4 Colo7'ado Plants. [zoe 



Mr. Alfred Wetherill, who discovered it, reports it also 

 from Southeastern Utah in similar situations. 



/ Argemone. There seems to be doubt as to the existence of 

 Argemone hispida Gray as a species, and in Colorado, if it has 

 ever previously been collected, it has been merged into Argemone 

 platyceras Link & Otto. It is excluded from both Patterson's 

 and Oyster's check lists, but whether included under A. platy- 

 ceras or A. Mexica7ia var. albiflora has not been learned. Judging 

 from the specimens of A. Mexicana var. albiflora now in the 

 herbarium of the California Academy of Sciences, A. platyceras 

 is much nearer A. Mexicatia var. albiflora than A. hispida. 

 They are alike in the stem and foliage, glabrous and glaucous, 

 except for the spines which are scattered on the stem and on the 

 veins and margins of the leaves. The veins are also outlined 

 with white, immature pods seem the same; the stamens differ 

 slightly, A. Mexicana var. albiflora having broad filaments 

 abruptly narrowed to the anther; A. platyceras with filaments 

 narrower and tapering to the anthers which are longer and 

 narrower than those of A. Mexicana. There is some variation 

 m A. platyceras in the manner of branching, size of the pods, 

 and number of spines. There are forms that closelj^ resemble 

 A. corymbosa, differing chiefly in having larger pods and the 

 leaves longer, with deeper lobes and blunter at the apex. 



Aigemoiie hispida Graj^. This is distinct from both A. Mexi- 

 cana var. albiflora and A. platyceras, and shows so little variation 

 that specimens from Colorado and California have no appreciable 

 difference and agree with the original description as given in 

 Gray's Plantae Fendleriana;. It differs most noticeably from the 

 other two in the pale green foliage denselj^ covered with short 

 crimped bristles, short spines on the margins and veins of the 

 leaves and very dense on the stems. The pod is densely covered 

 with slender bristles of varying length, instead of the coarse, 

 horn-like spines peculiar to the pod of A. platyceras. In growth 

 A. hispida is more compact and the flowers are on short 

 peduncles seeming almost sessile. The seeds of A. platyceras 

 have a light-colored, pominent rhaphe and the coat honey-combed. 

 A. hispida has the less prominent rhaphe of the same color as 



