TRlLLIACEiE. 359 



Swamps. Jamestown, Chalauque county, N. Y. Torr. Can. to Car. ? 

 May, June. %-. — Leaves 2 — 5, radical or nearly so, 6 — 9 inches long. Scape 

 usually longer than the leaves. Flowers 15 — 30, in an umbel or a corymb, 

 wliite, odorous, much smaller than in the preceding species. 



Small-flowered Clintonia. 



4. POLYGONATUM. Des/.— Solomon's Seal. 



(From the Greek iroXvs, many, and yow, a hnee ; in allusion to its many-jointed 

 rhizoma.) 



Perianth tubular, 6-cleft. Stamens 6, inserted near the sum- 

 mit of the tube. Ovary superior. Berry subglobose, 3 -celled ; 

 cells 2 -seeded. 



P. multijiorum All. : stem nearly terete ; leaves ovate-elliptic or elliptic- 

 lanceolate, clasping ; peduncles 1 — 6-flowered ; filaments smooth or slightly 

 pubescent ; ovules 3 — 6 in each cell of the ovary. ( Torr. N. Y. Fl.) P. 

 bifiorum Ell. P. pubescens, canalic'ulatum, latifolmm, hirsutum and multi- 

 jiorum Pursh. 



Rocky woods, banks of streams, &c. Can. to Car. June, July. %. — Rhi- 

 zoma thick and fleshy. Stem 1 — 3 feet high, simple, slightly curved, round or a 

 little angular and channelled. Leaves variable in size and form. Flowers green- 

 ish-white, usually 2 — 4, sometimes 5—6, rarely 1, on recurved peduncles. I 

 adopt the views of Darlington and Torrey in regard to the identity of several 

 supposed distinct species of this genus. Common Solomon's Seal. 



Order CXXXI. TRILLIACE^.— Parids. 



Perianth 6 -parted ; 3 inner segments larger, colored or her- 

 baceous. Stamens 6 — 10; filaments subulate ; anthers linear. 

 Ovary free, 3--5 -celled ; styles as many, distinct ; stigmas in- 

 conspicuous. Fruit succulent, 3 — 5-celled. Seeds numerous, 

 with fleshy albumen. — Herbaceous plants, with simple stems, 

 verticillate leaves and large terminal solitary flowers. 



1. MEDEOLA. Linn. — Indian Cucumber. 



(From MriSea, the name of a sorceress ; on account of the reputed virtues of 

 the plant.) 



Perianth petaloid, 6-parted, revolute. Stamens 6, inserted 

 at the base of the perianth. Styles 3, filiform, elongated, di- 

 varicate. Berry 3-celled ; cells 1 — 3-seeded. 



M. Virginica Linn. Gyromia Virginica Nutt. 



Moist woods. Can. to Geor. May, June. %..—Stem 12—18 inches high, 

 erect. Leaves in 2 whorls ; one about the middle of the stem, of 6 — 8 oblong- 

 lanceolate acuminate leaves ; the other near the top, of 2 — 3 smaller ovate ones. 

 Flowers 3 — 6, on pedicels arising from the upper whorl, greenish-yellow, re- 

 flexed. Cucumber Root 



