LIl. LYTIIRACEiE. 259 



P. Granatlm. P(mc<j;ranatc. — Arborescent; Zr5. lanceolate, with no mari^in- 

 al vein. — A thorny bushi when wild, iVom S. Europe, where it is sometimes used 

 for hedges like the lunvthorn. Leaves lanceolate, entire, smooth, 2 — 3' by 

 5 — 10", obtuse. The flowers arc scarlet, large, and make a fine appearance. 

 The Iruit is largo, highly ornamental and of a fine flavor. Much care is requi- 

 'site for its cultivation, it requires a rich loam, a sunny situation, protected by 

 gla.ss. In this way double llowers of great beauty may be produced, f 



P. NANA. Du'drf Poinvi:ranalc. — Shrubby; lis. linear-lanceolate, acute. — Na- 

 tive of the W. Indies, where it is u.scd as a hedge plant. Shrub 4— -Of high, with 

 smaller purple flowers, olten double, f 



Order LT. MELASTOMACEiE.— Melastomes. 



Trees, sfirubs or /terhs with sriu.ire branrhes, and usually exstipulate. 



Lvs. opposite, entire ami undivided, witliouldots and with several veins. 



Ca/.— Sepals -1—6, united, persistent, the tube ureeolate, cohering with only the angles of the ovary. 



Cor.— Petals as many as the scirments of the calyx, twisted in ccstivution. 



Sta. twice as many as the peUils, sometimes of the same number, the filaments inflexed in aestivation. 



Anth. before floMcring contained in the cavity between the cal. and the sides of ova. 



Fr. caiisularor baccate. 



Genera 118, species v>00. The order is represented in the United Stntes by a single genus, the remain- 

 der being natives chielly of India and tropical America. No plant of this orderis poisonous. All are 

 slightly astringent. 



RHEXIA. 



Gr. pe^is, a rupture ; some of the species are good vulneraries. 



Calyx 4-cleft, swelling at the base ; petals 4 ; stamens 8, 1 -celled ; 

 style declined ; capsule 4-celled, nearly free from the investing calyx 

 tube ; placentce prominent ; seeds numerous. — % Lvs. opposite, exstipu- 

 late, o-vciaed. 



1. R. ViRGiNicA, Aleadovj BeoMty. Deer Gi-ass. 



S/. with 4-winged angles; lvs. sessile, oval-lanceolate, ciliate-serrulate, 

 and with the stem clothed with scattered hairs ; cal. hispid. — Grows in wet 

 grounds, Mass. to 111. ! and La. Stem If or more high, often 3-forked above. 

 Leaves with 3 (rarely 5 or 7) prominent veins, 1 — 3' long, about i as wide, 

 acute. Flowers large, in corymbose cymes. Petals bright purple, obovate, his- 

 pid beneath, caducous. Anthers long and prominent, crooked, golden yellow 

 above with a purple line beneath. Style somewhat longer than the stamens, a 

 little declined. Jl. Aug. 



2. R. Mariana. Maryland Deer Grass. 



St. nearly terete, covered with bristly hairs ; lvs. lanceolate, acute, atten- 

 uate at base into a very short petiole and, with the calyx, clothed with scattered 

 hairs. — In sandy bogs,"N. J. to Flor. The whole plant is hispid, even the pe- 

 tals externally. Stem I — 2f high, slender, and generally without branches. 

 Leaves often narrowly oblong, serrate-ciliate. Petals large, obovate, purple. 

 Jn.— Sept. 



Order LII. LYTHKACE^.— Loosestrifes. 



Herbs, rarely s/i?'wos, frequently with 4-cornercd branches. 



Lvs. opposite, rarely alternate, entire, with neither stipules nor glands. 



Cal. tubular, the limb 4— 7 lobed, sometimes with a.s many intermediate teeth. 



Cor.— Pet.-ils in.^erted into the calyx between the lobes, very deciduous, or 0. 



Sta. equal in nunjber to the petals, or 2—4 times as many, inserted info the calyx. 



Ova. superior, enclosed in the calyx-tube, 2— 4-relled. Sfi/. united into one. 



Fr.— Cai)sule niembranoiK, enveloiied in the calyx, usually by abortion 1-celled. 



S<f«. small, 00, attached to a central placenta. Albumen 0. 



Genera 35, species 300. Some of the species are found in temperate climes, but most of them are tro- 

 pical- Lythrum salicaria, native of Europe, N. Holland and U. S., is used for tajining where it abounds. 

 All the species are astringent. 



Conspectus of the Gencj-a. ' 



<, horns. Petals H'jpobrichfa. 5 



^ with 4 teeth and H short horns Aiiimannia. 1 



( campanulate, ( with 5 teeth and 5 long horns Decodon. 3 



< cylindrical, with minute, intermediate horns. Lythrum. 2 



Calyx ( ventricose, gibbous at base, intermediate horns Cuphca. 4 



