MELANTHACEJS. (COLCHICUM FAMILY.) 515 



at the apex, longer than tlie fihxments. Styles nnileil: stigma 3-cleft or en- 

 tire. Berry nearly globose, many-seeded. — Erect herbs with spreading 

 branches. Leaves clasping. Peduncles opposite the leaves, bent or twisted 

 in the middle. 



1. S. roseus, Michx. Stem much branclied ; leaves ovate, or the upper- 

 most lanceolate, acuminate, slightly clasping, ciliate on the margins, 5-7- 

 nerved ; flowers mostly solitary, rose-color, nodding ; anthers 2-poiuted at the 

 apex ; stigma 3-cleft. — Shady woods on the mountains of Georgia, and north- 

 ward. May. — Stem 2° liigh. Leaves 2' -4' long. Flowers 3" -4" long. 



2. S. amplexifolius, DC. ' Margins of the leaves smooth, flowers 

 greenish white ; anthers entire ; style filiform ; stigma entire ; otherwise like 

 the last. — Shady woods on tlie mountains of North Carolina. 



4. MELANTHIUM, L. 



Flowers mouoeciously polygamous. Divisions of the perianth spreading, 

 long-clawed, soniewliat cordate or hastate and biglandular at tlie base ; the 

 filaments partly adhering to their claws : anthers reniform, becoming peltate, 

 the cells confluent. Styles 3, subulate. Capsule membranaceous, 3lobed, the 

 cells separating and opening down the inner suture, several seeded. Seeds 

 flat, winged. — Stems tumid at the base, rough-pubescent above. Leaves 

 long, linear. Flowers panicled, cream-color, tui-uing brownish. 



1. M. Virginieum, L. Stem tall, simple, the upper portion, like the 

 loose panicle, pul)esceut and somewhat hoary ; lowest leaves long, broadly 

 linear and clasping, the upper small and sessile ; flowers shorter than the 

 pedicels, the upper ones perfect ; leaves of the perianth oblong or roundish, 

 often acute, the slender claw adnate to the lower half of the filaments ; glands 

 conspicuous. — Swamps. July - August. — Stem 3° - 4° liigh. Lowest leaves 

 1°- 1-1° long. 



2. M. latifolium, Desrouss. Very near the preceding, but leaves 

 wider, flowers smaller, the divisions 2" -3" long, orbicular, undulate; the 

 claw bearing the stamens below the middle ; glands connivent or obscure. 

 (M. hybridum, Walt.) — Open woods in the upper districts. August. 



5. ZYGADENUS, Michx. 



Flowers perfect. Leaves of the perianth ovate or oblong, spreading, sessile 

 or nearly so, 1 - 2-glandular at the base. Filaments free from the perianth, 

 and of equal length: anthers broadly cordate, becoming peltate. Styles 3, 

 ."lender, spreading. Ca])sule membranaceous. 3-angled, septicidal at the ape.x, 

 many-seeded. Seeds oblong, wingless, or slightly margined. — Stems smooth 

 and simple. Leaves linear. Flowers white, in crowded panicles. 



1. Z. glaberrimus, Michx. Stem rigid, leafy; lowest leaves broadly 

 linear, glaucous beneath, the upper small and scattered ; panicle small, rigid ; 

 bracts ovate ; leaves of the perianth oblong, short-clawed, often with a white 

 callus on one or both sides at the base ; glands prominent ; stamens and styles 

 subulate ; seeds oblong. — Pine barren swamps, Florida to North Carolina. 

 June- July. — Stem 2°-3° higii. Lowest leaves 1°-U° long. Panicle 6'- 

 12' long, commonly dense. Flmvers 1' in diameter, as long as the jicdicels. 



