61. Berrya ammonilla.—This furnishes the Trincomalee wood of the Philippine Islands and Ceylon, and is largely used for making oil casks and for building boats, for which it is well adapted, being light and strong.
62. Bertholletia excelsa.—This furnishes the well known Brazil nuts, or cream nuts of commerce. The tree is a native of South America and attains a height of 100 to 150 feet. The fruit is nearly round and contains from eighteen to twenty-four seeds, which are so beautifully packed in the shell that when once removed it is found impossible to replace them. A bland oil is pressed from the seeds, which is used by artists, and at Para the fibrous bark of the tree is used for calking ships, as a substitute for oakum.
63. Bignonia echinata.—A native of Mexico, where it is sometimes called Mariposa butterfly. The branches are said to be used in the adulteration of sarsaparilla. B. chica, a native of Venezuela, furnishes a red pigment, obtained by macerating the leaves in water, which is used by the natives for painting their bodies. The long flexible stems of B. kerere furnish the natives of French Guiana with a substitute for ropes. B. alliacea is termed the Garlic shrub, because of the powerful odor of garlic emitted from its leaves and branches when bruised. These plants all have showy flowers, and the genus is represented with us by such beautiful flowers as are produced by B. radicans and B. capreolata.
64. Bixa orellana.—Arnotta plant. This plant is a native of South America, but has been introduced and cultivated both in the West and East Indies. It bears bunches of pink-colored flowers, which are followed by oblong bristled pods. The seeds are thinly coated with red, waxy pulp, which is separated by stirring them in water until it is detached, when it is strained off and evaporated to the consistence of putty, when it is made up into rolls; in this condition it is known as flag or roll arnotta, but when thoroughly dried it is made into cakes and sold as cake arnotta. It is much used by the South American Caribs and other tribes of Indians for painting their bodies, paint being almost their only article of clothing. As a commercial article it is mainly used as a coloring for cheese, butter, and inferior chocolates, to all of which it gives the required tinge without imparting any unpleasant flavor or unwholesome quality. It is also used in imparting rich orange and gold-colored tints to various kinds of varnishes.
65. Blighia sapida.—The akee fruit of Guinea. The fruit is about 3 inches long by 2 inches wide; the seeds are surrounded by a spongy substance, which is eaten. It has a subacid, agreeable taste. A small quantity of semisolid fatty oil is obtained from the seeds by pressure.
66. Bœhmeria nivea.—A plant of the nettle family, which yields the fiber known as Chinese grass. The beautiful fabric called grasscloth, which rivals the best French cambric in softness and fineness of texture, is manufactured from the fiber of this plant. The fiber is also variously known in commerce as rheea, ramie, and in China as Tchow-ma. It is a plant of the easiest culture, and has been introduced into the Southern States, where it grows freely. When once machinery is perfected so as to enable its being cheaply prepared for the manufacturer, a great demand will arise for this fiber.
67. Boldoa fragrans.—A Chilian plant which yields small edible fruits; these, as well as all parts of the plant, are very aromatic. The bark is used for tanning, and the wood is highly esteemed for making charcoal. An alkaloid called boldine, extracted from the plant, has reputed medicinal value, and a drug called Boldu is similarly produced.
68. Borassus flabelliformis.—The Palmyra palm. The parts of this tree are applied to such a multitude of purposes that a poem in the Tamil language, although enumerating eight hundred uses, does not exhaust the catalogue. In old trees the wood becomes hard and is very durable. The leaves are from 8 to 10 feet long, and are used for thatching houses, making various mattings, bags, etc. They also supply the Hindoo with paper, upon which he writes with a stylus. A most important product called toddy or palm wine is obtained from the flower spikes, which yield a great quantity of juice for four or five months. Palm-toddy is intoxicating, and when distilled yields strong arrack. Very good vinegar is also obtained from it, and large quantities of jaggery or palm sugar are manufactured from the toddy. The fruits are large and have a thick coating of fibrous pulp, which is cooked and eaten or made into jelly. The young palm plants are cultivated for the market, as cabbages are with us, and eaten, either when fresh or after being dried in the sun.
69. Boswellia thurifera.—This Coromandel tree furnishes the resin known as olibanum, which is supposed to have been the frankincense of the ancients. It is sometimes used in medicine as an astringent and stimulant, and is employed, because of its grateful perfume, as an incense in churches.
70. Bromelia karatas.—The Corawa fiber, or silk-grass of Guiana, is obtained from this plant, which is very strong, and much used for bowstrings, fishing lines, nets, and ropes.