654 LORANTHACEiE. Viscum. 



1. VISCUM. Tourn. ; Gartn. Jr. t. 27 ; Endl. fren. p. 801. 



Flowers monoecious or difEcious. Sterile Fl. Perianth simple, coria- 

 ceous-fleshy, 4- (or rarely 3-5-) parted ; the segments triagular, erect, valvate 

 in aestivation. Anthers as many as the lobes of the perianth, and inserted on 

 them near the middle, many-celled, opening by numerous pores. Ovarv a 

 glandular rudhnent, or none. Fertile Fl. Limb of the calyx obsolete. 

 Petals 4, rarely 3-5, coriaceous-fleshy, epigynous. Rudiments of stamens 

 none. Stigma sessile, obtuse. Berry pulpy. (Embryos often several.) — 

 Branches often articulated, terete, 4-sided, or compressed. Leaves opposite 

 or very rarely alternate, sometimes scale-like or none. Flowers spicate or 

 fascicled. — Misseltoe. 



1. V. flavescens (Pursh) : branches terete, opposite, and sometimes verti- 

 cillate ; leaves cuneate-obovate, obtuse, 3-nerved ; spikes axillary, interrupt- 

 ed, mostly shorter than the leaves ; berries yellowish-white, pellucid. — 

 Pursh, fl. 1. f. 114 (excl. syn. which relates to V. flavens) ; DC! prodr. 

 4. p. 280. V. album, Walt. ; Muhl. cat. V. verticillatum, Nutt. ! gen. 2. 

 p. 235 ,• Ell. sk. 2. p. 677, not of Linn. 



On branches of mostly old or decaying trees, sometimes on the pine and 

 cedar, New Jersey I and Ohio ! to Florida and Lousiana ! April--3Iay. — 

 Perianth usually 3-cleft in the sterile flowers. 



2. V. villosum (Nutt. mss.) : " villous with a close soft pubescence ; 

 branches terete, opposite ; leaves cuneate-oblong, obtuse, scarcely nerved ; 

 spikes axillary, interrupted, much shorter than the leaves. — V. tomentosum, 

 X>C. prodr. 4. suppl. p. 670.'' 



" On oak trees in the woods of the Wahlamet, Oregon. — Allied to V. fla- 

 vescens ; but with narrower leaves, &c. Calyx of the fertile flower 2-3- 

 cleft. Berries white." Nuttall. 



V. rubrum and V. purpureum of Linnaeus are natives of the Bahama Islands, 

 but not ofthe United States. 



V. terrestre (Linn.) is, according to Willdenow, a bulbiferous state of Lysima. 

 chia stricta. 



2. ARCEUTHOBIUM. Bieberst. fl. Taur.-Cauc. suj^pl. p. 629 ; Hook.fl. 



Bor.-Am. 1. p. 278, t. 99 ; Endl. gen. jJ- 800. 



Flowers dioecious. Sterile Fl. Perianth simple, between corneous and 

 fleshy, 2-3- or rarely 4-cleft ; the segments ovate, concave, spreading. An- 

 thers as many as the lobes of the perianth, and inserted on them near the 

 middle, sessile, subglobose, 1 -celled, dehiscent by a transverse line, mem- 

 branaceous. Rudiment of the ovary glandular, 2-3-lobed. Fertile Fl. 

 Perianth simple ; the tube oval, compressed, connate with the ovary ; the 

 limb 2-toothed. Rudiments of stamens none. Stigma sessile, small, ob- 

 scurely lobed. Berry somewhat terete, pulpy. A small much-branched 

 parasitic shrubby plant, leafless ; the branches opposite, articulated ; the 



