SILENACE.E. 

 Nat. syst. ed. 2. p. 124. 



SILENE. 



Calyx tubular, not angular, 5-toothed, naked. Petals 5, with 

 long claws, which are often crowned with scales at the top ; 

 limb bifid. Stamens 10. Styles 3. Capsule 3-celled at the 

 base, opening at the top by 6 teeth. 



418. S. virginica Linn. sp. 600. Willd. ii. 703. DC 

 prodr. i. 379. Elliott i. 516. Torreyfi. i. 450. — S. cheiranthoides 

 Poir. diet. vii. 1 76. S. coccinea Monch. suppl. 306. S. Cates- 

 basi Walt. car. 142. Willd. ii. 706. DC. prodr. i. 379. (Pluk. 

 t. 203. f. i. — Various parts of the southern and western parts of 

 the United States. 



Root perennial, creeping. Stem mostly erect, simple, about a foot 

 high, viscid and downy. Radical leaves oblong-spathulate ; petioles 

 villous; stem leaves lanceolate, scabrous on the margin. Panicle 

 dichotomous, few-flowered. Calyx clavate, with the teeth a little spread- 

 ing. Petals crimson, deeply 2-cleft, much longer than the calyx ; lobes 

 entire or divided. Stamens unequal, exserted. — Root said to be 

 anthelmintic. 



419. Saponaria Vaccaria Linn. sp. pi. 585. is said to increase 

 the lacteal secretions of cows fed upon it. 



420. Saponaria officinalis Linn. sp. pi. 584, 



421. Gypsophila Struthium Linn. sp. pi. 582. are sapona- 

 ceous, and have been used in washing. 



201 



