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American Midland Naturalist Monograph No. 4 



smooth; leaves oblong-egg-shaped to lance-shaped, rounded at base, tapering 

 to a point at the tip, I1/2 to 6 inches long, the margins not toothed or rarely 

 with few low teeth, borne opposite each other on the stems; flowers resembling 



small chrysanthemums; petals 

 many, about 1 inch long, deep 

 wine-red, fading brownish; fruit 

 a brownish-green urn-shaped cup, 

 about 1 inch long, outer surface 

 marked with ridges, containing 

 brownish seed-like achenes about 

 1/3 inch long. 



California sweetshrub is an 

 attractive shrub with large dark 

 green leaves and dark wine-red 

 flowers resembling small chrysan- 

 themums. The petals turn brown- 

 ish in age. The flowers and even 

 the leaves have a sweet aromatic 

 odor when crushed. The fruits 

 are brownish cup-like or urn- 

 shaped structures, with ridged 

 markings on the outside. Tests 

 have shown that the southeastern 

 species, Carolina allspice (Caly- 

 canthiis floridus) , contains a sub- 

 stance resembling strychnine in its 

 action. California sweetshrub is 

 also reputed to be poisonous to 

 stock, although the bush is sel- 

 dom browsed. The species is sometimes planted as an ornamental. 



Occurrence. — yosemite, 1,700 to 4,000 feel: Merced Canyon; Cascade Creek; 

 near Arch Rock ranger station; near Awahnee Hotel. SEQUOIA, common, 1,600 to 

 4,000 feet: near Ash Mountain; upper part of Paradise Creek valley. 



Poppy Family (Papaveraceae) 



Bush Poppy (Dendromecon rigida Benth.). — Rigidly-branched shrub 2 

 to 8 feet high; stems whitish; lower bark shreddy; leaves yellowish- or grayish- 

 green, oblong-egg-shaped to lance-shaped, pointed at the tip, 1 to 2i/^ inches 

 long, somewhat leathery, the margins not toothed or very finely toothed; 

 flowers golden yellow, 1 to 3 inches across, 4-petalled, borne on slender stems 

 1 to 3 inches long; fruit a slender curved capsule 2 to 4 inches long, splitting 

 upwards from the base. 



Bush poppy occurs on dry slopes and ridges at middle elevations in Cali- 

 fornia. The bushes are ordinarily evergreen, but during hard winters they 

 may lose their leaves and become straggly in appearance. The species is a 

 very attractive shrub when growing in favorable situations and is often cul- 



Fig. 29. California sweetshrub {Calycanthui 

 occidentalis) . 



