24 



BRITISH FLORA 



veins. The Ciipsiile is slr.iijjlil, .sli};hlly lonjfcr 

 than Ihc calyx. The I'niit-.stalks are 2-4 times as 

 lonjr as the capsule, erect at length. The plant is 

 I -10 in. hifjh, flowerinff from May to July, and is 

 a herbaceous .innual. 



Sea Pearlwort (Sn^/na mari/ima, Don.). — The 

 habitat of this species is maritime places (hence 

 mari/ima), sandy seashores. The habit is pros- 

 trate or ascendinjj. The plant is hairless. The 

 central stem is long, forked, erect, with ascendingf 

 branches, producing flowers, purple, brittle, slen- 

 der, with long inlcrnodes. The leaves are fleshy, 

 blunt, blunt-pointed, rounded at the back, linear. 

 The sepals are blunt, concave, the lips bent in- 

 ward, as long as the capsule, somewhat spreading 

 at length, nearly erect in fruit. The flower-stalk 

 is erect. The plant is 1-6 in. high, flowering be- 

 tween July and September, and is a herbaceous 

 annual. 



Jersey Sea Spurrey (Sfiergularia alheniensis, 

 H. & S.). — The habitat of this plant is sea-coasts. 

 The habit is as in the other species of British Sea 

 Spurrey. The leaves are not fleshy, and there is 

 no basal rosette of leaves. The stipules are 

 broadly triangular, dull -yellow, white. The 

 flowers are pink. The capsule is not longer than 

 the sepals. The plant is from 3-5 in. in height, 

 .^nd is in flower in June and July, being a herba- 

 ceous annual. 



Sea Spurrey (Spcrgularia salina, Presl.). — The 

 habitat of this plant is sea-coasts. The habit is 

 prostrate. The plant is more or less downy. The 

 rootstock is scarcely woody, flattened, small, the 

 branches stout. The leaves are long, fleshy, flat, 

 half-cylindrical, long, and narrow-pointed. The 

 bracts are short, entire, dark, triangular, egg- 

 shaped, leaflike. The flower-stalks are shorter 

 than the bracts. The petals are pink with a white 

 base, not so long as the calyx. The stamens are 

 less than 10. The capsule is longer than the calyx, 

 and as long as the fruit-stalks. The seeds are 

 round, with thickened border, or flattened at the 

 border, or with a broad, membranous wing, pale- 

 brown. The plant is 4-12 in. long, flowering from 

 June to September, and is a herbaceous annual or 

 biennial. 



Sea Spurrey (Spergularia media, Presl. = 5. 

 marginata, D.C.). — The habitat of this plant is 

 maritime places, muddy salt-marshes. The habit 

 is prostrate. The rootstock is scarcely woody, 

 slender, the branches stout, flattened at the border. 

 The leaves are long, half-round, fleshy, blunt, 

 more or less acute, smooth. The bracts are en- 

 tire, broadly triangular. The flowers are pale- 

 pink with a white base, as long as the sepals. 

 The flower-stalks are long. The capsule is large, 

 twice as long as the calyx, not half as long as 

 the fruit-stalk. The seeds are reddish, rounded, 

 smooth, with thickened borders, and a broad, 

 membranous wing. The plant is 4-15 in. in height, 

 flowering between June and September, and is a 

 herbaceous biennial or perennial. 



Sea Spurrey (Spcrgularia rupesfris, Lobel = 

 Alsine rupicola, Hiern = A. rupestris, Lobel = 

 Lepigoniim rvpestre, Kindb.). — The habitat of this 



plant is rocky places near Ihe sea. The plant is 

 in habit like 5. media (also maritime). It is glan- 

 dular, downy. The rootstock is thick, woody. 

 The stem is round in section. The leaves are 

 tufted, short, flat or half- cylindrical, fleshy, 

 pointed, downy. The stipules are broadly ovate, 

 prolonged, more or less entire. The flowers are 

 pale-pink, the petals are longer than the calyx. 

 There are 10 stamens. The capsule is large — equal 

 to, or longer than, the calyx, half to two-thirds 

 shorter than the fruit-stalks. The seeds are flat- 

 tened, pear-shaped, with a thick border. The 

 plant is 4-12 in. high, flowering from May to 

 September, and is a herbaceous perennial. 



Four-leaved Allseed (I'olycarpon telraphyllum, 

 L.).— The habitat of lliis species is S.W. coasts of 

 S.W. England, and waste places in the Channel 

 Islands where it is more common. The habit is 

 prostrate. The lower leaves are 4 in a whorl 

 (hence telraphyllum), those on the branches oppo- 

 site, inversely egg-shaped, and in young plants 

 the leaves are often all opposite. The flowers are 

 triandrous in crowded clusters, the petals notched. 

 The capsules are numerous (hence Polycarpon). 

 The plant is 2-S in. high, flowering between May 

 and July, and is a herbaceous annual. 



Order Malv.\ce.« 



Guimauve or Marsh Mallow (Altliaa officinalis, 

 L.). — The habitat of this plant is marshes near the 

 sea. The habit is erect. The plant is softly 

 downy, velvety, the stem more or less simple. The 

 leaves are soft both sides, velvety, entire, 3-5 lobed, 

 broad, shortly - stalked, egg-shaped to heart- 

 shaped, or nearly round, thick, toothed, scalloped. 

 The involucre is 6-9 lobed, and is an epicalyx. 

 The flower-stalks are axillary, with many flowers, 

 not as long as the leaves. The flowers are rose- 

 colour in a cyme. The sepals are egg-shaped. 

 The carpels are downy. The plant is 2-3 ft. high, 

 flowering in August and September, and is a 

 herbaceous perennial. 



Tree Mallow (Lavatera arborea, L.). — The 

 habitat of this plant is maritime rocks. The habit 

 is erect. The stem is stout and woody. The 

 plant is softly downy. The leaves are velvety, 

 plaited, 1-7 lobed, scalloped, nearly round, long- 

 stalked, with broad, short lobes, the upper more 

 entire. The flower-stalks are axillar}', crowded, 

 i-flowered, shorter than the leaf- stalks. The 

 flowers are large, rose-colour, with dark veins, 

 glossy. The involucre or epicalyx is 3-lobed, the 

 lobes large, egg-shaped. There are 10 carpels, 

 or more, in a ring on a common axis, from which 

 they break off separately when ripe. The carpels 

 are like brown or green caterpillars, and birds 

 may disperse them. The plant is 3-8 ft. high, 

 flowering between July and September, and is a 

 herbaceous biennial. 



Order Gera.niace/E 



Bloody Crane's Bill (Geranium sangtiineum, 

 L.). — The habitat of this plant is rocky, drj' places, 



