1 86 GENTIAN FAMILY 



Calyx surrounded by leaf -like bracts; perennials. 



Plant dwarf, 1 to 5 in. high 4. G. newberryi. 



Plant robust, 5 to IS in. high 5. G. calycosa. 



1. G. detonsa Rottb. Plant 3 to 15 in. high, the stem sim- 

 ple, or branched below, with 2 to 6 pairs of lanceolate leaves 

 (% to 1 in. long) and terminated by a single erect flower. 

 Pedicel much exceeding the leaves. Corolla sky-blue, 1 to 2 

 in. long, deeply 4 or 5-lobed; lobes rounded, often minutely 

 toothed. Seeds oval, rough with minute projecting scales. 

 (G.,serrata holopctala Gray.) 



The famous Fringed Gentian of the Eastern United States 

 is a close relative of this plant, differing mainly in having the 

 corolla-lobes strongly fringed around the summit. Our spe- 

 cies occurs throughout the Sierra Nevada in meadowy and 

 grassy places, ranging from the altitude of the Yosemite to 

 Tuolumne Meadows. Except by its seeds, it can scarcely be 

 distinguished from the next. 



2. G. simplex Gray. Like no. 1, but the stem always sim- 

 ple, the flowers ^ to \Y\ in. long, and the seeds smooth but 

 longitudinally lined. — In similar places, and the two species 

 often mistaken for each other in the absence of seeds. 



3. G. amarella var. acuta Hook. Plant 6 to 18 in. high, 

 erect, leafy up through the flower-clusters. Leaves lanceolate 

 or oblong, J / 2 to \ l / 2 in. long. Corolla mostly blue, about y 2 

 in. long, with 5 oblong lobes. — A widely distributed species, 

 found at Tuolumne Meadows (and Tahoe). 



4. G. newberryi Gray. Plant 1 to 3 in. high (rarely 5 in.). 

 Stems several, decumbent at base, with crowded spatulate or 

 oblong leaves and a single terminal flower. Peduncle very 

 short or none. Corolla pale blue, white within, greenish dotted, 

 about \y 2 in. long; lobes ovate, sharply pointed, connected by 

 a transparent 2 or 3-cleft membrane.— Near Glacier Point and 

 perhaps elsewhere at high altitudes. 



5. G. calycosa Griseb. Stems simple, 5 to 15 in. high, leafy 

 to summit, with one or several erect terminal flowers. Leaves 

 ovate or roundish, Y A to \ l / 2 in. long. Pedicels much shorter 

 than leaves. Corolla blue, green-dotted, about V/ 2 in. long, 

 its ovate lobes connected by a bluish membrane with several 

 slender teeth.— Reported from near Sentinel Dome; more 

 common around Lake Tahoe. 



3. FRASERA. 

 1. F. speciosa Dougl. Leaves opposite or in whorls of 4 

 or 6, ovate or oblong, the upper narrower, acute, 5 to 10 in. 



