Rhexia. MELASTOMACEiE. 477 



vvitli a ratlier thick connectivum, not a]i])cndac;ccl, 1-cclled ! Style somewhat 

 declined : stjijma ohtuse. Capsule nearly free from the invci«tin<!; calyx- 

 tube, 4-ccllcd ; die placenta; nuich projecting into the cells. Seeds coch- 

 leate ; the hilum very large. — Perennial herbs. Leaves mostly sessile, 3- 

 nerved, ciliate-serrulate or entire. Flowers showy, purple or yellow ; the 

 petals rather caducous. 



The onccellcd anthers of Rhexia were pointoH out to us by Mr. Brown ; who 

 many years since stated that the genus sliouUi be restricted to the North Amer- 

 ican species, but without mentioning its distinctive marks. The anthers be- 

 come onc-celled by the obliteration of the partitions : at an early period wo 

 find four parallel cells. The species are nearly confined to the vicinity of the 

 sea-board. 



§ 1. Anthers long and linear, arcuate, more or less j^roduced or saccate at the 

 base ; the connectivum furnished with a minute setaceous process at the in- 

 sertion of the filament : style somewhat curved above : tube of the calyx 

 mostly elongated and campanulate-infundibuUform above the ovary : leaves 

 lanceolate or linear : flowers j^urjjle, rarely almost white. — Eurhexia. 



—f— 1. R. Mariana (Linn.) : stem terete, hispid, mostly simple ; leaves linear- 

 oblong or lanceolate, attenuate at the base and slightly petioled, sparsely his- 

 pid on both sides, setaceously ciliate-serrulale ; calyx hispid with scattered 

 bristly and somewhat glandular hairs. — Linn. spec. 1. p. ti-iG ; Lam. ill. t. 

 283,/. 1 ; Michx. ! fl.\. ji. 221 (cxcl. y.) ; Ell. sk. 1. jj. 437; DC! prodr. 

 3. p. 121. R. Ludoviciana, Baf. ? 



Moist sandy soil, New Jersey ! to Florida ! and Kentucky ! to Louisiana! 

 June-Sept. — Stem 1-2 feet high, slender. Petals large, obliquely obovate, 

 light purple, often liispid externally. 



2. R. lanceolata (Walt.) : stem nearly terete, much branched, hirsute ; 

 leaves linear or lanceolate, attenuate at the base and slightly petioled, slight- 

 ly liis])id on both sides, setaceously ciliate-serndate ; calyx glabrous. — Walt. 

 Car. p. 129 ,• Pair. suppL? R. Mariana y. cxalbida, Lam. ill. t. 286,/. 3 ; 

 Michx.! I. c. R. anguslifolia, Nuti.! gen. I. p. 244 ; Ell. I. c. ; DC! I. c. 



Damp soil, N. Carolina ! to Florida! and Louisiana. .Tune-Aug. — Stems 

 1-2 feet high, growing in large clusters or patches, very leafy. Flowers nu- 

 merous, smaller than in R . Mariana, pale purple or nearly wliite. 



^T — 3. R. Virginica (Linn.) : stem sparsely hispid, quadrangular, the angles 

 narrowly winged ; leaves oval-lanceolate, acute, si)arsely hispid above and 

 on the ribs of the lower surface, serrulate-ciliate ; calyx liLspid, the tube 

 above the ovary h)nger than the segments. — Linn. ! sj>ec. 1. p. 34 G ; Lam. 

 ill. t. 283, / 2 ,• Mwhx. ! I. c. ; Bot. mag. t. 9G8 ; Ell. I. c. ; DC. ! prodr. 

 3. p. 121. R. septemnervia, Walt. Car. p. 130. 



Moist places, Massachusetts ! and Connecticut ! near the coast, to Louisi- 

 ana ! and Arkansas ! July-Sept. — Leaves sometimes 5-7-ribbed, longer 

 than the internodes. Flowers large, numerous : petals often hispid exter- 

 nally . — Deer- grass. 



4. R. stricta (Pursh) : glabrous ; stem (tall) quadrangular, the angles 

 strongly winged, minutely bearded at the nodes; leaves ovate-lanceolate, 

 gradually acuminate, setaceously serrulate, often slightly hispid above ; calyx 

 glabrous, the tube scarcely prolonged above the ovary. — Pursh, fl. 1. p. 

 258 ; DC. I. c. 



