128 COMPOSITiE. Aster. 



or three lines. Scales of the involucre rather loose and spreading when old. 

 Rays apparently blue or purple. Achenia slightly pubescent. 



46. A. dumosiLS (Linn.): stem glabrous or slightly scabrous-pubescent, 

 racemosely branched or decompound ; the heads solitary at the extremity of 

 the spreading branchlets, or rarely somewhat racemed ; leaves linear, crowd- 

 ed, glabrous, with scabrous margins, sessile ; the lower cauline ones linear- 

 lanceolate, ofren remotely serrate with small and sharp appressed teeth; 

 those of the branchlets small, mucronulate ; scales of the involucre linear- 

 spatulate, obtuse (or sometimes abruptly and slightly mucronulate), closely 

 imbricated in 4-6 series, with short herbaceous tijis. 



a. verus : paniculate-racemose ; the branchlets clothed with numerous 

 linear-oblong and obtuse (obscurely mucronulate) small and spreading leaves; 

 the upper cauline leaves frequently obtuse. — A. dumosus, Linn.! hort. Cliff., 

 Sfspec. 2. p. 873 (excl. syn. Gronov. ?) ; Ait. Kew. {ed. 1) 3. p. 202,- Bigel. 

 Ji. Bost. cd. 2. p. 311,- Boott! in herb. Hook. A. Americanus multiflorus, 

 &c., Plulc. aim. t. 78, /. 6. A. fragilis, Lindl. ! in herb. Hook. ^r. partly, 

 {Sf bot. reg. t. 1537 ?) A. sparsiflorus, Nutt. ! gen. 2. p. 155, not of Michx. 



13. coridifolius : racemose-compound or decompound ; the slender and 

 elongated diffuse branches and branchlets clothed with crowded, depauperate 

 and bract-like, spreading or reflexed, rather obtuse, linear leaves ; the lower 

 cauline leaves linear, elongated, mostly entire. — A. coridifolius, Michx. ! ji. 

 2. p. 112; Willd. spec. 3. p. 2028; Pursh, ji. 2. p. 547; Nees, Ast. p. 

 105; Lindl. ! bot. reg. t. 1487, Is; in herb. Hook. S;c. ; DC! p^rodr. 5. p. 

 241. A. foliolosus. Ell. ! sk. 2. p. 345, probably not of Ait. A. foliolosus 

 /3. coridifoUus, Nutt.! gen. 2. p. 155. A. sparsiflorus, Willd. enum. partly, 

 ex Nees. 



y. subul/ffolius : diffusely compound ; leaves of the branches and branch- 

 lets rather subulate-linear, erect or slightly spreading ; otherwise as in (3. 



6. gracilentus : stem slender, rather sparingly branched ; leaves scattered 

 on the branchlets, very small, acute or obtuse ; all usually entire. 



e. strictior : stem sparingly paniculate or racemose-compound; leaves 

 usually more or less acute ; the lower ones often slightly serrate ; those of 

 the short branchlets rather numerous, scarcely spreading ; otherwise nearly 

 as in a. — A. fragilis, Lindl. ! in iierb. Torr. i^r., partly. 



C. subraccmosus : stem racemose-compound ; the heads often somewhat 

 racemed ; leaves mostly acute, the cauline ones frequently remotely serru- 

 late ; those of the branches more scattered, slender, and proportional, acute ; 

 scales of the involucre rather narrower, often slightly acute. — A. dumosus, 

 Nees, Ast. p. 105, ex descr. A. foliolosus. Ait. Kew. {cd. 1) 3. p. 202 ? 

 excl. syn. JDill. ? 



Dry or moist shady soil throughout the United States : a. Massachusetts ! 

 to Alabama! (3. Throughout the Southern States! (mostly in pine M-oods.) 

 y. Texas, Drummond ! Western Louisiana, Dr. Lcavemvorth! 6. Alabama, 

 Dr. Gates! also in Georgia and Florida! f. Vermont! and Michigan! to 

 New Jersey! &c., usually in moist soil. f. Northern and Middle States! 

 Aug.-Oct. — Stems 1-3 feet high. Lower leaves 2-3 inches long, 2-5 lines 

 wide ; those of the branches and branchlets reduced frequently to 2-3 lines 

 in length, slightly rigid, with minutely ciliolate-scabrous margins. Heads 

 usually about 4 linesin diameter, scattered : scales of the regularly imbri- 

 cated involucre obtuse ; the inner ones often mucronulate, about the length 

 of the disk, slightly ciliate ; the exterior successively shorter. Ras'S rather 

 short (20-30), pale purple, occasionally almost white. Achenia minutely 

 and sparsely pubescent under a lens.— The plants Avhich we have here 

 brought together (excepting the last enumerated variety, if such it be, which 

 makes an approach to the following species,) accord in their inflorescence, 

 achenia, scales of the involucre, &c. ; while the foliage, in the vast number 

 of specimens before us, presents almost every imaginable gradation between 



