORE:GASTROCOCOS 1I7 that A. crispa clearly does not belong with them. Comparing with Aiphanes, however, one finds many similarities both in inflorescenceand flowers. The arransement of staminate flowers in iffi i;.ls 4. Representative fruits of Gastrococos crispa. Reoroduced- from Gentes Herbarum 4z 463, fis.290. I94L. pairs above the triads, the union of oetals with each other and with the sta- minodial tube in the pistillate {lower, the erect stamen-filamentsof the sta- minate flowers are similar in A. crispa and,Aiphanes. Yet there are differences which in sum again suggestthat to in- clude l. crispa in Aiphanes would de- stroy the homogeneity of that genus: the sepalsof both staminate and pistil- late flowers are united in A. crispa, dis' tinct in Aiphanes; the petals of pistil- late flowers are united basally and erect above in A. crispa, united basally but with spreading triangular valvate lobes in Aiphanes; the pinnae oI A. crispa are acute to acuminate, those of Aiphanes are oblique or truncate, broad, and strongly toothed at the apex; the trunk is swollen in A. crispa, essentiallyuni- form in Aiphanes; and A. crispa ocatrs in geographic isolation irom Aiphanes which extendsnorthward only to Puerto Rico in the West Indies. Both Aiphanes and Acrocomia crispa 3. An old inflorescence of Gastrococos crispa appear to have evolved from a common with persistent bracts, Reproduced from Gez- tes Herbarum 4: 426, lig.25B. 194f, ancestral type yet to dif{erent degrees IIB PRINCIPES lVol. ll and in di{ferent ways. Thus I prefer to nate in a shallow to deep cupule: sta' maintain two distinct generic units as minate flowers ancl inflorescences the best way of expressingthis evolution various: fruit lacking abundant short in a taxonomic scheme: Aiphanes ior fibers adherent to the endocarp. some 40 taxa of Central and South 2. Pistillate petals connate 1/s'a/2their America and the West Indies north to length in a companulate tube with Puerto Rico; Gastrococos for the single prominent valvate lobes; stamin- and adnate to the speqiesof Cuba. The following as yet bdes connate corqlla-tubebasally, but distinct or preliminary key to the six genera which confinued in a free 3'6Jobed or recognize in the Bactrideae I currently -toothed or truncate tube some- in per- may serve to put Gastrococos times nearly equalling the stigmas spective.,A,crocom.ia I consider to in- above: staminateflowers with sta- clade Acanthococos as suggested by men-filaments erect, the basifixed Wessels'Boer (Flora ol Surinarne 5: anthers often sagittate basally; 122. L965) ; Bactris includes Guilielma, pistillode evident. P y renoglyphis and Y uy ba. 3. Sepals of pistillate flowers dis- Preliminary Key to Genera o{ tinct and imbricate; sepals of (ex- Bactrideae staminate flowers distinct cept where united to the floral I. Petals of the pistillate flowers distinct receptacle) and separated or and broadly imbricate, or if some' imbricate: lobes of pistillate co- times pirtially connate basally and rolla spreading at anthesis:pin- with an adnate staminodial tube, then nae variously oblique or trun- at least the margins free and imbri- cate, broad, and strongly toothed cate; pistillate sepals distinct; sta' at the apex: trunks essentially minate flowers with distinct sepals uniform in diameter.