ridged above the ridges (if present), papillate; spikes elliptic to ovoid or oblong, 

 1.5-3 (-4) cm. long, of numerous closely imbricate bracts; fertile bracts obovate, 

 5-7 mm. long, entire (becoming slightly erose with age), brownish or pale-tan 

 with an oblong to deltoid dark-green dorsal area; lateral sepals included, light- 

 brown, about the length of the subtending bracts, linear, the keel narrow except 

 toward the apex where it is lacerate; petal blades broadly obovate, about 5 mm. 

 long, yellow or white, opening in the afternoon; seeds ellipsoidal, 0.5-0.6 mm. 

 long, translucent, with 10 to 12 rather irregular longitudinal lines together with 

 a scattering of less distinct vertical lines. 



In moist to wet sands or sandy peats of pineland pond-margins, savannahs, 

 bogs and roadsides ditches in e. Tex., summer; Coastal Plain, Va. to s. Fla., 

 w. to Tex. 



5. Xyris torta Sm. 



Solitary or in tufts of a few individuals, bulbous-based; leaves of 2 sorts, 

 the outer scalelike (from the bud scales), the inner elongate-linear; principal 

 leaves linear, ascending, 2-5 dm. long, 2-5 mm. wide, twisted, grooved longi- 

 tudinally, the upper (blade) portion dark-green, lustrous, narrowing rather 

 abruptly to a blunt incurved thickened tip, the equitant portion pinkish, purplish 

 or yellow-green, flaring rather abruptly to the fleshy pale or castaneous base, the 

 surfaces smooth or papillose, the margins narrowly incrassate and smooth or 

 papillose; outer leaves usually much shorter than the inner, maroon or more 

 commonly a dark-lustrous-brown, often scalelike with very dilated bases and 

 slender often acuminate tips; sheaths of the scape shorter than the principal 

 leaves, tightly clasping below, becoming looser toward the orifice which has a 

 short erect slightly divergent blade at its tip; scapes 1.5-8 (-10) dm. long, 1-1.5 

 (-2) mm. broad, slightly to very twisted and flexuous above toward the spike; 

 spikes at seeding time broadly ovoid or ellipsoidal to lance-ovoid or rarely oblong, 

 8-25 mm. long, 6-10 mm. broad, of many tightly imbricated bracts; fertile 

 bracts broadly obovate to suborbicular, 5-7 mm. long, deep-lustrous-brown 

 within, dull-brown on the outer surface except for a pale-gray-green elliptical 

 subapical dorsal area, exposed margin of the bract entire or sparingly ciliate. ex- 

 cept for a short-fimbriate usually slightly emarginate apex; lateral sepals included, 

 slightly shorter than the subtending bract, lustrous-brown, lunate, the brown 

 thickened keel ciliate-scabrid from near the base to the apex where appears a 

 small tuft of reddish-brown or blonde trichomes; petal blades obovate, about 4 

 mm. long, unfolding in the morning; seeds ellipsoidal, about 0.5 mm. long, 

 caudate, with 14 to 18 prominent longitudinal lines (these under high magnifica- 

 tion a series of contiguous papillae) and indistinct narrower cross lines, translu- 

 cent except for the region of the embryo. Incl. var. occidentalis Malme. 



Sphagnous bogs, stream banks, lake and pond shores, wet sandy swales and 

 acid sandy swamps in e. Tex., June-July; from Can., s. to Ga., Tex. and (?) Okla. 



6. Xyris iridifolia Chapm. Fig. 299. 



Solitary or in small tufts, the pinkish or purplish keeled bases shallowly set on 

 a mucky substratum; leaves linear, iridiform, 4-7 dm. long, 10-25 mm. broad, 

 flat or slightly twisted, smooth, a deep-rich-green, broadly acute to blunt and 

 incurved at tip, the base slightly dilated and keeled, pink or pale-maroon with a 

 broadly hyaline margin; sheaths of the scape shorter than the leaves, deep-brown 

 or reddish-brown and tight below, becoming somewhat looser and green above, 

 the oblique orifice with a short cusplike blade; scapes 6-8 dm. tall, linear, straight 

 or slightly twisted, terete and 2-ridged below, conspicuously broadened and 

 flattened above, the edges smooth; spikes oblong to broadly oblanceolate, rarely 

 ovoid, 20-35 mm. long, blunt, of numerous closely imbricate bracts with the 



585 



