590 



OXAGRACEAE. 



VOL. II. 



i. Chamaenerion angustifolium (L.) Scop. Great or Spiked Willow-herb. 



Fire- weed. Fig. 3025. 



Epilobitun angustifolium L. Sp. PI. 347. 1753. 



C. angustifolium Scop. Fl. Cam. Ed. 2, i : 271. 1772. 



Epilobium spicatuin Lam. Fl. Fr. 3: 482. 1778. 



Erect, rather stout, simple or branched, gla- 

 brous or often finely pubescent above, 2-8 

 high. Leaves alternate, very short-petioled, 

 lanceolate, entire or denticulate, 2'-6' long, 

 4"-i2" wide, pale beneath, acute at the apex, 

 narrowed at the base, thin, the lateral veins 

 confluent in marginal loops; flowers 8"-is" 

 broad, purple, or sometimes white, in elongated 

 terminal spike-like racemes ; bracts mostly 

 shorter than the pedicels; petals entire; style 

 pubescent at the base ; stigma 4-lobed ; capsules 

 2'-3' long, about \\" thick, finely canescent, at 

 least when young; seeds about \" long, smooth, 

 or nearly so, the coma long, whitish. 



In dry soil, Greenland to Alaska, North Carolina, 

 Indiana, Kansas ; the Rocky Mountains to Arizona ; 

 Pacific Coast to California. Europe and Asia. 

 Often abundant after forest fires. French-, bay- or 

 Persian-willow. Rose-bay. Fire-top. Burnt weed. 

 Purple rocket. French or bay willow-herb. Indian 



wickup. Herb-wickopy. Flowering or blooming 

 willow. Pigweed. Blooming sally (i. e., Salix). 

 Sally-bloom. June-Sept. 



2. Chamaenerion latifolium (L.) Sweet. 

 Broad-leaved Willow-herb. Fig. 3026. 



Epilobium latifolium L. Sp. PI. 347. 1753. 



C. latifolium Sweet, Hort. Brit. Ed. 2, 198. 1830. 



Erect, usually branching, glabrate below, often 

 quite canescent above, 6'-i8 high. Leaves mostly 

 sessile, i'-2' long, 2"-6" wide, denticulate or 

 entire, lanceolate or ovate-lanceolate, acutish at 

 both ends, thick, those of the branches opposite, 

 the veins inconspicuous; flowers purple, i'-2' 

 broad, in mainly short leafy-bracted racemes; 

 petals entire ; styles glabrous ; stigma 4-lobed ; 

 capsules i'-ii' long, about li" thick, canescent ; 

 seeds about i" long, nearly smooth ; coma elon- 

 gated, whitish. 



Moist ground, Newfoundland to Alaska, south to 

 Quebec. Colorado and Oregon. Also in Europe and 

 Asia. June-Aug. 



6. EPILOBIUM L. Sp. PI. 347. 1753. 



Herbs, or sometimes shrubby plants, with alternate or opposite leaves, and axillary 

 or terminal, solitary, spicate or racemose flowers. Calyx-tube linear, produced beyond the 

 ovary, the limb 4-parted, deciduous. Petals 4, mostly obovate or obcordate. Stamens 8; 

 anthers oblong or linear, short. Ovary 4-celled ; united styles slender or filiform; stigma 

 club-shaped or 4-lobed ; ovules numerous. Capsule narrow, elongated, 4-sided, 4-celled, 

 loculicidally dehiscent by 4 valves. Seeds small, numerous, with a tuft of hairs (coma) at 

 the summit. [Greek, upon a pod, flower and pod appearing together.] 



About 75 species, of wide geographic distribution, most abundant in temperate regions. Besides 

 the following, about 35 others occur in the western and northwestern parts of North America. 

 Type species : Epilobium hirsutum L. 

 Stigma deeply 4-lobed ; flowers large. 

 Stigma entire, or merely notched. 



Seeds smooth or nearly so ; arctic or alpine species. 

 Flowers white ; leaves usually denticulate. 

 Flowers violet ; leaves mostly entire. 

 Seeds papillose. 



Leaves linear or lanceolate, entire or nearly so. 

 Plants crisp-pubescent or canescent. 



Leaves sessile, not revolute-margined. 

 Leaves petioled, very narrow, acute, revolute-margined. 

 Plants glandular-pubescent, at least above. 



1. E. hirsutum. 



2. E. alpinum. 



3. E. anagallidifolium. 



4. E. paliistre. 



5. E. lineare. 



