Helianthella. COMPOSITiE. 335 



note) from Maldonado, is apparently L. buphthalmiflora /?. Hook. tf» Am. ; and L. 

 Baldwiniaiia, Nutt. 1. c. is Pascalia srlauca, Ort., DC. 



90. ACTINOMERIS. Nutt. gen. 2.|7. 131 (1818) ; DC. jjrodr. 5. p. bl5. 



Pteropliyton, Cass. (I8l8) — Actimeris, Raf. 



Heads many-flowered ; the ray-flowers 4-14, elongated, or sometimea 

 wanting. Scales of the involucre foliaceous, nearly equal, in 1-3 series, 

 mostly shorter than the disk. Receptacle convex or conical, chaffy; the 

 chaff embracing the outer margin of the achenia. Corolla of the disk with a 

 more or less inflated 5-lobed limb longer than the tube. Branches of the 

 style terminated by an acute or subulate cone. Achenia compressed, ob- 

 ovate, mostly winged, flat, crowned with 2 nearly smooth persistent awns. — 

 Tall and branching (North American and Mexican) perennial herbs, with alter- 

 nate or opposite ovate or lanceolate serrate (feather-veined) leaves, which 

 (although often tapering at the base as if petioled) are mostly decurrent on 

 the terete stem. Heads corymbose. Flowers yellow, rarely white. 



§ 1. ReceiAacle very small, subglobose : scales of the involucre sometohat in a 

 double series, spreading or rejiexed, rather shorter than the disk : rays 4-8 

 or rarely 12, usually few and irregular : achenia broadly winged : disk 

 squarrose in fruit : flowers yellow. — Actimeris. 



1. A. squarrosa (Nutt.) : stem more or less pubescent and hairy and 

 winged above ; leaves oblong-lanceolate or the lower ovate-lanceolate, ta- 

 pering or acuminate at both ends, often slightly petioled, scabrous above, 

 hirsute-pubescent or nearly glabrous beneath, serrate; heads in a loose co- 

 rymbose ])anicle ; scales of tlie involucre in 2 series; the exterior linear-spat- 

 ulate or oblanceolate, reflexed ; awns stout, much shorter than the achenium. 

 —Null.! gen. 2. p. 131 ; Ell. sk. 2. p. 413, excl. /?. Coreopsis alternifolia, 

 Linn. ! spec. 2. p. 909 ; Willd. ! spec. 3. p. 2257 ; Jacq. hort. Vindob. t. 

 110. C. procera. Ait.! Kew. [ed. 1) 2. p. 258. C. acuta, Pursh,fl. 2. p. 

 569 .'' Verbesina Coreopsis, Michx. ! fl. 2. p. 134, excl. /3. 



a. alternifolia: leaves alternate, or the lower frequently opposite; rays 

 4-8. — A. alternifolia, DC. ! prodr. 5. p. 575. 



0. op'positi folia : lower leaves generally opposite, sometimes ternately ver- 

 licillate [Engelmann, in litt.) ; rays 6-12. — A. opposiiifolia, Frcsenius, ind. 

 sem. hort. Franc. 1836, <^" in Linn^a, 12, suppil. p. 11 ; scarcely of DC. 

 prodr. 1. p. 290 ? 



Dry or alluvial soil, throughout the Western States from Michigan ! to Ar- 

 kansas! Western New York, Dr. Sartwell! and in the western ])ortion of 

 the Southern Atlantic States ! Aug.-Oct. — Stem 4-8 feet high, glabrous be- 

 low. Lower leaves a foot or more in length, coarsely serrate or toothed. 

 Chaff ovate, much shorter than the corolla, coriaceous. — Tlie A. oppositifo- 

 lia was described from a plant produced by seeds sent from Illinois by Dr. 

 Engelmann, who informs us that the common plant of that region generally 

 has opposite leaves. DeCandoUe's descri])tion of A. op|)ositifolia seems to 

 have been drawn from a variety of A. helianlhoides, excejit the appended 

 " achenia lato-alata," which was probably taken from Fresenius. 



