CERVIJS. [Cenvinv..] CESTRA'CEiE, or CESTRFN:E, a natural order of plants belonging to the class of Monopetalous Exogens. It is nearly related to Solanacecr, and is sometimes made to form A tribe of that order. It has the following characters :—Limb of corolla plicate, valuate or induplicate in aestivation; calyx 5-toothed ; corolla funnel-shaped, 5-lobed, regular ; tube elongated, limb usually spreading ; statuette 5; anthers dehiscing lengthwise ; ovarium seated on a cupulate disc; pericarp capsular or beccate; placentas adnate to the dissepiment ; embryo nearly straight, with a cylindrical radicle, and roundish leafy cotyledons. It embraces the genera Ccstrum, Lunatics, Jleyenia, Darius, restia, Lessea, Pabiana, Laureria, Lamarkia. In the second edition of the.' Natuml System,' Dr. Lindley recogoises the order Ceatracerr, and adds, " I do not attempt to characterise this assemblage of plants, being uncertain what its real peculiarity is. According to Schlechtendahl, it has all the characters of Solanacece, except that the embryo is nearly straight, and the cotyledons foliaceous To this however it is possible that the valuate mstivation of the corolla ought to be added ; but I am by no means sure that the species of Periphragmos of the 'Flora Peruvians,' with winged seeds, ought not to be included, although, as they have an imbricated xativation, and a tricarpellary fruit, they are placed in Polenioniacecr. These plants, which are very different from those of Jussieu'a Cantuas, especially C. quercifolia, have much the habit of Lycium as well as Vestia. If they really do belong to Polemoniaroe, they must be considered a connecting link between that order and Cestracecr." The genera
then recognised by Lindley were, Cestrum, Vatic, Lessee, Fa biana. In the Vegetable Kingdom,' Dr. Lindley has dropped the order Cestracecr.
The genus Cestrum has a tubular calyx, tereto, very short, obsoletely 5-toothed ; corolla funnel-shaped, with a long slender cylindrical tube; a roundish throat and a flat limb, with ovate equal segments; filaments the length of the tube; withers inclosed, being roundish, 2-celled, many seeded. C. renenalum is a large woody bush which grows at the Cape of Good !lope, in Houtinqua Land, and elsewhere. The flowers are arranged in axillary clusters; the corolla has a reddish tube and a white limb, and emits a perfume resembling Jasmine flowers. A decoction of the bark reduced to an extract by evaporation is employed by the Hottentots to poison their arrows. It is said to be a speedy poison, and is also employed to destroy wild beasts by mixing with their food. C. macrophyltunt and C. noctuurn have similar properties. 0. Hediunda and C. lamifolium are febrifuge, and are applied extensively as astringents in Peru. About 50 species of Ccstrum have been described. They are all of them natives of North and South America, and the West India Islands, and are known by the common name of Bastard Jasmines. They are easily cultivated, and will grow in any rich light soil, and are easily propa gated by cuttings, which should be placed under a hand-glass in heat. The species of the allied genera require the same treatment.
(Don, Gardener's Dictionary; Lindley, Flora Malice; Lindley, Vegetable Kingdom.)