362 LEGUMINOSiE. Desmodium. 



tooth lanceolate, longer than the rather obtuse triangular lateral ones ; legumes 

 with 2-3 hispid somewhat semi-orbicular joints. — Darlingt.! fl. Ccst.p. 412. 

 D. obtusum, DC. prodr. 2. p. 329 ; Beck, hot. p. 84. Hedysarum Marilandi- 

 cum, Linn, (fide herb! S^'JjI. Gronov.!) spec. 2. p. 748, excl. syn. Dill., not 

 of Willd. and later authors. H. obtusum, Pursh ! fl. 2. p. 482 ; Eli. sk. 2. 

 p. 212 ; scarcely of Willd. 



Dry hills and woodlands. New England States! and New York ! to Flori- 

 da ! Louisiana ! and Alabama ! July-Aug. — Stem 2-3 feet high, striate, 

 glabrous or witli a few scattered hairs. Leaflets scarcely an inch in length, 

 glabrous or rarely with a few hairs on the veins beneath : petioles slender, 

 always about the length of the lateral leaflets. Corolla small, violet- purple. 

 Legumes small, sometimes of a single joint, but more frequently with 3 ; the 

 upper margin distinctly sinuate. — This species is doubtless comprised in the 

 Hedysarum obtusum, and is well known to American botanists under that 

 name, but the specimen in Willdenow's own herbarium seems to be rather a 

 smoother variety of the following species. This however is less important, 

 as the original name of Linnaeus must be adopted. 



13. D. ciliare (DC.) : stem erect, mostly simple, rather slender, hairy ; 

 leaves crowded, on very short hairy petioles; leaflets (small) roundish- 

 ovate or oval, obtuse, rather coriaceous, pubescent and somewhat ciliate ; 

 stipules linear-subulate, caducous ; lower branches of the panicle mostly 

 elongated ; upper lip of the hairy calyx shortest, usually entire ; the 

 lower tooth lanceolate and longest ; legumes with 2-3 semi-orbicular or 

 obliquely roundish-obovate hispid joints. — DC. ! prodr. 2. p. 330 ; Beck, I. 

 c. ; Darlingt. fl. Cest. p. 413. Hedysarum ciliare, Willd. ! spec. 3. p. 1190 ; 

 Pursh, I. c. ; Nutt. ! gen. 2. p. 109 ; Ell. sk. 2. p. 212. H. coriaceima, 

 Poir. suppl. 1. p. 416? 



a. leaflets roundish. — Desmodium obtusum, DC. ! I. c. Hedysarum 

 obtusum, Wdld. ! ex spec. 



0. leaflets oblong, particularly the terminal one ; leaves less crowded. — 

 Hedysarum ciliare var. oblongifolium, Ell. I. c. 



Dry hills and copses. New England States! and New York! to Florida! 

 Louisiana ! and Texas ! July-Aug. — Plant rather stouter than the preced- 

 ing species ; the stems usually quite hairy, but sometimes rather smooth ; 

 the leaflets about the same size (or in 0. rather larger), but always longer 

 than the hairy petiole. Panicle scabrous-puberulent with uncinate hairs, as 

 in D. Marilandicum ; the lower racemes much elongated. — The flowers and 

 fruit are wholly similar to the preceding species, from which there is scarcely 

 any constant distinguishing character, except the very short hairy petioles. 



14. D. rigidum (DC.) : stem erect, branched, clothed with a rough pu- 

 bescence ; leaflets ovate-oblong, obtuse, reticulated, ciliate, scabrous above, 

 hairy beneath, the lateral ones smallest, much longer than the hairy petiole ; 

 stipules ovate-lanceolate, acuminate, ciliate, caducous ; racemes paniculate, 

 erect, very long ; segments of the calyx acute, the lower one longest ; 

 legumes of 2-3 semi-obovate or obliquely oval hispid joints. — DC. I. c. ; 

 Darlingt. ! fl. Cest. p. 413. Hedysanmi rigidum, Ell. sk. 3. p. 215. 



Dry hill sides and open woodlands. Near Boston, Dr. Boott! and Southern 

 part of the State of New York ! and New Jersey ! to Georgia ! Tennessee, 

 Dr. Currey ! Arkansas, Dr. Leavenworth! Western Louisiana, Dr. Hale! 

 Aug.-Sept. — Plant somewhat canescent. Stem 2-3 feet high, striate, usually 

 ■with numerous long erect and rather rigid branches. Leaves a little coriace- 

 ous : leaflets 1-3 inches long. — The fruit scarcely differs from that of D. 

 ciliare, from which the smaller varieties are, as Dr. Darlington remarks, not 

 easily distinguished ; on the other hand, the larger forms approach both D. 

 Canadense and DUlenii ; but the legumes are very different from either. 



