96 HAMAMELIDACEAE 



vines. It is to be found from Michiijan west to South Dakota 

 and south to Tennessee and Oklahoma. In Illinois, it is widely 

 distributed but has been collected and recorded a relatively small 

 number of times. 



The Low Wild Gooseberry, G. hirtella (Michaux) Coville 

 (S: Britton, an erect shrub generally somewhat less than 3 feet 

 high, with few or no nodal spines and pinkish to cherry-colored 

 or sometimes purplish to black fruit less than 1/ inch in diame- 

 ter, has not to our knowledge been found in the state. It is a 

 plant characteristically inhabiting tamarack bogs and swampy 

 places in woods and along streams. Since northern Ohio and 

 Indiana are on the southern boundary of its range, it may 

 possibly be found in northeastern Illinois. 



HAMAMELIDACEAE 

 The Witch-Hazel Family 



The witch-hazel family consists of shrubs or trees which 

 bear alternate, simple leaves and flowers which may be perfect, 

 polygamous or monoecious. There are 4 or 5 sepals in each 

 flower and the same number of linear or spatulate petals, or the 

 petals may be wanting. The stamens may be 4 to many, with 

 distinct filaments. The ovary consists of 2 united carpels and is 

 2-celled. It is partly inferior and is capped by 2 styles. The 

 ovules are solitary in each carpel. The members of the family 

 develop as fruit a w^oody or coriaceous capsule which is elastic- 

 ally dehiscent. 



The witch-hazel family consists of some 13 genera and about 

 40 species, which are natives of North America, Asia and South 

 Africa. In North America, 2 genera, both shrubs, are native, 

 and 1 is native in Illinois. 



HAMAMELIS Linnaeus 



The Witch-Hazels 



The witch-hazels are shrubs w^ith alternate leaves and yellow, 

 bracted flowers which appear in late summer or in autumn. The 

 calyx of the flower is made up of 4 sepals which are persistent 

 and adnate to the lower part of the ovary. There are also 4 

 elongated, linear, persistent petals, which are wanting in the 

 staminate flowers. The stamens are 4, and the ovary is 2-celled 



