738° AESCULACEAE 
wanting. Androecium of 5-8 regularly inserted stamens, filaments distinct: 
anthers 4-angled. Disk wanting. Gynoecium of 3 or 4 united carpels, wholly ' 
superior. Ovary 3-4-celled : styles united. Ovules 2 in each cavity, half-anat- 
ropous, often superposed, the upper one ascending and the lower one pendu- 
lous. Capsule membranous or leathery, reticulated, 2—6-angled, the angles 
obtuse, or winged, opening septicidally by 2-6 valves. Seed subglobose or 
flattened, without an aril. Endosperm wanting. Embryo spiral. 
1. DODONAEA L. 
Characters of the family, as given above. 
: 1. Dodonaea viscdsa L. A nearly glabrous shrub, with sticky foliage. Stems soli- 
tary or clustered, 2-4 m. tall : leaf-blades simple, mostly oblanceolate or spatulate, 3-10 cm. ; 
long, apiculate or retuse at the apex, entire, attenuate to the base, short-petioled : racemes 
chiefly axillary, 1-2 cm. long: pedicels slender, slightly pubescent: calyx greenish, 5-7 
mm. broad : sepals ovate, obtuse, 1.5 mm. long, slightly pubescent : anthers longer than 
the sepals, about 2 mm. long, curved, ascending: capsules 3-celled, 12-20 mm. ‘broad, | 
po carpel produced into a reniform reticulated wing: seeds solitary in each cavity, sub- 
globose. 
In sand, peninsular Florida and the Keys. Also in tropical America. 
FAMILY 10. STAPHYLEACEAE DC. BLADDERNUT FAMILY. 
Shrubs or trees, with erect stems. Leaves opposite or rarely alternate, with 
stipules: blades compound : leaflets opposite, involute in vernation.  Inflores- 
cence racemose or paniculate. Flowers perfect or polygamous, regular, pedi- 
cellate, subtended by deciduous bracts. Calyx of 5 sepals. Disk cup-like, its , 
edge free. Corolla of 5 imbrieated elongated petals which are inserted under , 
the edge of the disk and are commonly slightly longer than the sepals. Androe- 
cium of 5 stamens inserted under the edge of the disk. Filaments distinct. 
Anthers introrse. Gynoecium of 2 or 3 partially or wholly united carpels. 
Ovary sessile. Styles 3, distinct or united. Stigmas simple. Ovules anatro- , 
pous, horizontal or ascending, inserted in 1 or 2 rows on the ventral suture. 
Fruit an inflated membranous capsule, or a berry. Seeds few or numerous, 
with a bony testa. Endosperm scant, fleshy, Embryo straight, with fleshy, 
plano-convex cotyledons. 
1. STAPHYLEA L. 
Shrubs, with terete branches. Leaves opposite: blades 3-foliolate or pinnately com- , 
pound. Flowers perfect, regular, mostly in axillary racemes or panicles. Sepals 5, equal, 
imbricated, deciduous. Disk lobed. Petals 5, about as long as the sepals, erect, inse 
beneath the edge of the disk. Stamens 5 : filaments equal, erect : anthers apiculate. Carpels 
2-3, 1-celled, united at the base, or rarely throughout : stigmas capitate. Ovules numerous, — 
in 2 series, anatropous, ascending. Capsule membranous, 2-3-celled, 2-3-lobed. Seeds 
solitary or many in each cavity, the aril wanting. BLADDERNUT. s 
1. Staphylea trifoliata L. A slender shrub 1-5 m. tall, with striped twigs. Leaf- 
blades 3-foliolate ; petioles 4-10 cm. long; leaflets oval or elliptic varying to ovate oF 
obovate, 5-10 em. long, acuminate or obtuse, serrate, the lateral ones inequilateral : racemes : 
5-10 cm. long, drooping : pedicels 8-12 mm. long, jointed above the middle: sepals lance- 
olate or oblong, 7-10 mm. long, obtuse, glabrous: petals spatulate, somewhat longer than ; 
the sepals, obtuse, pubescent at the base: filaments about as long as the petals, pubescent 
below the middle: style exserted : ovary pubescent: capsules bladder-like, 3-lobed, 4-6 
em. long, obovoid, the apex of each lobe apiculate. 
In thickets, Quebec to Ontario and Minnesota, Georgia and Missouri. Spring. 
Fairy 11. AESCULACEAE Lindl. Buckeye FAMILY. 
Shrubs or trees, with a tough wood and a close or flaky bark. Leaves 
opposite, without stipules: blades palmately compound. Inflorescence termi- 
nal, of thyrsoid racemes or panicles. Flowers polygamous, unsymmetrica 
and irregular. Calyx of 5 mostly united sepals. Disk annular or one-sided. 
