‘Rhodora 
JOURNAL OF 
THE NEW ENGLAND BOTANICAL CLUB 
Vol. 11. October, 1909. No. 130. 
AMERICAN CRATAEGI IN THE SPECIES PLANTARUM OF 
LINNAEUS. 
C. S. SARGENT. 
SINCE the publication last year in Кнорока (x. May, 1908) of Mr. 
Eggleston's notes on the species of Crataegus described by Linnaeus 
I have had the opportunity to examine again the specimens of Cratae- 
gus in the Plukenet Herbarium at the British Museum and the speci- 
mens of this genus preserved in Linnaeus's own herbarium. 
Three of the four species of Crataegus described by Linnaeus in the 
first edition of the Species Plantarum are what may be called book 
species, that is there is no evidence that Linnaeus had ever seen a 
specimen of these plants when his descriptions were published in 1753, 
these having evidently been based on the descriptions and figures of 
earlier authors. Of the fourth species, Crataegus viridis, there is a 
specimen in the Linnaean Herbarium collected by Clayton in Vir- 
ginia which Linnaeus may have seen before his description was written. 
Several years ago I made out that this specimen represented the plant 
described later by Elliott as Crataegus arborescens, although at that 
time this species had not been rediscovered in Virginia. It is interest- 
ing to report, therefore, that Crataegus viridis Linnaeus (C. arborescens 
Elliott) was found by Mr. Rehder last summer on the bank of the 
Blackwater River near Zuni in southeastern Virginia. 
Crataegus Crus-galli was described by Linnaeus from Plukenet's 
figure and description. The specimen which appears to have served 
in part, at least, as the subject for Plukenet’s figure (Alm. Bot. 149, t. 
46, f. 1) is preserved in his herbarium. It is a young shoot without 
flowers and fruits, and although I suspect that it is not the plant which 
is now usually considered to be Crataegus Crus-galli, it is impossible 
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