Aster. COMPOSIT.^. 149 



North America. New York, BernharcH, ex Nees. — Heads small, lilac 

 and white. Exterior scales of the involucre few, 1-2, linear-spaiulate, 

 exceedino; or equalling the others, which are linear, nearly equal, and with 

 a membranaceous margin. Aclienia pubescent-scabrous. — This, to us 

 extremely obscure species, is placed by Nees between A. blandus and A. 

 hiemaiis, and is considered to be the A. lanceolatus of American authors. 

 Nees has a wild specimen from New York, but we cannot identify the plant. 



87. A. (Estkus (Ait.) : leaves lanceolate, somewhat clasping, entire, 

 glabrous, with scabrous margins ; scales of the lax involucre equal ; stem 

 (2 feet high) hispid; rays blue. Ait. Kew. [cd. 1.) 3. p. 203. 



" Labrador Starwort. Native of North America. Introduced, 1776, by 

 Messrs. Gordon & Gruffer. July-Aug." Ait. I. c. — Willdenow gives the 

 following character : " Leaves lanceolate, somewhat clasping, entire, at- 

 tenuate at the apex, the margins scabrous ; stem branched from the base, 

 erect ; branchlets hairy ; scales of the involucre lax, linear, acute, equal ;" 

 and he remarks that it is nearly past flowering when the other American 

 species commence. Pursh, who copies the character of Willdenow, pro- 

 fesses to have seen the plant in dry swamps and copses in New York and 

 Pennsylvania, as well as dried specimens in the Banksian herbarium and 

 that of Mr. Lambert. Nees, who describes both from spontaneous and 

 cultivated specimens (although the origin of the former is not mentioned), 

 gives the following character : " Leaves lanceolate, ciliate ; the radical 

 appressed-serrate ; the cauline entire; stem (glabrous) paniculately branched 

 or racemose ; the branchlets loose, scattered, one-flowered ; inner scales 

 of the narrow obconic involucre subulate." JSees, Ast. p. 74. It often 

 begins to flower, according to Nees, in the middle of the month of June. 

 The heads are said to be small ; the rays nearly white ; the achenia puberu- 

 lent and narrowed into a stipe. We have not been able to identify either 

 the original species of Alton, or that of Nees (which are probably different) 

 with indigenous specimens; nor do we possess specimens of the cultivated 

 plant. 



88. A.foliolosus (Ait.): stem pubescent; leaves lanceolate-linear, entire, 

 glabrous ; those of the branches m.uch spreading; involucre imbricated, the 

 scales acute. Ait. Kew. {ed. 1) 3. p. 202. A. ericoides Meliloti agrarise 

 umbone. Dill. Elth. p. 39, t. 35, /. 39. A. hiemaiis, Nees, Ast. p. 11? (A. 

 salicifolius, Nees, synops. p. 26.) 



North America: Cuh. 1732, by James Sherard, M. D. Hort. Kew.— The 

 A. foliolosus of Alton appears to have been founded upon the plant of 

 Dillenius, which Nees cites under his A. hiemaiis, a species of unknown 

 origin. The description of A. hiemaiis accords very well with the figure of 

 Dillenius. 



89. A. thyrsiflorus (HofTm.) : stem racemose-compound, spreading ; the 

 branches elongated, spicate-racemose at the summit; leaves linear-lanceolate, 

 attenuate, clasping, the margin scabrous, serrulate ; scales of the lax invo- 

 lucre lanceolate, unequal, recurved. Nees. — '■'■ Hoffm. phytogr. hi. 1. p. 83, 

 t. B,f. 1" ; Nees, Ast. p. 65 ; DC. prodr. 5. p. 235. A. junceus, Ait. Kew. 

 {ed. 1) 3. p. 204 ? A. recurvatus, Willd. spec. 3. p. 2047 (chiefly), fide 

 Nees. 



(3. squarrosus (Lindl.) : leaves all linear, squarrose-recurved ; branches 

 racemose at the summit; heads larger. Lindl. ! in DC I. c. 



Virginia? {Hoffman.) Oct.-Nov. — Cauline leaves linear-lanceolate, acu- 

 minate, tapering from the base to the apex, clasping, serrulate in the middle. 

 Heads middle-sized, lilac. Scales of the involucre somewhat equal, linear- 

 lanceolate ; the inner colored at the apex. Achenia glabrous. Nees. In 

 our specimens (from the English gardens), the heads are large and showy, 

 and the upper leaves nearly or quite entire. — Probably this species (rather 



