Division I. Polypetalous Exogenous Plants (part 3)

Calyx-teeth minute. Fruit ovate to oblong, glabrous, with prominent corky nearly equal ribs; oil-tubes 1–3 in the intervals; stylopodium depressed; seed-face plane.—Smooth perennials, growing in water or wet places, with pinnate leaves and serrate or pinnatifid leaflets, involucre and involucels of numerous narrow bracts, and white flowers. (From σίον, the Greek name of some marsh plant.)

1. S. cicutæfòlium, Gmelin. Stout, 2–6° high; leaflets 3–8 pairs, linear to lanceolate, sharply serrate and mostly acuminate, 2–5´ long (lower leaves sometimes submersed and finely dissected, as in the next); fruit 1½´´ long, with prominent ribs. (S. lineare, Michx.)—Throughout N. America.

2. S. Carsònii, Durand. Weak, 1–2° high; leaflets 1–3 pairs, linear, sharply serrate, 1–2´ long; when submersed or floating, very thin, ovate to oblong, usually laciniately toothed or dissected, the leaf sometimes reduced to the terminal leaflet; fruit about 1´´ long.—Mass., R. I., Conn., and Penn.

23. BÉRULA, Koch.

Calyx-teeth minute. Fruit nearly round, emarginate at base, glabrous; carpels nearly globose, with very slender inconspicuous ribs and thick corky pericarp; oil-tubes numerous and contiguous about the seed-cavity; seed terete.—Smooth aquatic perennial, with simply pinnate leaves and variously cut leaflets, usually conspicuous involucre and involucels of narrow bracts, and white flowers. (The Latin name of the Water-cress, of Celtic origin.)

1. B. angustifòlia, Koch. Erect, ½–3° high, leaflets 5–9 pairs, linear to oblong or ovate, serrate to cut-toothed, often laciniately lobed, sometimes crenate (½–3´ long); fruit scarcely 1´´ long. (Sium angustifolium, L.)—Throughout the U. S. July, Aug.

24. ZÍZIA, Koch.

Calyx-teeth prominent. Fruit ovate to oblong, glabrous, with filiform ribs; oil-tubes large and solitary in the broad intervals, and a small one in each rib; stylopodium wanting; seed terete.—Smooth perennials (1–3° high), with mostly Thaspium-like leaves, no involucre, involucels of small bractlets, yellow flowers, and the central fruit of each umbellet sessile. Flowering in early spring in open prairies and upland meadows. (Named for I. B. Ziz, a Rhenish botanist.)

1. Z. aùrea, Koch. Leaves (except the uppermost) 2–3-ternate the radical very long-petioled; leaflets ovate to lanceolate, sharply serrate; rays 15–25, stout (1–2´ long); fruit oblong, about 2´´ long. (Thaspium aureum, var. apterum, Gray, Manual.)—Atlantic States, west to Minn. and Tex.

Var. Bébbii, Coult. & Rose. A more slender mountain form, with leaflets more coarsely serrate, the radical leaves smaller and more simple; rays 2–8, slender (2–3´ long); fruit oval, 1–1½´´ long.—W. Va. and Va. to Ga.

2. Z. cordàta, DC. Radical leaves mostly long-petioled, cordate or even rounder, crenately toothed, very rarely lobed or divided; stem-leaves simply ternate or quinate, with the ovate or lanceolate leaflets serrate, incised, or sometimes parted; fruit ovate, 1½´´ long. (Thaspium trifoliatum, var. apterum, Gray, Manual.)—Same range as the preceding, but extending farther westward.

25. CÀRUM, L. Caraway.

Calyx-teeth small. Fruit ovate or oblong, glabrous, with filiform or inconspicuous ribs; oil-tubes solitary; stylopodium conical; seed-face plane or nearly so.—Smooth erect slender herbs, with fusiform or tuberous roots, pinnate leaves, involucre and involucels of few to many bracts, and white (or yellowish) flowers. (Name perhaps from the country, Caria.)

C. Cárui, L. (Caraway.) Leaves pinnately compound, with filiform divisions.—Naturalized in many places, especially northward. (Nat. from Eu.)

C. Petroselìnum, Benth., the common Parsley, from Europe, with 3-pinnate leaves, ovate 3-cleft leaflets, and greenish yellow flowers, is occasionally found as an escape from cultivation. (Petroselinum sativum, Hoffm.)

26. CICÙTA, L. Water-Hemlock.

Calyx-teeth prominent. Fruit oblong to nearly orbicular, glabrous, with strong flattish corky ribs (the lateral largest); oil-tubes conspicuous, solitary; stylopodium depressed; seed nearly terete.—Smooth marsh perennials, very poisonous, with pinnately compound leaves and serrate leaflets, involucre usually none, involucels of several slender bractlets, and white flowers. (The ancient Latin name of the Hemlock.)

1. C. maculàta, L. (Spotted Cowbane. Musquash Root. Beaver-Poison.) Stem stout, 2–6° high, streaked with purple; leaves 2–3-pinnate, the lower on long petioles; leaflets lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate (1–5´ long), acuminate, coarsely serrate, the veins passing to the notches; pedicels in the umbellets numerous, very unequal; fruit broadly ovate to oval, 1–1½´´ long.—Throughout the U. S. Aug.

2. C. bulbífera, L. Rather slender, 1–3° high; leaves 2–3-pinnate (sometimes appearing ternate); leaflets linear, sparsely toothed (1–2´ long); upper axils bearing clustered bulblets; fruit (rare) scarcely 1´´ long.—Common in swamps, N. Scotia to Del., west to Minn. and Iowa.

27. ÆGOPÒDIUM, L. Goutweed.

Calyx-teeth obsolete. Fruit ovate, glabrous, with equal filiform ribs, and no oil-tubes; stylopodium conical and prominent; seed nearly terete.—A coarse glabrous perennial, with creeping rootstock, biternate leaves, sharply toothed ovate leaflets, and rather large naked umbels of white flowers. (Name from αἴξ, goat, and πόδιον, a little foot, probably from the shape of the leaflets.)

Æ. Podagrària, L., a common and troublesome weed in Europe, is reported from R. I. to Del. and E. Penn.

28. LEPTOCAÙLIS, Nutt.

Calyx-teeth obsolete. Fruit very small, ovate, usually bristly or tuberculate, with somewhat prominent ribs; oil-tubes solitary in the intervals; stylopodium conical; seed-face plane or somewhat concave.—Very slender smooth branching annuals, with finely dissected leaves (segments filiform or linear), and small white flowers in very unequally few-rayed pedunculate umbels. (Name from λεπτός, slender, and καυλός, a stem.)

1. L. divaricàtus, DC. Plant 1–2° high, with branches and umbels diffusely spreading, the very slender rays ½–1´ long and the longer pedicels often 3–6´´ long; fruit tuberculate, ½´´ long. (Apium divaricatum, Benth. & Hook.)—N. C. to Fla., west to Ark. and Tex.; reported from Kan. April.

2. L. pàtens, Nutt. Of similar habit, but the umbels shorter and more strict, the rays 3–6´´ long or less and the pedicels short; fruit densely sharp-tuberculate or nearly smooth. (Apiastrum patens, Coult. & Rose.)—Central Neb. to Tex. and N. Mex.

29. DISCOPLEÙRA, DC. Mock Bishop-weed.

Calyx-teeth small or obsolete. Fruit ovate, glabrous; carpel with dorsal ribs filiform to broad and obtuse, the lateral very thick and corky, those of the two carpels closely contiguous and forming a dilated obtuse or acute corky band; oil-tubes solitary, stylopodium conical; seed nearly terete.—Smooth branching annuals, with finely dissected leaves, involucre of foliaceous bracts, involucels of prominent or minute bractlets, and white flowers. (Name from δίσκος, a disk, and πλευρόν, a rib.)

1. D. capillàcea, DC. Plant 1–2° high (or even 5–6°); leaves dissected into filiform divisions; umbel 5–20-rayed, involucre of filiform bracts usually cleft or parted, and involucels more or less prominent, fruit 1–1½´´ long, ovate, acute.—Wet ground, Mass. to Fla., west to Ill., Mo., and Tex. June–Oct.

2. D. Nuttàllii, DC. Similar in habit; involucral bracts short and entire; fruit very small (½´´ long), as broad as high, blunt.—Ill. (?) to Ark., La., and Tex.

30. CONÌUM, L. Poison Hemlock.

Calyx-teeth obsolete. Fruit ovate, somewhat flattened at the sides, glabrous, with prominent wavy ribs; oil-tubes none, but a layer of secreting cells next the seed, whose face is deeply and narrowly concave.—Poisonous biennial, with spotted stems, large decompound leaves with lanceolate pinnatifid leaflets, involucre and involucels of narrow bracts, and white flowers. (Κώνειον, the Greek name of the Hemlock, by which criminals and philosophers were put to death at Athens.)

C. maculàtum, L. A large branching European herb, in waste places, N. Eng. to Penn., and west to Iowa and Minn.

31. CHÆROPHÝLLUM, L.

Calyx-teeth obsolete. Fruit narrowly oblong to linear, notched at base, with short beak or none, and equal ribs; oil-tubes solitary in the intervals, seed-face more or less deeply grooved.—Moist ground annuals, with ternately decompound leaves, pinnatifid leaflets with oblong obtuse lobes, mostly no involucre, involucels of many bractlets, and white flowers. (Name from χαίρω, to gladden, and φύλλον, a leaf, alluding to the agreeable odor of the foliage.)

1. C. procúmbens, Crantz. More or less hairy; stems slender, spreading (6–18´ high); umbels few-rayed; fruit narrowly oblong (2½–3½´´ long), glabrous, contracted but not tapering at the summit, the intervals broader than the ribs.—N. Y. to N. C., west to Mich., Iowa, Ark., and Miss.

Var. Shórtii, Torr. & Gray, has more broadly oblong to ovate (often somewhat pubescent) fruit, not at all contracted at the summit.—Ky. to Ark. and La.

32. OSMORRHÌZA, Raf. Sweet Cicely.

Calyx-teeth obsolete. Fruit linear to linear-oblong, with prominent caudate attenuation at base, very bristly, with equal ribs; oil-tubes obsolete; seed-face concave.—Glabrous to hirsute perennials (1–3° high) from thick aromatic roots, with ternately compound leaves, ovate variously toothed leaflets, few-leaved involucres and involucels, and white flowers in few-rayed and few-fruited umbels. (Name from ὀσμή, a scent, and ῥίζα, a root.)

1. O. brevístylis, DC. Rather stout, villous-pubescent; leaves 2–3-ternate; leaflets 2–3´ long, acuminate; fruit (not including the caudate attenuation) 6´´ long; stylopodium and style ½´´ long.—From N. Scotia westward through the Northern States, and in the mountains to N. C. May, June.

2. O. longístylis, DC. Glabrous or slightly pubescent; like the last, but with the style 1´´ long or more, and the seed-face more deeply and broadly concave.—N. Scotia to Va., and west to Tenn., E. Kan., and Dak.

33. ERIGÈNIA, Nutt. Harbinger-of-Spring.

Calyx-teeth obsolete. Petals obovate or spatulate, flat, entire. Fruit didymous, nearly orbicular and laterally flattened, the carpels incurved at top and bottom, nearly kidney-form, with 5 very slender ribs, and several (1–3) small oil-tubes in the intervals; inner face of the seed hollowed into a broad deep cavity.—A small glabrous vernal plant, producing from a deep round tuber a simple stem, bearing one or two 2–3-ternately divided leaves, and a somewhat imperfect and leafy-bracted compound umbel. Flowers few, white. (Name from ἠριγένεια, born in the spring.)

1. E. bulbòsa, Nutt. Stem 3–9´ high; leaf-segments linear-oblong; fruit 1´´ long, 1½´´ broad.—W. New York to Md. and Tenn., and west to Wisc., S. E. Minn., and Kan.

34. HYDROCÓTYLE, Tourn. Water Pennywort.

Calyx-teeth obsolete. Fruit strongly flattened laterally, orbicular or shield-shaped; the carpels 5-ribbed, two of the ribs enlarged and often forming a thickened margin; oil-tubes none, but usually a conspicuous oil-bearing layer beneath the epidermis.—Low, mostly smooth, marsh or aquatic perennials, with slender creeping stems, and round shield-shaped or kidney-form leaves, with scale-like stipules. Flowers small, white, in simple umbels or clusters, which are either single or proliferous (one above another), appearing all summer. (Name from ὕδωρ, water, and κοτύλη, a flat cup, the peltate leaves of several species being somewhat cup-shaped.)

[*] Pericarp thin except at the broad corky dorsal and lateral ribs; leaves round-peltate, crenate; peduncles as long as the petioles, from creeping rootstocks.

[+] Fruit notched at base and apex; intermediate ribs corky.

1. H. umbellàta, L. Umbels many-flowered, simple (sometimes proliferous); pedicels 2–6´´ long; fruit about 1½´´ broad, strongly notched, the dorsal ribs prominent but obtuse.—Mass. to Minn., south to the Gulf.

2. H. Cánbyi, Coult. & Rose. Umbels 3–9-flowered, generally proliferous; pedicels very short, but distinct; fruit about 2 lines broad; carpels broader and more flattened than in the preceding, sharper margined, the dorsal and lateral ribs much more prominent; seed-section much narrower. (H. umbellata, var.? ambigua, Gray, Manual).—N. J. to Md.

[+][+] Fruit not notched; intermediate ribs not corky.

3. H. verticillàta, Thunb. Umbels few-flowered, proliferous, forming an interrupted spike; pedicels very short or none; fruit 1½–2´´ broad; dorsal and lateral ribs very prominent. (H. interrupta, Muhl.)—Mass. to Fla.

[*][*] Pericarp uniformly corky-thickened and ribs all filiform; leaves not peltate; peduncles much shorter than the petioles.

[+] Fruit small, without secondary ribs or reticulations; involucre small or none.

4. H. Americàna, L. Stems filiform, branching and creeping; leaves thin, round-reniform, crenate-lobed and the lobes crenate, shining; few-flowered umbels axillary and almost sessile; fruit less than 1´´ broad; intermediate ribs prominent; no oil-bearing layer; seed-section broadly oval.—Common. (Addendum) Propagating by filiform tuberiferous stolons.

5. H. ranunculoìdes, L. f. Usually floating; leaves thicker, round-reniform, 3–7-cleft, the lobes crenate; peduncles 1–3´ long, reflexed in fruit; capitate umbel 5–10-flowered; fruit 1–1½´´ broad; ribs rather obscure; seed-section oblong.—E. Penn. to Fla., thence westward.

[+][+] Fruit larger (2–2½´´ broad), with prominent secondary ribs and reticulations; the 2–4-flowered umbel subtended by two conspicuous bracts.

6. H. Asiática, L. Petioles and peduncles (1–2´ long) clustered on creeping stems or runners; leaves ovate-cordate, repand-toothed, thickish; seed-section narrowly oblong. (H. repanda, Pers.)—Md. to Fla. and Tex. (Widely distributed in the tropics and southern hemisphere.)

35. ERÝNGIUM, Tourn. Eryngo.

Calyx-teeth prominent, rigid and persistent. Styles slender. Fruit ovate or obovate, covered with little hyaline scales or tubercles, with no ribs, and usually 5 slender oil-tubes on each carpel.—Chiefly perennials, with coriaceous, toothed, cut, or prickly leaves, and blue or white bracted flowers closely sessile in dense heads. (A name used by Dioscorides, of uncertain origin.)

[*] Stout, with parallel-veined elongated linear thick leaves.

1. E. yuccæfòlium, Michx. (Rattlesnake-Master. Button Snake-root.) Branching above, 1–6° high; leaves rigid, tapering to a point (lower sometimes 2–3° long), the margins remotely bristly; heads ovate-globose (9´´ long), with ovate-lanceolate mostly entire cuspidate-tipped bracts shorter than the head, and similar bractlets.—Dry or damp soil, N. J. to Minn., south to Fla. and Tex. July–Sept.

[*][*] Tall and often stout; leaves thick, not parallel-veined.

2. E. Virginiànum, Lam. Slender (1–3° high); radical and lower stem-leaves linear- to oblong-lanceolate, on long (sometimes 1° long) fistulous petioles, entire or with small hooked teeth; upper leaves sessile, spiny-toothed or laciniate; heads ovate-oblong (6´´ long), with spiny-toothed or entire reflexed bracts, and bractlets with 3 spiny cusps (the middle one largest).—Margins of ponds and streams, N. J. to Fla. and Tex., near the coast. Aug., Sept.

3. E. Leavenwórthii, Torr. & Gray. Stout (1–3° high); lowest stem-leaves broadly oblanceolate, spinosely toothed, the rest sessile and deeply palmately-parted into narrow incisely-pinnatifid spreading pungent segments; heads ovate-oblong (1–1½´ long), with pinnatifid spinose bracts and 3–7-cuspidate bractlets, the terminal ones very prominent and resembling the bracts.—Dry soil, E. Kan., Ark., and Tex.

[*][*][*] Prostrate and slender, rooting at the joints, diffusely branched, with small thin unarmed leaves and very small heads.

4. E. prostràtum, Nutt. Lower leaves oblong, entire, few-toothed, or lobed at base; upper leaves smaller, clustered at the rooting joints, ovate, few-toothed or entire (occasionally some additional trifid ones); reflexed bracts longer than the oblong heads (2–4´´ long).—Wet places, S. Mo. to Fla. and Tex.

36. SANÍCULA, Tourn. Sanicle. Black Snakeroot.

Calyx-teeth manifest, persistent. Fruit globular; the carpels not separating spontaneously, ribless, thickly clothed with hooked prickles, each with 5 oil-tubes.—Perennial rather tall glabrous herbs, with few palmately-lobed or parted leaves, those from the root long-petioled. Umbels irregular or compound, the flowers (greenish or yellowish) capitate in the umbellets, perfect, and with staminate ones intermixed. Involucre and involucels few-leaved. (Name said to be from sano, to heal; or perhaps from San Nicolas.)

1. S. Marylándica, L. Stem 1–3° high; leaves 3–7-parted, the divisions mostly sharply cut and serrate; sterile flowers numerous and long-pedicelled; fruit 1½–2´´ long, the styles longer than the prickles.—Throughout our range, south to Ga. and Tenn., west to E. Kan. and Minn. May–Aug.

Var. Canadénsis, Torr., has comparatively few and short-pedicelled sterile flowers, and styles shorter than the prickles. (S. Canadensis, L.)—With the last, but westward only to Minn. and E. Kan.

Order 49. ARALIÀCEÆ. (Ginseng Family.)

Herbs, shrubs, or trees, with much the same characters as Umbelliferæ, but with usually more than 2 styles, and the fruit a few–several-celled drupe.—Albumen mostly fleshy. Petals not inflexed.

1. ARÀLIA, Tourn. Ginseng. Wild Sarsaparilla.

Flowers more or less polygamous. Calyx-tube coherent with the ovary, the teeth very short or almost obsolete. Petals 5, epigynous, oblong or obovate, lightly imbricated in the bud, deciduous. Stamens 5, epigynous, alternate with the petals. Styles 2–5, mostly distinct and slender, or in the sterile flowers short and united. Ovary 2–5-celled, with a single anatropous ovule suspended from the top of each cell, ripening into a berry-like drupe, with as many seeds as cells. Embryo minute.—Leaves compound or decompound. Flowers white or greenish, in umbels. Roots (perennial), bark, fruit, etc., warm and aromatic. (Derivation obscure.)

§ 1. ARALIA. Flowers monœciously polygamous or perfect, the umbels usually in corymbs or panicles; styles and cells of the (black or dark purple) fruit 5; stems herbaceous or woody; ultimate divisions of the leaves pinnate.

[*] Umbels numerous in a large compound panicle; leaves very large, decompound.

1. A. spinòsa, L. (Angelica-tree. Hercules' Club.) Shrub, or a low tree; the stout stem and stalks prickly; leaflets ovate, pointed, serrate, pale beneath.—River-banks, Penn. to Ind., and south to the Gulf. July, Aug.

2. A. racemòsa, L. (Spikenard.) Herbaceous; stem widely branched; leaflets heart-ovate, pointed, doubly serrate, slightly downy; umbels racemose; styles united.—Rich woodlands, N. Brunswick to Minn., south to the mountains of Ga. July. Well known for its spicy-aromatic large roots.

[*][*] Umbels 2–7, corymbed; stem short, somewhat woody.

3. A. híspida, Vent. (Bristly Sarsaparilla. Wild Elder.) Stem (1–2° high) bristly, leafy, terminating in a peduncle bearing several umbels; leaves twice pinnate; leaflets oblong-ovate, acute, cut-serrate.—Rocky and sandy places, Newf. to Dak., south to the mountains of N. C. June.

4. A. nudicaùlis, L. (Wild Sarsaparilla.) Stem scarcely rising out of the ground, smooth, bearing a single long-stalked leaf (1° high) and a shorter naked scape, with 2–7 umbels; leaflets oblong-ovate or oval, pointed, serrate, 5 on each of the 3 divisions.—Moist woodlands; range of n. 3. May, June. The long horizontal aromatic roots a substitute for officinal Sarsaparilla.

§ 2. GÍNSENG. Flowers diœciously polygamous; styles and cells of the red or reddish fruit 2 or 3; stem herbaceous, low, simple, bearing a whorl of 3 palmately 3–7-foliolate leaves, and a simple umbel on a slender peduncle.

5. A. quinquefòlia, Decsne. & Planch. (Ginseng.) Root large and spindle-shaped, often forked (4–9´ long, aromatic); stem 1° high; leaflets long-stalked, mostly 5, large and thin, obovate-oblong, pointed; styles mostly 2; fruit bright red.—Rich and cool woods, Vt. and W. Conn. to Minn., south to the mountains of Ga. July.

6. A. trifòlia, Decsne. & Planch. (Dwarf Ginseng. Ground-nut.) Root or tuber globular, deep in the ground (pungent to the taste, not aromatic); stems 4–8´ high; leaflets 3–5, sessile at the summit of the leafstalk, narrowly oblong, obtuse; styles usually 3; fruit yellowish.—Rich woods, N. Scotia to Minn., south to Ga. April, May.

Order 50. CORNÀCEÆ. (Dogwood Family.)

Shrubs or trees (rarely herbaceous), with opposite or alternate simple leaves, the calyx-tube coherent with the 1–2-celled ovary, its limb minute, the petals (valvate in the bud) and as many stamens borne on the margin of an epigynous disk in the perfect flowers; style one; a single anatropous ovule hanging from the top of the cell; the fruit a 1–2-seeded drupe; embryo nearly as long as the albumen, with large foliaceous cotyledons.—Including two genera, of which Nyssa is partly apetalous. Bark bitter and tonic.

1. Cornus. Flowers perfect, 4-merous. Leaves mostly opposite.

2. Nyssa. Flowers diœciously polygamous, 5-merous. Leaves alternate.

1. CÓRNUS, Tourn. Cornel. Dogwood.

Flowers perfect (or in some foreign species diœcious). Calyx minutely 4-toothed. Petals 4, oblong, spreading. Stamens 4; filaments slender. Style slender; stigma terminal, flat or capitate. Drupe small, with a 2-celled and 2-seeded stone.—Leaves opposite (except in one species), entire. Flowers small, in open naked cymes, or in close heads surrounded by a corolla-like involucre. (Name from cornu, a horn; alluding to the hardness of the wood.)

§ 1. Flowers greenish, in a head or close cluster, surrounded by a large and showy, 4-leaved, corolla-like, white or rarely pinkish involucre; fruit bright red.

1. C. Canadénsis, L. (Dwarf Cornel. Bunch-berry.) Stems low and simple (5–7´ high) from a slender creeping and subterranean rather woody trunk; leaves scarcely petioled, the lower scale-like, the upper crowded into an apparent whorl in sixes or fours, ovate or oval, pointed; leaves of the involucre ovate; fruit globular.—Damp cold woods, N. J. to Ind. and Minn., and the far north and west. June.

2. C. flórida, L. (Flowering Dogwood.) Tree 12–40° high; leaves ovate, pointed, acutish at the base; leaves of the involucre obcordate (1½´ long); fruit oval.—Dry woods, from S. New Eng. to Ont. and S. Minn., south to Fla. and Tex. May, June. Very showy in flower, scarcely less so in fruit.

§ 2. Flowers white, in open flat spreading cymes; involucre none; fruit spherical; leaves all opposite (except in n. 9).

[*] Pubescence woolly and more or less spreading.

3. C. circinàta, L'Her. (Round-leaved Cornel or Dogwood.) Shrub 6–10° high; branches greenish, warty-dotted; leaves round-oval, abruptly pointed, woolly beneath (2–5´ broad); cymes flat; fruit light blue.—Copses, in rich or sandy soil, or on rocks, N. Scotia to Dak., south to Va. and Mo. June.

4. C. serícea, L. (Silky Cornel. Kinnikinnik.) Shrub 3–10° high; branches purplish; the branchlets, stalks, and lower surface of the narrowly ovate or elliptical pointed leaves silky-downy (often rusty), pale and dull; cymes flat, close; calyx-teeth lanceolate; fruit pale blue.—Wet places, Canada to Dak., south to Fla. and La. June.

5. C. asperifòlia, Michx. Branches brownish; the branchlets, etc., rough-pubescent; leaves oblong or ovate, on short petioles, pointed, rough with a harsh pubescence above, and downy beneath; calyx-teeth minute; fruit white. (C. Drummondii, Mey.)—Dry or sandy soil, N. shore of L. Erie to Minn. and the Gulf. May, June. A rather tall shrub.

[*][*] Pubescence closely appressed, straight and silky, or none.

6. C. stolonífera, Michx. (Red-osier Dogwood.) Branches, especially the osier-like shoots of the season, bright red-purple, smooth; leaves ovate, rounded at base, abruptly short-pointed, roughish with a minute close pubescence on both sides, whitish underneath; cymes small and flat, rather few-flowered, smooth; fruit white or lead-color.—Wet places; common, especially northward. Multiplies freely by prostrate or subterranean suckers, and forms broad clumps, 3–6° high. June.

7. C. strícta, Lam. (Stiff Cornel.) A shrub 8–15° high; branches brownish or reddish, smooth; leaves ovate or ovate-lanceolate, taper-pointed, acutish at base, glabrous, of nearly the same hue both sides; cymes loose, flattish; anthers and fruit pale blue.—Swamps, Va. to Ga. and Fla. April, May.

8. C. paniculàta, L'Her. (Panicled Cornel.) Shrub 4–8° high, much branched; branches gray, smooth; leaves ovate-lanceolate, taper-pointed, acute at base, whitish beneath but not downy; cymes convex, loose, often panicled; fruit white, depressed-globose.—Thickets and river-banks. June.

9. C. alternifòlia, L. f. Shrub or tree 8–25° high; branches greenish streaked with white, the alternate leaves clustered at the ends, ovate or oval, long-pointed, acute at base, whitish and minutely pubescent beneath; cymes very broad and open; fruit deep blue on reddish stalks.—Hillsides in copses, N. Brunswick to Minn., south to Ga. and Ala. May, June.

2. NÝSSA, L. Tupelo. Pepperidge. Sour-Gum Tree.

Flowers diœciously polygamous, clustered or rarely solitary at the summit of axillary peduncles. Stam. Fl. numerous in a simple or compound dense cluster of fascicles. Calyx small, 5-parted. Petals as in fertile flower or none. Stamens 5–12, oftener 10, inserted on the outside of a convex disk; filaments slender; anthers short. No pistil. Pist. Fl. solitary, or 2–8, sessile in a bracted cluster, much larger than the staminate flowers. Calyx with a very short repand-truncate or minutely 5-toothed limb. Petals very small and fleshy, deciduous, or often wanting. Stamens 5–10, with perfect or imperfect anthers. Style elongated, revolute, stigmatic down one side. Ovary 1-celled. Drupe ovoid or oblong, with a bony and grooved or striate 1-celled and 1-seeded stone.—Trees with entire or sometimes angulate-toothed leaves, which are alternate, but mostly crowded at the ends of the branchlets, and greenish flowers appearing with the leaves. (The name of a Nymph: "so called because it [the original species] grows in the water.")

1. N. sylvática, Marsh. (Tupelo. Pepperidge. Black or Sour Gum.) Middle-sized tree, with horizontal branches; leaves oval or obovate, commonly acuminate, glabrous or villous pubescent when young, at least on the margins and midrib, shining above when old (2–5´ long); fertile flowers 3–8, at the summit of a slender peduncle; fruit ovoid, acid, bluish-black (about ½´ long). (N. multiflora, Wang.)—Rich soil, either moist or nearly dry, S. Maine and N. Vt. to Mich., south to Fla. and Tex. April, May. Leaves turning bright crimson in autumn. Wood firm, close-grained and very unwedgeable, on account of the oblique direction and crossing of its fibres.

2. N. uniflòra, Wang. (Large Tupelo.) A large tree; leaves oblong or ovate, sometimes slightly cordate at base, long-petioled, entire or angulate-toothed, pale and downy-pubescent beneath, at least when young (4–12´ long); fertile flower solitary on a slender peduncle; fruit oblong, blue (1´ or more in length).—Deep swamps, S. Va. to S. Ill. and Mo., south to Fla. and Tex. April. Wood soft; that of the roots very light and spongy.