466 



CVI. CHENOPODIACEiE. 



Salicornia. 



base of ihe stem. Calyx dull purple, of a leathery texture, tubular, bent almost 

 double, gibbous at the base and at the angle, limb 2-lipped, upper lip 2-lobed. 

 Capsule obovate, 6-angled, 6 — 9" long, with numerous small seeds. June. — 

 The dried root is a valuable stimulant, diaphoretic and tonic, containing cam- 

 phor. It has a warm, bitter, pungent taste. 



2. A. SiPKO. L'Her. Dutchviaivs pipe. 



St. twining, shrubby ; lis. ample, suborbicular, cordate, entire, acute, 

 petioiate; ped. 1-flowered, lurnished with a single, ovate bract; cal. tube bent, 

 ascending, limb 3-clett, equal. — A vigorous climber in mountainous woods, 

 Western Penn. to Ky. and S. States. St. woody, twining, and ascending trees 

 30 or 40f. Leaves G — 12' diam., alternate, sprinkled with soft hairs. Flowers 

 solitary, the tube long and bent at nearly a right angle, in the form of a (siphon 

 or) tobacco pipe, and of a dull brown color. It is highly ornamental in culti- 

 vation, for arbors. June, f 



Order CVI. CHENOPODIACE.E.— Chexopods. 



Herhs or undershnihs, with alternate (rarely opposite) leaves without stipules. 



F,s. inconspicuous, senerally perfect, often dioecious or polygamou.s. 



Cal. deeply divided ofren tubular at base, imbricate in assiivation. 



Sta from the base of the cc.lvx, as many as its lobes or fewer, and opposite to them. 



Ova. 1, with I ovule attached to its ba^e within. SUjies 2—4, rarely 1. 



Fr. a utricle. Embryo usually curved around fleshy albumen. 



Genera 63, species 360, often maritime plants, and more generally weeds, abounding in the northern 

 temperate zone. 



Properties.— Some are useful for food, as the beet, rnangcMcvrtzeJ , orache. spinach, ^c. Others con- 

 tain an essential oil, which renders them tonic, antispasmodic and anthelmintic; as Chenopodinm 

 botrjs, C. ambrosioides. C. anthelminticum ; the latter yields the oflicinal worm-seed oil. Saisoli, Sail- 

 cornia and other sea-side species yield soda from their ashes in great abundance. 



FIG 52.— 1. Flower of Chenopodium album. 2. Calyx, &c., removed, showing the ovary and two 

 (hvpo?}'nous) stamens. 3. Cross section of the seed, showing the coiled embryo. 4. Branch ot Salicor- 

 nia herbacea. 5. Two joints magnified. 6. Ovary of a flower. 7. Fiower of Bbtum capitatiun, wilh 

 the fleshy calyx. 8. Vertical section of the ovary. 9. Flower ol Beta vulgaris. 

 Conspeckis of the Genera. 



i Fruit partly invested ^ Seed lenticular. . . Chenopodium. 7 



\ in calyx I Seed reniform. . . Beta. 8 



( Stamens 5. . ( Fr. wholly invested in cal. Lvs. subulate. . Salsola. 2 



{ <i Styles 1. Leafless plants Salicornia. 1 



fall perfect ( Stamens 1—2 ^Styles 2. Leafy plants Bhtutn. 6 



! diopcious. ^ Stis-mas sessile. Leaves ovate-lanceolate Acnida. 4 



] Stamens 5. I Stig. on capillary styles. Lvs. hastate-lanceolate. . . . Spinacia. H 



Flowers Lpolvgamous. Stamens 5 Atriplex. 



1. SALICORNIA. 



Lat. sal, salt, cornu, horn ; in allusion both to its locality and appearance. 



Calyx turbinate, fleshy, closed, entire ; sta. 1 — 2; style 1, bifid ; 

 utricle invested in the calyx, 1 -seeded. — Salt marsh herhs. rarely 

 shrubby^ destitute of leaves. 



1. S. HKRBACEA. (S. mucrouata "? Bic.) Herbaceous Samphire or Saltwort. 



St. erect, herbaceous, spreading ; joints compressed ; intcrnodes dilated 

 upwards, truncated; branches numerous, opposite, light green, jointed, succu- 

 lent, smooth, terminating in a spike; spikes lateral and terminal, tapering 

 upwards ; fls. small, sessile, about three on each side of the base of every 

 joint.— A leafless plant with succulent and jointed branches, about a foot high, 

 growing abundantlv on sea shores and salt marshes, N. Eng. ! to Ga. ; also at 

 Salina, N. York. "This and other species are said to make a good pickle for 

 the table. When burned, its ashes yield soda. Aug. 



