Myrtus.

Myrtus arayan H. B. & K. Myrtaceae.

Peru. This species is cultivated for ornament and fruit. The fruit is of a rich, spicy, subacid flavor.

Myrtus communis Linn. Myrtle.

Southern Europe and the Orient. In Greece, myrtle was sacred to Venus and was a coronary plant. Its fruit is eaten by the modern, as it was by the ancient, Athenians. The dried fruit and flower-buds, says Lindley, were formerly used as a spice and are said still to be so used in Tuscany.

Myrtus molinae Barn.

Chile, where it is called temo. Its seeds, Molina says, may be used for coffee.

Myrtus nummularia Poir. Cranberry-Myrtle.

Chile to Fuego and the Falkland Islands. Hooker describes the berries as fleshy, sweet and of agreeable flavor.

Myrtus ugni Molina. Chilean Guava.

Chile. Don says the fruit is red and musky. The natives express the juice and mix it with water to form a refreshing drink. Mufeller says it bears small but pleasantly aromatic berries. The fruit is said to be agreeably flavored and aromatic It fruits abundantly in the greenhouses of England, but its flavor does not recommend it as a table fruit.

Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World, 1919, was edited by U. P. Hedrick.