472 TRANS. OF THE ACAD. OF SCIENCE. 



superante; capitulis magnis densissime multi-(30-80)floris; 

 floribus majoribus virescentibus demura stramineis ; sepalis 

 lanceolato-subulatis extenoribus longioribus ; antheris linea- 

 ribus filamento paulo brevioribus ; ovario lanceolato in sty- 

 lum brevem sensim abeunte; capsula pyramidato-subulata vix 

 exserta. — J. megacephalus, Wood, Bot. 724, non Curtis. 



This species takes a much wider geographical range than 

 the last, including the whole of North America north of Mex- 

 ico, with the exclusion of the south-eastern States ; but the 

 different forms occupy different geographical regions. Var. a. 

 is found throughout British North America from Canada and 

 the Hudson Bay regions to the Rocky Mountains and the 

 North-west coast, and extends southward to Pennsylvania, 

 Porter, lib. n. 70, Ohio, Lapham, Michigan, Bigelow, Hb. n. 71, 

 and Wisconsin, Lapham, Hale; 1 have seen no specimens 

 from further south, though the older authors credit it to Vir- 

 ginia and Carolina, quoting, among others, Bosc as their au- 

 thority. Var. (i has been solely found in Western Texas, Lind- 

 heimer, 545, Wright, Buckley. Var. y meets a on Lake Ontario, 

 where also J. alpinus and articulatus join, and extends from 

 thence westward to Michigan, Bigelow, Hb. n. 74, and south- 

 westward to Illinois, Missouri, the northern Red River, Hub- 

 bard, the Saskatchewan, Bourgeau, the Yellowstone, Hayden, 

 Colorado, Parry, Hb. n. 75 (a dwarfed form), New Mexico, 

 Fendler, 849 Wright, 696 & 1926, Texas, Lindheimer, 546, and 

 others ; and to Arizona, Coues # Palmer, and California, Coul- 

 ter, 809. It flowers from July to August. 



Our plant is very closely allied to the last one, and is often 

 confounded with it ; but the number of stamens and the mark- 

 ings of the seeds will readily distinguish any of the forms which 

 may be mistaken for one another, e. g. J. scirpoides, ji echina- 

 tus, and J. nodosus, y megacephalus ; besides, the slender sto- 

 lons which terminate in a chain of small bulbs, probably the 

 only part that sustains the life of the plant during winter, are 

 quite characteristic of all the forms of this species. Another 

 peculiarity of var. /3 and y is the direction of the leaves, 

 especially the upper ones, which are patulous, making a very 

 distinct angle with their sheathing base, while in var. a the 

 leaves are erect, forming an almost straight continuation of 

 the sheath. Var. a and more rarely var. y exhibit sometimes 

 that degeneration of the heads into bunches of sheaths or 

 leaves which has been spoken of in another place. The 

 seeds are 0.22-0.27 line long, the length being nearly equal 

 to 2, rarely to 2 J diameters; commonly 8 ribs are visible on 

 one side. 



The northern form, var. a, is the genuine J. nodosus of 

 Linnaeus, who described it from specimens sent by Kalm 

 (most probably from Canada), as Prof. Gray ascertained in 

 the Lintnean herbarium itself; he informs me that u Linnaeus' 



