POLYGONACEAE 373 
sometimes shorter on the branchlets, obtuse, 3-5-nerved, leathery, exceeding the inter- 
nodes except on the upper part of the stem: ocreae cylindric, slightly oblique, not pointed, 
increasing in length toward the upper part of the stem: racemes very dense, 2-3 cm. long, 
disposed in ovoid panicles: ocreolae funnelform, densely imbricated, slightly pointed : 
pedicels jointed at the middle: calyx purple or purplish, 2.5-3.5 mm. long: outer sepals 
slightly accrescent : sepal-wings oblong, 4 mm. long: achenes narrowly oblong, acuminate 
at both ends, 4 mm. long, brown. 
On sand hills, near the coast, Florida. Summer and fall. 
4. GONOPYRUM F. & M. 
Shrubby herbs, with rigid conspicuously jointed stems. Leaves alternate : blades 
narrow, often nearly terete, somewhat fleshy, jointed to the ocreae. Ocreae cylindric. 
Flowers perfect, on solitary jointed pedicels. Ocreolae numerous. Sepals 5, petaloid, 
persistent, unchanged at maturity or the 3 inner developing wings. Stamens 8: filaments 
various, the 3 inner dilated at the base. Ovary 3-angled: styles 3, manifest: stigmas 
capitate. Achene 3-angled, mainly invested by the calyx. Embryo in the face of the mealy 
endosperm. 
Annual: outer sepals not reflexed ; inner sepals not becoming conspicuously larger than the outer. 
2 G. articulatum. 
Perennial: outer sepals reflexed ; inner sepals developing large wings. 2. G. Americanum. 
1. Gonopyrum articulàtum (L.) F. & M. Annual, wiry, glaucous. Stems 1-3 dm. 
tall: leaf-blades linear or linear-subulate, 1-2.5 cm. long, filiform on account of the revo- 
lute margins: ocreae slightly expanded at the summit : racemes many-flowered, 2.5-4 cm. 
long, erect, panicled : ocreolae contiguous or imbricated : pedicels spreading or deflexed, 
longer than the peduncles: calyx pink : sepals erect or slightly spreading in fruit, none de- 
veloping conspicuous wings : achenes narrowly ovoid, 2 mm. long, pointed, brown, smooth 
and shining.  ( Polygonella articulata ( L.) Meisn. ] 
On sandy shores along or near the Atlantic coast, Maine to Florida, and along the Great Lakes. 
Summer and fall. 
2. Gonopyrum Americànum F. & M. Perennial by a long root, glaucescent. Stems 
5-12 dm. tall, somewhat flexuous, often sparingly branched : leaf-blades linear or linear- 
spatulate, 1-3 cm. long, more or less clustered on short branches, obtuse and revolute 
at the apex : ocreae cylindric, slightly split on one side, scarious-margined : racemes 2.5-7.5 
cm. long, disposed in compound panicles: ocreolae densely imbricated : pedicels rigid, 
divergent, terminating somewhat shorter peduncles: calyx white or pink, the 2 outer 
sepals reflexed in fruit, the 3 inner developing suborbicular wings: achenes elliptic-ob- 
long, not quite 3 mm. long, chestnut-brown, pointed at both ends, smooth and shining. 
[ Polygonella ericoides Engelm. & Gray ; P. Meisneriana Shuttl. ] 
In sandy soil, Missouri to Georgia, Alabama and Texas. Summer and fall. 
5. THYSANÉLLA A. Gray. 
Annual caulescent herbs. Stem erect, nearly strict, terete, the branches partially 
adnate to the internodes. Leaves alternate: blades narrow, sessile. Ocreae cylindric, ob- 
lique at the top, fringed with long bristles. Racemes rather dense, disposed in panicles, 
the upper ones fertile, the lower sterile. Flowers polygamo-monoecious, on club-shaped 
pedicels about as long as the peduncles. Ocreolae obliquely-funnelform, prolonged into 
long bristles. Sepals 5, unchanged in fruit, unequal, the 2 outer cordate, the 3 inner 
pectinate-fimbriate, or in fertile flowers all fimbriate. Stamens 8: filaments filiform, 
flattened and spirally twisted. Ovary 3-angled : styles 3, distinct or nearly so : stigmas capi- 
tate. Achene 3-angled. Embryo in an angle of the seed without the mealy endosperm. 
1. Thysanella fimbriata (Ell.) A. Gray. Glabrous. Stem erect, 1.5-6 dm. tall, 
nearly strict, paniculately branched above: leaf-blades narrowly linear, 2-6 cm. long, 
acute, more or less distinctly 3-ribbed, inconspicuously jointed near the top of the ocreae : 
ocreae 5-13 mm. long: racemes 1-8 cm. long: ocreolae imbricated : calyx white or pink, 
the outer sepals oblong-sagittate, cordate, the inner always fimbriate, or all fimbriate in 
fertile flowers: styles } as long as the achene: achenes pyramidal-ovoid, 3-angled, 2 
mm. long, dark brown, long-pointed, smooth, shining, the angles more or less margined. 
In dry pine lands, Georgia and Florida. Summer and fall. 
