474 ex. POLYGONACE^. Folygondm. 



§ 1. AvicuLARiA. Flmcers axillary. Stamens 5 — 8. Stigmas 3. 



1. P. AVicuLARE. Bird Pol'j/gonwm or Knot-grass. 



St. procumbent; Ivs. elliptical-lanceolate, rough-edged, acute, sessile; 

 jlowers subsessile. — (J) A common weed in fields, highways and door-yards, U. 

 S. and Brit. Am. Stems slender, i — l^f long, striate, smooth, branching, 

 with short, white, torn, remotely veined stipules at the joints. Leaves smooth 

 except the edges, \ — 1' long and \ as wide. Flowers reddish, small, 2 or 3 

 together in the axils of the leaves, appearing all summer. 



/?. glaiicum. (P. glaucum. Nutt.) Lvs. fleshy, glaucous, revolute on the mar- 

 gin. — Grows on the sea-coast. Long Island. 



2. P. ERECTUM. (P. aviculare. /?. latifolium. Michx.) Erect Knot-grass. 



St. mostly erect, branched; lvs. smooth, broadJy oval, petiolate; Jls. pedi- 

 cellate ; sta. mostly 5. — % Western and Mid. States and Brit. Am. A species 

 remarkably distinct in appearance from the last, in similar situations, but sel- 

 dom growing v.'ith it. Stem 1 — 2jf high, branched, smooth. Leaves 1 — 2' 

 long and about h as wide, rather obtuse, the petioles — \' long. Flowers 2 — 3 

 together, pedicellate, in the axils of the leaves, yellowish. Jn. — Sept. 



3. P. TENUE. Michx. (P. linifolium. Makl.) Slender Knot-grass. 



St. slender, erect, branched, acute-angled ; lvs. linear-lanceolate, erect, 

 acuminate ; stip. tubular, villose at top ; Jls. alternate, subsolitary, axillary. — ® 

 A small, slender plant, on rocky soils, N. Eng., Mid. States. Stem J — If high. 

 Leaves 1 — 1|' long, 1—2" wide, 3- veined, sessile. Flowers white. Jl., Aug. 



§ 2. Persicaria. Spikes terminal or axillary. 



4. P. PUNCTATUM. Ell. (P. Hj^dropiper. Michx. not of Linn.') Water 

 Pepper. — St. branched, often decumbent at base ; lvs. lanceolate, punctate 



with pellucid dots, waved and scabrous on the margin ; spike loose, interrupted, 

 drooping ; sta. 6 — 8 ; sty. 2, united half way up. — Can. to Flor. A plant 

 well known for its acrid taste, growing in ditches, low grounds, among rub- 

 bish, &c. Stem smooth, swelling above the joints, 3f high, and, like the 

 leaves, sprinkled with glandular dots, in which the acrimony is said to reside. 

 Leaves 2 — 3' long and not more than ^ as wide. Flowers green, tinged with 

 pux'ple and white. Aug., Sept. 



5. P. MITE. Pers. (P. hydropiperoides. Michx. P. barbatum. Walt.) 

 Mild or Tasteless Knot-grass. — St. mostly decumbent at base, erect and 



hairy above ; lvs. narrow, lanceolate, subhirsute; stip. hirsute, long-ciliate ; 

 spikes linear ; bracts ciliate, subimbricate ; sta. 8 ; sly. 3. — Ditches and ponds, 

 Can. to Car. and Tenn. Stem a foot or more high. Leaves 2 — 4' long, ^ as wide, 

 sessile. Spikes several, crowded near the summit of the stem, composed of small 

 fascicles of reddish flowers. JL, Aug. See also Addenda, p. 638. 



G. P. Pennsylvanicum. Pennsylvanian Knot-grass. 



St. smooth, tumid at the joints; lvs. lanceolate, petiolate; stip. glabrous, 

 not ciliate ; spikes oblong, crowded; pcd. hispid ; sta. 8; sly. 2 or 1. — (i) Mar- 

 gins of ponds and ditches, N. H. to Car. Stem geniculate, branched above, 

 2 — 4f high. Leaves 3 — 5' long, ^ as wide, slightly scabrous. Spikes short and 

 dense, large, and somewhat nodding. Flowers large, rose-colored, pedicellate. Jl. 



7. P. LAPATHiFOLiuM. (P. iucamatum. Ell.) 



St. geniculate, smooth ; lvs. ovate-lanceolate, petiolate, often hoary 

 beneath; spikes numerous, rather crowded, erect, on scabrous peduncles; sta. 

 6; sty. 2..r-(T) A rare species in swamps and ditches, N. Y. to Ga. Stem 2 — 4f 

 high." Leaves 3 — 5' long, ^ — J as wide. Petioles \ — i' long. Flowers small, 

 white, or tinged with red, in numerous, panicled spikes. Aug. 



8. P. PERSICARIA. Ladies^ Thumb. Spotted Knot-weed. 



St. erect ; lvs. lanceolate, the upper surface spotted ; stip. fringed ; spikes 

 dense, oblong, erect ; ped. smooth ; sta. 6 ; sty. 2, half united. — (I) A common 

 species about buildings, fences, wet groimds, &c. Stem smooth, branched, 

 leafy, 1 — 2f high, often colored. Leaves 2 — 4' long, \ as wide, entire, short- 

 stalked, acuminate, generally marked with a brownish, heart-shaped spot near 

 the middle. Flowers rose-colored, in short, dense, terminal spikes. Jn., Aug. § 



