DECANDRIA. MONOGYNIA. £73 



at the ar)gles near the base, margins of the 

 valves connected by an intricate tomentum; 

 (septa medial, coalescing with the receptacular 

 axis; lobes of the receptacle simple. Seeds very 

 numerous and minute, samaroid.) 



Herbaceous evergreens, with creeping shoots; leaves 

 radical, alternate, agt^iegated, roundish, elliptic or ovate; 

 sc:tpes racemose or rarely l-flo\vered, flowers pedicellate, 

 unibracteate; slyle straight or declinate. Anthers bipo- 

 rose at the base, becoming inverted on the opening of the 

 flower, and then presenting the pores upwards, 

 f Style straiifht. 

 Species. 1. P. nnfflora. Flower fragrant, exhaling an 

 odor similar to that ofConvallaria majalis. Leaves sub- 

 ovate, serrate; scape 1-flowered; pores of the anthers tubu- 

 lar. 2. minor. 3. secunda. Flowers inclined to one side 

 of the racenne. 



f t Style declinate, stamina adsceiulent. 

 4i. rotiaidi folia. Leaves roundish, or dilated oval, obso- 

 leiely crenulate, partly coriaceous and lucid, petiole con- 

 spicuously marginated, about the length of the lamina; 

 scape many-flowered; bractes ovate, acute; calix 5-parted, 

 segments oblong-ovate, reflected at the points; petals 

 longer than th.e stamina. Obs. The largest species of 

 the genus; flowers white, with a rosaceous tinge, some- 

 what fragrant, scape 3 to 5-angied, sometimes con- 

 volute; bractes upon the naked part of the scape about 3, 

 sheathing; bractes of the flowers as long or longer than 

 the peduncles, and conspicuous; stigma annulate, 5-lobed. 

 5. * elliptica. Leaves membranaceous, oblong-oval and 

 obtuse, or elliptic-ovate, phcately serrulate and acute, 

 lamina always much longer than the petiole; scape naked 

 or furnished with a single scale; bractes linear and subu- 

 late; calix 5-toothed, points subulate, x'eflected. Hab. 

 Common around Philadelphia, and in the woods of New- 

 Jersey, with the former; flowering in June. Nearly allied 

 to p. rotundifolia, but distinct both in character and as- 

 pect; the whole plant is smaller, the scapes are low and 

 slender, accompanied by smaller flowers which are white 

 and odorous, the petals are oblong-oval, about equal in 

 length with the stamina which become fulvous, segnrients 

 of the calix semiovate and dilated; scajse acutely trique- 

 trous, rarely convolute; style very long, stigma annulate 

 5-lobed. 



6. cMarantha. Stamina slightly ascending; style twice 

 their length, davate, deflected and recurved; raceme 



