﻿Order LXXIV. VALERIANACE.E. DC. 

 Tube of the calyx adherent to the ovary ; the Umb various, some- 

 times forming a plumose pappus, occasionally obsolete. Corolla tubu- 

 lar-infundibuliform or obconical, often gibbous anteriorly or spurred ; 

 the limb mostly S-lobed, imbricate in aestivation. Stamens distinct, 

 inserted into the corolla, sometimes 5, more frequently 3 or 4 (the pos- 

 terior only, or this and one of the lateral ones being suppressed), 

 rarely 2 or reduced to a single one (the posterior) : anthers introrse. 

 Ovary mostly 3-celled, two of the cells empty, the third containing a 

 solitary suspended ovule : style fdiform : stigmas 2-3, or united into 

 one. Fruit membranaceous or coriaceous, indchiscent, 1 -celled, or 

 frequently 3-celled with 2 of the cells empty, sometimes 2-celled by 

 th«. confluence of the empty cells, 1-seeded. Seed anatropous, with a 



shrubs ; the perennial species with thick and odorous roots or rhizomas. 

 Leaves opposite, exstipulate, simple or divided. Flowers in dichoto- 

 mous cymes, at first often glomerate, frequently corymbose or panicu- 

 late. Corolla white, rose-color, or blue, rarely purple or yellow. 



