STANDLEY FI-ORA OF GLACIER PARK. 395 



69. MENYANTHACEAE. Buckbean Family. 

 1. MENYANTHES L. 



1. Menyantlies trifoliata L. Buckbean. Frequent in sphagnum bogs on the 

 west slope. Alaska to Calif., Colo., Pa., and Lab. — Glabrous perennial with thick 

 ro3tstocks; leaves basal, long-petioled, with 3 leaflets, these oval or elliptic, 5 to 10 

 cm. long, entire, fleshy; flower stalk 10 to 30 cm. high, the flowers in racemes; corolla 

 white or pinkish, 1.5 cm. long, 5-lobed, loearded within; fruit a capsule. 



The thick fleshy rootstocks sometimes lie upon the surface of the sphagnum. 



• 70. APOCYIJACEAE. Dogbane Family. 



1. APOCYNTJM L. Dogbane. 



Perennial herbs with milky juice and forking stems; leaves opposite, entire, short- 

 petioled; flowers in cymes; sepals 5; corolla bell-shaped, 5-lobed; stamens 5; fruit 

 of 2 long slender pods. — The leaves turn yellow in autumn. The plants are some- 

 times known as Indian hemp. Their stems contain a tough fiber, from which the 

 Indians made rope, twine, etc. The Blackfoot Indians used a decoction of the root 

 as a laxative; they employed the decoction also as a wash for the hair, to prevent 

 its falling. 



Corolla less than twice as long as the calyx, greenish white, the loljes erect. 



1. A. cannabinum. 

 Corolla more than twice as long as the calyx, white striped with pink, the loljes 

 spreading . 



Leaves gla])rous 2. A. ambigens. 



Leaves more or less hairy beneath 3. A. pumilum. 



1. Apocynum cannabinum L. Common dogbane. Rocky river banks at Belton, 

 forming large patches. Widely distributed in N. Amer. — Stems purplish, 0.5 to 1 

 meter high, glabrous; leaves oblong or lance-oblong, 5 to 10 cm. long, glabrous; 

 corolla 3 to 5 mm. long. 



2. Apocynum ambigens Greene. Pink dogbane. Frequent at low and middle 

 altitudes, on dry open slopes; often on talus slopes. Wash, to N. Mex. and S. Dak. — 

 Plants 20 to 60 cm. high, with pale stems, often much branched; leaves ovate to 

 rounded, 2 to 6 cm. long, green above, pale beneath, acute to rounded at the apex; 

 corolla 5 mm. long, pale pink, with dark pink stripes inside, sweet-scented. 



A handsome plant, often loaded with the delicately colored bell-shaped flowers. 



3. Apocynum pumilum (A. Gray) Greene. Occasional at low altitudes, on open 

 slopes or in thin woods. Wash, to Calif., Utah, and Mont.^Similar to A. ambigens, 

 differing only in the pubescent leaves; pods 8 to 14 cm. long. 



This is doubtfully distinct from A. ambigens, and it is probable that both are 

 merely forms of A. androsaemifolium L. 



71. ASCLEPIADACEAE. Milkweed Family. 

 1. ASCLEPIAS L. 



1. Asclepias speciosa Torr. Milkweed. Praii'ie and open hillsides about the 

 east entrance. B. G. to Calif., Kans., and Minn. — Coarse perennial, 0.5 to 1 meter 

 high, somewhat woolly, with milky juice; leaves large, oval, sessile, opposite, entire; 

 flowers purplish pink, 1 to 1.5 cm. long, showy, in umliels; fruit a large pod, 7 to 10 

 cm. long, the numerous seeds each tipped with a tuft of long silky white hairs. 



The young sprouts of some of the closely similar species of milkweed in the Eastern 

 States are cooked like asparagus. There is a popular belief that the milky juice will 

 destroy warts. 



