GROSSULARIACEAE 



91 



FIG. 19 

 Itea virginica 



Cache River cypress swamp in Alexander County, from a swamp 

 near Karnak in Pulaski County, and from swamps near Rago" 

 in Johnson County. 



GROSSULARIACEAE 



The Gooseberry Family 



The gooseberries are shrubs with simple alternate leaves that 

 are triple or palmately nerved and with flowers having sepals, 

 petals, and stamens numbering as a rule 5 but occasionally 4. 

 The ovary is inferior, and the fruit is a berry. This family is 

 made up of two distinct kinds of plants, closely related, and 

 much used for their fruit as well as for decoration — the goose- 

 berries and currants. They are distinguished as follows. 



Key to the Genera 



Unarmed shrubs with racemes made up of 5 or more flowers; 

 bractlets of the flowers linear; fruit pedicel jointed beneath 

 the fruit ^- • Ribes, p. 92 



Shrubs armed with spines at the nodes; the flowering racemes 

 having clusters of only 1 to 4 flowers as a rule; bractlets 

 smaller and sheathlike; fruit pedicel not jointed beneath 

 the fruit Grossularia, p. 94 



