CASSYTHACEAE 821 
1. Sassafras Sássafras (L.) Karst. A tree sometimes 30 m. tall, with a maximum 
trunk diameter of nearly 2 m., the bark broken into flat ridges. Leaf-blades varyin 
from oblong to suborbicular in outline, usually 3-lobed, otherwise entire, sometimes lobe 
on one side only, sometimes entire, bright green above, glaucescent and glabrous beneath 
or nearly so, petioled, the lobes obtuse or acutish : racemes 2-5 em. long, pubescent : flow- 
ers greenish yellow, usually numerous: sepals 6, narrowly oblong, obtuse, 2.5-3 mm. long : 
stamens slightly longer than the sepals: drupe oval, 8-10 mm. long, red or orange, often 
apiculate, seated in the thick hypanthium. [S. officinalis Nees & Eberm. ] 
In woods and fields, Maine to Ontario, lowa, Nebraska, Florida and Texas. Spring; matures its 
fruit in the summer. SASSAFRAS, SASSAFRAX. AGUE TREE. 
4. MALAPOENNA Adans. i 
Shrubs or trees, with often zigzag forking branches. Leaves alternate: blades entire, 
firm. Flowers in clusters or clustered umbels, dioecious. Calyx of 6 or sometimes 4 
sepals, deciduous. Stamens or staminodia 9, in 3 series, those of the first and second series 
without glands, those of the third row with glands: anthers 4-celled, introrse. Style en- 
tire. Drupe subglobose or oblong. [Litsea Lam. ] 
1. Malapoenna geniculàta ( Walt.) Coulter. A spreading glabrous shrub 2-3 m. 
tall, with zigzag forking branches. Leaf-blades firm, oblong or elliptic, 1.5-6 cm. long, 
acute or obtuse at both ends, dark green above, paler beneath, slightly reticulated, short- 
petioled, deciduous : flowers 2-4 together, appearing before the leaves, about 8 mm. broad, 
nearly sessile: sepals oval or elliptic, obtuse, yellow, spreading: stamens shorter than the 
sepals: filaments filiform, glabrous: anthers ovoid : drupe subglobose, 5-6 mm. long, red. 
[Litsea geniculata (Walt. ) Benth. & Hook. ] 
In shallow ponds, Georgia to Florida and Louisiana. Winter and spring; matures its fruit in the 
summer. 
5. BENZOIN Fabr. 
Shrubs or trees, witha spicy aromatic bark Leaves alternate: blades thinnish, entire, 
deciduous. Flowers dioecious, yellow, in clusters or umbels, appearing before the leaves. 
Calyx of 6 or rarely 7-9 nearly equal sepals. Stamens usually 9, in 3 series, all re- 
duced to staminodia in the pistillate flowers, those of the first and second series usually 
without glands, those of the third series usually with glands, Anthers 2-celled, introrse. 
Style variable in length. Drupe pulpy. SPicE-BUsH. BENJAMIN-BUSH. 
Leaf-blades rounded or cordate at the base, pubescent on both sides. 1. B. melissaefolium. 
Leaf-blades acute at the base, glabrous on both sides orsparingly pubescent beneath. 2. B. Benzoin. 
l. Benzoin melissaefdlium ( Walt.) Nees. A low shrub 3-10 dm. tall, its branches 
foliage and inflorescence pubescent. Leaf-blades quite firm, oblong or oval, 3-12 cm. long, 
acutish, usually short-acuminate, more or less densely pubescent on both sides, rounded or 
cordate at the base, short-petioled : flowers yellow, in dense lateral clusters, appearing be- 
fore the leaves : pedicels equalling the sepals or longer : sepals thin, 1-1.5 mm. long : stamens 
dilated below : drupe obovoid, nearly 1 em. long. [Lindera melissaefolia ( Walt.) Blume.] 
Mida rus ponds and swamps, North Carolina to Illinois, Missouri, Florida and Alabama. Winter and 
g. 
2. Benzoin Bénzoin (L.) Coulter. A strong-scented and spicy shrub 1-3 m. tall. 
Leaf-blades obovate, oval or elliptic, 5-12 cm. long, thin, obtuse or usually short-acumi- 
nate and acute at the apex, often slightly ciliate, acute or acuminate at the base, deep 
green and glabrous above, pale or glaucescent and glabrous or sparingly pubescent beneath, 
short-petioled, deciduous : flowers yellow, in dense clusters appearing before the leaves, 6-8 
mm. broad: pedicels 3-5 cm. long: sepals thin, obovate or oblong, obtuse, truncate or 
retuse at the apex: stamens shorter than the sepals, slightly dilated below: drupe oval 
about 1 cm. long, longer than the pedicel. [Zindera Benzoin (L.) Blume.] 
In swamps and along streams, Massachusetts to Ontario, Michigan, middle Georgia, Tennessee and 
Kansas. Spring: fruit ripening in August. 
FAMILY 4, CASSYTHACEAE Dumort. CassvTHA FAMILY. 
Parasitic vines, with slender or filiform stems. Leaves wanting or represented 
by mere scales. Flowers perfect, inconspicuous, in heads, spikes or racemes. 
Calyx of 6 sepals surmounting an obovoid or top-shaped hypanthium : outer 
Sepals much smaller than the inner. Corolla wanting. Androecium of 9 sta- 
mens, those of the first and second series without glands, their anthers 2-celled, 
