240 HYPERICACEAE. 



flowers perfect, regular; sepals 4 or 5; petals 4 or 5, hypogynous; 

 stamens commonly in three or more clusters; styles 2-5, usually 

 distinct or nearly so; capsule 1-celled, with 2-5 parietal placentae, 

 or 3-5-celled; endosperm none. 



318. HYPERICUM. ST. JOHNSWORT. 



Perennial herbs; leaves sessile, entire, punctate; flowers yellow, 

 in cymes; sepals 5; petals 5; stamens numerous; ovary 1-celled, 

 with 3-5 parietal placentae, rarely 3-5-celled. 



Plants low, forming dense mats. 



Alpine; leaves crowded; flowers mostly solitary. H. bryophytum. 



Not alpine; leaves not crowded; flowers often several. H. anagalloides. 

 Plants erect, simple or nearly so. 



Stamens 510; stems about 30 cm. high. H. majus, 



Stamens numerous; stems tall. 



Sepals acuminate; capsule not lobed. H. perforatum. 



Sepals obtuse; capsule 3-lobed. H. scouleri. 



Hypericum bryophytum Elmer. Annual, glabrous, often forming dense 

 pure growths; stems very leafy, 2-5 cm. high, weak, procumbent, branched at 

 base; leaves broadly ovate or obovate, obtuse, sessile, 3-5 mm. long, longer 

 than the internodes, glabrous and somewhat glaucous; flowers solitary, rarely 

 few in a cyme, very short peduncled, often 4-merous; sepals 3 mm. long; 

 petals equalling the sepals, ciliate; seeds brown, longitudinally striate. 



In the mountains at about 2000 m. altitude. 



Hypericum anagalloides Cham. & Schlecht. Stems weak, procumbent, 

 much branched, 2-5 cm. high; leaves pale, ovate, obtuse, somewhat clasping, 

 1 cm. or less long; cymes peduncled, loose, the branches elongated; flowers 

 small, not dotted, 6-8 mm. broad, dark yellow; sepals unequal, lanceolate, 

 acuminate, in fruit much longer than the capsule; stamens 15-20. 



Forming loose mats in springy places, common. 



Hypericum majus (Gray) Britt. Annual or perennial; stems erect, 10-60 

 cm. high; leaves lanceolate, subcordate, sessile or half-clasping, 5-7-nerved, 

 2-4 cm. long; cymes naked, rather dense; sepals lanceolate, long-acuminate, 

 longer than the pale yellow petals and nearly as long as the capsule. 



Green Lake, Seattle, Washington, Piper, evidently native. 



Hypericum perforatum L. Tipton-weed. Perennial, stoloniferous; stems 

 30-90 cm. high, erect, much branched; leaves elliptic to linear-oblong, obtuse, 

 narrowed at base, conspicuously punctate with pellucid dots; flowers numerous, 

 in leafy cymes; sepals lanceolate, acuminate; petals deep yellow, specked with 

 black, twice as long as the sepals; capsule ovate-conical, reddish. 



Introduced from Europe. Very troublesome as a weed, and poisonous 

 to horses. 



Hypericum scouleri Hook. Stems erect, simple or branched above, 15-60 

 cm. high; leaves oblong-ovate, obtuse, half-clasping at base, 2-3 cm. long, 

 black-dotted on the margin; inflorescence a corymb, loose or rather dense; 

 sepals ovate-lanceolate, obtuse or acute; petals bright yellow, black dotted 

 on the margin, 1 cm. or less long; stamens numerous, in three fascicles. 



In wet places, common. 



