IXIACEAE 293 



Perianth showy : lobes 6, equal or nearly so, distinct or slightly united at the base, some- 

 what spreading. Stamens adnate to tlie base of the perianth : filaments distinct : anthers 

 narrow. Ovary 3-celled : styles partially united, the free portions club-shaped or the 

 stigmas notched at the apex. Ovules numerous in each cavity. Capsule slightly elon- 

 gated. Seeds several, even or angled. 



1. Calydorea Texana (Herb.) Baker. Bulbs brown, flask-shaped. Foliage bright 

 green : stems 1-3 dm. tall, simple or sparingly forked, barely strict, terete : leaves few, 

 erect or nearly so ; blades linear and grass-like ; basal often longer than the stem, but barely 

 overtopping the inflorescence : those of the stem few and shorter : spathes cylindric, 3-5 

 cm. long, the outer bract shorter than the inner, rather delicate : perianth bright blue, about 

 5 cm. broad ; lobes cuneate-obovate, 2.5 cm. long; style-branches shorter than the anthers. 



On prairies, Texas. Spring. 



3. GEMMINGIA Fabr. 



Caulescent herbs, with horizontal rootstocks. Leaves alternate : blades folded, sheath- 

 ing the stems. Flowers in terminal, small bracted clusters, these disposed in corymbs. 

 Perianth usually mottled : lobes 6, nearly equal, united to the top of the ovary, or slightly 

 beyond it, withering but persistent. Stamens 3 : filaments distinct, adnate to the bases of 

 the perianth-lobes : anthers elongated. Ovary 3-celled : styles undivided, very slender, 

 alternate with the stamens. Ovules numerous. Capsule fig-shaped, loculicidally 3-valved 

 to the base : valves reflexed. Seeds exposed as a mass resembling a blackberry, persistent 

 on a central axis. [Belamcanda Adans. ] 



1. Gemmingia Chin^nsis (L. ) Kuntze. Foliage bright green, sometimes glauces- 



cent. Stems 3-12 dm. tall, leafy below, nearly naked above : leaf-blades 1-5 dm. long, 



acute or acuminate, upper faces united above the middle : bracts similar to the leaves but 



much smaller, their faces not united : periantli pink to reddish, 3-5 cm. broad ; lobes oblong 



or elliptic, more gradually narrowed at the base than at the apex, persistent as a coil on top 



of the fruit : capsules oblong-turbinate, 2-2.5 cm. long : s^ds black and shining, disposed 



in a mass resembling a blackberry. 



Along roadsides and on banks, New York to Missouri, Georgia and Alabama. Summer. Black- 

 berry Lily. 



4. SISYRINCHIUM L.^ 



Perennial scapose usually tufted grass-like herbs, with distinct or obsolete rootstocks 

 and fibrous roots. Leaves basal : blades linear : scapes 2-edged or 2-winged, when branched 

 each node furnished with a bract resembling a leaf-blade : flowers in terminal clusters 

 arising from spathes of mostly 2 bracts each. Perianth blue, white or yellow : lobes spread- 

 ing. Stamens 3 ; filaments united to the top or nearly so : anthers clustered. Ovary 3- 

 celled : style-branches filiform, alternate with the anthers, or styles mostly wholly united : 

 ovules few to many in each cavity of the ovary. Capsule subglobose or depressed or 

 longer than thick, globular or angled, readily opening near the apex. Seeds smooth or 

 pitted. Blue-eyed Grass. 



A. Scapes simple and terminated by the sessile or nearly sessile spathe or spathes, or rarely some in the 

 tufts with 1 or 2 terminal peduncles, 

 a. Tufts of plants normally with simple scapes only. 



Filaments distinct above : both bracts of the spathe foliaceous : plants 



3-8 cm. tall. 1. s. exile. 



Filaments completely united : inner bract of the spathe not foliaceous : 

 plants 10-50 cm. tall. 

 * Spathe not subtended by an accessory outer bract : tufts of plants 

 not densely fibrillose at the base. 

 Spathe solitary or normally so. 



Outer bract of the spathe with its edges distinctly united at 

 the base : bracts smooth. 

 Capsules 4-6 mm. high : leaf-blades and scapes mostly 1.5- 



2.5 mm. wide. 2. S. angustifolium. 



Capsules 2-4 mm. high : leaf-blades and scapes mostly 0.5- 



1.5 mm. wide. 3. S. mncronatum. 



Outer bract of the spathe with completely free edges. 



Bracts usually roughish : capsules pale, 2-4 mm. high : 



pedicels scarcely exserted. 4. .S'. campestre. 



Bracts smooth : capsules dark, 4-6 mm. high : pedicels 



flexuously exserted. 5. .S'. saffittiferum. 



1 Contributed by Mr. E. P. Bicknell. 



