EUPHORBIACEAE " 703 



9 Tragia macrocdrpa Willd. Plants slightly hirsute. Stems slender, twining, 4-15 

 ■dm. long, branched : leaf-blades ovate, 5-12 cm. long, deeply cordate, coarsely dentate, 

 serrate, long-acuminate ; petioles mostly shorter than the blades : staminate flowers with a 

 calyx of 3 sepals and 3 stamens : pistillate flowers several at the base of each spike, short- 

 pedicelled : sepals 5 : capsules depressed, 12-16 mm. in diameter : seeds subglobose, 5 mm. 

 long, smooth, variegated. 



In dry or rocky soil, Kentucky to Missouri, Florida and Mexico. 



13. GYMNANTHES Sw. 



Evergreen shrubs or trees, with glabrous foliage and a milky sap. Leaves alternate : 

 blades leathery, entire or crenate-serrate. Flowers monoecious or rarely dioecious : stami- 

 nate in slender, axillary racemes furnished with bracts and l>ractlets : pistillate flowers sol- 

 itary on long peduncles, 1, 2 or 3 of which arise from the axils with the staminate flowers. 

 Perianth rudimentary or wanting. Stamens 2-3 : filaments distinct or united at the base, 

 sometimes subtended by the scale-like rudimentary perianth : anthers erect. Ovary 3-celled, 

 sometimes long-stalked, subtended by the rudimentary perianth of 3 scale-like parts, pro- 

 longed into 3 recurved styles. Ovules solitary in each cavity, suspended, anatropous. 

 Capsule 3-lobed, separating into 3 2-valved bodies. Seeds pendulous, with a membranous- 

 crustaceous testa. 



1. Gymnanthes liicida Sw. An evergreen shrub or tree, reaching a height of 10 m., 

 the foliage glabrous. Leaf-blades leathery, cuneate to oblong-spatulate, or nearly oblong, 

 4-10 cm. long, lustrous above, undulate or obscurely toothed near the apex, short-petioled : 

 spikes staminate, shorter than the leaves, continuous : bracts reniform : perianth none : 

 stamens 2-3, subtended by reniform bractlets : pistillate flowers solitary, on curved pedun- 

 cles, these somewhat shorter than the spikes : ovary stalked : capsules depressed, about 1 

 cm. broad, 3-lobed, the lobes rounded : seeds ovoid, 6-8 mm. long. 



In coral soil, peninsular Florida and the Keys. Also in the Bahamas and the Antilles. PoisoN- 

 WOOD. Crabwood. 



14. SEBASTIANA Muell. Arg. 



Monoecious shrubs or rarely herbs, with rather slender branches. Leaves alternate : 

 blades entire or barely toothed, never large. Flowers inconspicuous, apetalous, in slender 

 spikes or racemes. Disk wanting. Staminate flowers with a membranous calyx of 3-5 un- 

 equal sepals. Stamens 2-3 or rarely 4 : filaments distinct or slightly united at the base : 

 anthers opening lengthwise. Pistillate flowers below the staminate, with a calyx of 3 more 

 or less united sepals. Ovary 3-celled : styles 3, simple. Ovules solitary in each cavity. 

 Capsule 3-celled, 3-lobed. Seeds solitary, with a smooth testa. 



1. Sebastiana ligustrina (Michx. ) Muell. Arg. An erect widely branched shrub 

 1-4 m. tall, the foliage glabrous. Leaf-blades thickish, oblong, elliptic or oval, .3-8 cm. 

 long, usually slightly acuminate at both ends, rarely obtuse, undulate, short-petioled : 

 spikes shorter than the leaves, sometimes in pairs : calyx yellowish, that of the staminate 

 flowers with 3 ovate acute or acuminate serrulate sepals : stamens 3 : calyx of pistillate 

 flowers nearly similar to that of the staminate : capsules nearly 1 cm. bi'oad, depressed, 

 3-celled smooth : seeds subglobose, 4 mm. long. 



On banks and in swamps, North Carolina to Florida and Louisiana. Spring to fall. 



15. SAPIUM P. Br. 



Dioecious or rarely monoecious shrubs or trees, with glabrous foliage. Leaves alter- 

 nate or opposite : blades entire or sparingly toothed, often leathery, sometimes long- 

 petioled. Flowers apetalous, in axillary, lateral or apparently terminal spikes or racemes. 

 Disk wanting. Staminate flowers with a calyx of 2 or rarely 3 nearly equal united sepals : 

 stamens 2-3 : filaments distinct : anthers opening lengthwise. Pistillate flowers below the 

 staminate, with a calyx of 2 or 3 more or less united sepals. Ovary 2-3-celled : styles 2-3 

 slightly united at the base, entire. Ovules solitary in each cavity. Capsule 2-3-lobed, 

 2-3-celled. Seeds solitary, with a crustaceous testa. 



Leaf-blades rhombic : capsules 3-lobed : seeds 8-9 mm. long. 1. 8. sebiferinn. 



Leaf-blades linear-oblongor narrowly oblong: capsules 2-lobed : seeds 6-7 mm. long. 2. S. glandulusum. 



