size, usually purple-mottled stem, and more numerous 
broader rays, 15-20 in number, an inch and more long, 
and its irregularly serrate leaves with salient teeth. A 
careful comparison of a suite of authentically named speci- 
mens of debilis, precox, and cucumerifolius shows that there 
are no good grounds for distinguishing them as varieties, 
they differ considerably, but only in the size of the leaves 
and flowers, those of the specimen here figured are much 
larger than in any of the native ones, and the nearest 
approach to it is labelled H. debilis by Gray. In the 
. Gardener’s Chronicle H. debilis var. cucumerifolius is de- 
scribed as having stems blotched with purple (as described 
by Gray), and as suited to a perennial border ; but the stems 
of the Kew plant are speckled with white, and the plant 
1s an annual. 
H., debilis was raised at Kew from seeds purchased from 
anurseryman. Itisa native of the sandy sea shores of 
Florida, Louisiana, and E. Texas. At Kew the plants 
flowered in an open border in September, 1894 
_ Deser—Annual; whole plant hispidulous. Stem branch- 
ming from below; branches two feet long, slender, green, 
speckled with white. Leaves, lower opposite, upper alter- 
nate, three to four inches long, ovate or deltoid, subacute, 
more or less irregularly crenate or toothed, or acutely 
sublobulate and denticulate, thin , rough on both surfaces, 
dark green, 3-nerved from the cuneate or truncate base; 
petiole one to three inches long, slender. Flower-heads 
two to three inches in diameter, on slender peduncles. 
Involucre of many spreading unequal herbaceous, lanceolate 
acuminate scabrid bracts. Receptacle nearly flat, with 
narrow unequally toothed or rarely entire chaffy bracteoles. 
Ray-flowers twelve to twenty, bright golden yellow ; limb 
oblong, obtuse, three to five-nerved. Disk-flowers marooo 
brown ; corolla cylindric; lobes obtuse, suberect. Achen? 
obovate-oblong, pubescent ; pappus bristles about tw | 
very unequal, short, rigid.—J. D. H. 
Fig. 1, Ovary and base of coroll rs 
» UV a of ray-fl.; 2, bracteole of receptacles 
3, fl. of the disk; 4, stamens ; 5, style-arms All enlarged. 
