Leptanthus. CUV. PONTEDERIACE^. 655 



Tribe 6. ASPARAGE J3. — Stem usually fully developed, or if not, the leaves 



are coriaceous and permanent. 



16. ASPARAGUS. 



Gr. airapaGcro), to tear; some of the species are armed with strong prickles. 



Perianth 6-parted, erect ; ovary turbinate ; stamens erect ; style 

 very short ; stigmas 3 ; berry 3-celled, cells 2-seeded. 



A. OFFICINALIS, Asparagus. 



SI. herbaceous, unarmed, very' branching, erect ; Ivs. setaceous, flexible, 

 fasciculate. — q\. Native of England, and other parts of Europe, naturalized on 

 rocky shores. Stem 2 — 4f high. Leaves filiform, J — 1^' long, pale pea-green. 

 Flowers axillary, solitary or in pairs. Berries globose, red. It is one of the 

 oldest and most delicate of culinary vegetables, was no less praised in ancient 

 Rome, by Pliny, Cato and other writers, than at the present day. Diuretic. Jl. 



Order CLIV. PONTEDERACEiE.— Pontederads. 



Plants aquatic or marsh. Lvs. sheathing, parallel-veined, mostly cordate or dilated at base. 



Iriflortiscence various, often spatliaceous. 



Perianth tubular, colored, 6parted, often irregular, circinate in testivation. 



Sta. 3 or 6, unequal, perigynous. 



Ova. free or sometimes adherent to the perianth at base, 3-celied. Style 1. Stig. simple. 



Fr.— Capsule 3 (sometimes D-celled, 3-valved, with loculicidal dehiscence. 



Seeds numerous (sometimes solitary), attached to a central a.xis. Albumen farinaceous. 



Genera 6, species 30, found exclusively in America, E. Indies and Tropical Africa. They are of no 

 known use. 



Conspectus of the Genera. 



< solitary Leptanthus. 2 



\ equal, \ 2—4 together in a spathe Heteranthera. 3 



Flowers ( unequal, in a terminal spike. Pontederia. \ 



1. PONTEDERIA. 



In honor of Julius Pontedera, a botanic author and professor, of Padua, about 1720. 



Perianth bilabiate, tubular at base, under side of the tube perfo- 

 rated with 3 longitudinal clefts, the lower part persistent ; stamens 

 unequally inserted, 3 near the base and 3 at the summit of the tube ; 

 utricle 1 -seeded. — Fls. blue, rfwstly spicate. 



P. coRDATA. PickereUtcecd. 



Lvs. subradical, cordate-oblong; jis. spiked.— 7|. Can. and U. S. A fine 

 conspicuous plant, native of the borders of muddy lakes, &c., growing in patches 

 extending from the shores to deep water. Stem thick, round, erect, arising 

 1 — 2f above the water, bearing a single leaf. Leaves 4 — T by li — 3', very 

 smooth and glo.ssy, almost sagittate, with veins beautifully arranged to conform 

 to the margin. Flowers in a spike, arising above the spathe, very irregular. 

 Perianth 2-lipped, each lip 3-cleft, always blue, appearing in July. 

 fi. angustifolla. Torr. Lvs. narrow, truncate and subcordate at base. 



2. LEPTANTHUS. Michx. 



Gr. \cTrroi, slender, av^oi] in reference to the long tui)e of the perianth. 



Spathe 1 -flowered ; tube of the perianth very long and slender, 

 limb G-parted, equal ; anthers of 2 forms; capsule 1 -celled, many- 

 seeded. — Lvs. al(rrnnt(\ sheathing at base. 



L. ORAMINFA. Valil. (Schollera graminca. Srhrcb.) 



St. floating, rootimj at the lower joints; lvs. linear. — Agra.ss-like aquatic, 

 in flowing water, Northern States. Stem slender, dichotomous, 1 — 2f long. 

 Leaves 3 — ('/ hmg, 1 — 2" wide, obiuse at apex, slightly sheathing at ba.se. 

 Flower solitary, is.suini,' from a short (T) spathe. Tube U' long, limb in G, 

 linear-laneeolate .segments, yellow. Stamens 3 (-1, a»/A///-.>c) ; filaments broad, 

 one of tliem abortive, the other 2 with linear anthers longer than the thick 

 stvle. Jl. Aug. 



47* 



