496 COMPOSlTiE. Lactuca. 



Achenia obcompressed, flat, wingless, glabrous, abruptly produced into a 

 filiform beak. Pappus of copious very soft and white capillary bristles in 

 several series, fugacious. — Caulescent herbs (chiefly of the northeru hemis- 

 phere) ; with entire or pinnatifid leaves, and paniculate heads. Flowers 

 yellow, blue, purple, or white, often variable in the same species. 



In all the following species, the heads are about 20-flowered ; and the achenia 

 brownish or blackish, very obscurely scabrous-rugulose, one-nerved in the middle of 

 each face, and sometimes with two obsolete nerves towards the margin. Nuttall 

 places them all in his Galathenium ; but we cannot compi-ehend how this portion 

 of the proposed genus is to be distinguished from Lactuca, nor the remainder from 

 Mulgedium ; nor why the author did not refer to it his own Mulgedium pulchellum, 

 which is exactly intermediate between Mulgediiun and Lactuca. 



1. L. graminifolia (Michx.) : stem simple, virgate ; leaves elongated, 

 sessile ; the cauline narrowly linear, acute, entire ; the lowest and radical 

 sparingly runcinate-pinnatifid or toothed in the middle, linear and elongated 

 towards the base and apex ; heads in a narrow loose and leafless panicle ; 

 achenia elliptical, rather longer than the beak ; flowers purple, varying to 

 white, or yellow \— Michx. / ji. 2. p. 85 ; Ell. sk. 2. p. 253 ; Hook. ! 

 compan. to hot. mag. 1. p.XQO; DC. prodr. 1. f. ]34. L. graminea, 

 Spreng. syst. 3. p. 659. Galathenium graminifolium, Nutt. in trans. Amer. 

 phil. soc. I. c. 7. p. 443. G. salicifolium, Nutt. ! I. c. as to the spec. " Florida, 



Ware," in herb. acad. Philad. 



a. glabrous, or the midrib of the lower leaves often sparingly hirsute. 



|8. lower leaves and base of the stem hirsute. 



Dry soil. South Carolina to Alabama ! and Western Louisiana ! April- 

 Sept. — (J) or 2^ ? Stem 2-3 feet high, slender. Lower leaves 6-10 inches 

 long, 3-6 lines wide ; the radical usually with one or 2 pairs of runcinate 

 lobes. 



2. L. elongata (Muhl.) : stem tall and stout, simple or paniculate at the 

 summit ; leaves partly clasping, pale beneath, the upper usually lanceolate 

 and entire ; the lower runcinate-pinnatifid ; heads in an elongated leafless 

 panicle ; achenia oval, rather longer than the beak ; flowers light yellow, 

 varying to purple. 



a. longifolia : glabrous or nearly so ; upper leaves elongated lanceolate 

 and often entire ; the lower runcinate-pinnatifid, with the lobes lanceolate, 

 acute or acuminate, entire or slightly repand-toothed ; the terminal lobe elon- 

 gated; flowers mostly light yellow. — L. longifolia, Michx. ! Ji. 2. p. 85. L. 

 elongata, Muhl. in Willd. spec. 3. p. 1623; Pursh, ji. 2. p. 500; Ell. I 

 sk. 2. p. 252; Hook.! JI. Bor.-Am. 1. p. 296; Darlingt. ! Ji. Cest. p, 

 442; DC! prodr. 7. p. 137. L. Caroliniana, Walt. Car. p. 193 ? Gala- 

 thenium elongatum, Nutt. ! I. c. 



(3. integrijolia : glabrous ; leaves all or nearly all undivided, lanceolate, 

 acute or acuminate, entire or repand-denticulate ; the lowest occasionally 

 ])innatifid ; flowers light yellow, ochroleucous, tinged with purple, or bluish- 

 purple. — L. integrifoUa, Bigel. ! ji. Bast. ed. 2. p. 287 ; DC. prodr. 7. p. 

 137, not of Nutt. L. sagittifolia. Ell. ! sk. 2. p. 253 ; DC. I. c. Gala- 

 thenium integri folium, Nutt. I. c. G. salicifolium, Nutt. ! I. c, as to Pennsyl. 

 specira. herb. Schweinitz. 



y. sanguinea : smaller; leaves all or nearly all runcinate; mostly hir- 

 sute-pubescent (as well as the stem) either throughout or on the midrib be- 

 neath ; the lobes usually shorter and broader, irregularly toothed, the terminal 

 one not prolonged ; flowers yellow-purple {Muhl. mss.), dark-red with a 

 yellowish centre {Oakes, mss.), saffron-color, or purple (branches and invo- 

 lucre often purplish). — L. hirsuta, Muhl. cat. ; Nutt. gen. 2. p. 124. 



