552 POLYGONACEAE. 
14. Rumex pulcher L. Fiddle Dock. (Fig. 1312.) 
Rumex pulcher L. Sp. Pl. 336. 1753. 
Perennial, dark green; stem slender, erect or procum- 
bent, grooved, diffusely branched, 1°-3° long, the 
branches spreading. Leaves oblong, or some of the 
lower fiddle-shaped, 1-6’ long, long-petioled, obtuse 
at the apex, cordate at the base; upper oblong or oblong- 
lanceolate, 1/-3’ long, short-petioled, usually nar- 
rowed at both ends; petioles more or less pubescent; 
panicle loose; racemes long, divergent, sometimes re- 
flexed, much interrupted, rather leafy; flowers few in 
the whorls; calyx very small, green; pedicels equalling 4 
the calyx-wings, jointed at or below the middle; wings 
ovate or oblong-ovate, 2’” long, truncate at the base, one 
larger than the others or all three of different sizes, 
fringed with spine-like teeth, usually two, sometimes 
one or all three bearing tubercles; achene 1’’ long, 
pointed, reddish, smooth, shining, its faces concave. 
In waste places, Virginia to Florida and Louisiana. 
Also on the Pacific Coast and in ballast about the northern 
seaports, Naturalized from Europe. June-Sept. 
15. Rumex obtusifélius L. Broad-leaved or Bitter Dock. (Fig. 1313.) 
Rumex obtustfoltus I,. Sp. Pl. 335. 1753: = 
Perennial, glabrous, dark green; stem stout, 
erect, simple or sparingly branched, grooved, 
more or less scurfy above, 2°-4° tall. Lower 
leaves oblong-lanceolate, 6’-14’ long, long-peti- 
oled, all cordate or rounded at the base, obtuse or 
acute at the apex, the upper lanceolate or oblong- 
lanceolate, 2’-6’ long, short-petioled, the mar- 
gins somewhat undulate or crisped; panicle 
rather open; racemes nearly erect, continuous or 
interrupted below; flowers loosely whorled; pedi- 
cels slender, somewhat longer than the calyx- 
wings, jointed below the middle; wings hastate, 
2//-2%’’ long, fringed with a few spreading 
spiny teeth, one of them bearing an oblong 
tubercle; achene 1’ long, pointed, dark red, 
smooth, shining, its faces concave, its angles 
slightly margined. 
In waste places, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick 
to Oregon, south to Floridaand Texas. Naturalized 
from Europe. Native also of Asia, June-Aug. 
16. Rumex persicarioides L. Golden 
Dock. (Fig. 1314.) 
Rumex persicariotdes I,. Sp. Pl. 335. 1753. 
Annual, pubescent, pale green; stem rather stout, 
erect and simple,or diffusely branched, 1°-3° high,or 
sometimes spreading or creeping, very leafy. Leaves 
lanceolate, or oblong, 1/—12’ long, narrowed at the 
base, or sometimes cordate, or sagittate, acute at the 
apex, the margins undulate and more or less crisped; 
panicle simple or compound; racemes erect, leafy- 
bracted, mostly interrupted; flowers densely 
whorled; pedicels slender, 1-14 times as long as the 
calyx-wings, jointed at the base; calyx very small; 
wings oblong, 1’’ long, with 1-3 bristles on each mar- 
gin,each bearing an ovoidor oblong callosity; achene 
less than 1/’’ long, pointed, reddish, smooth, shin- 
ing, its faces convex, its angles slightly margined. 
On sandy shores, New Brunswick to Virginia, ex- 
tending across the continent through British America, 
south in the interior to Kansas and New Mexico and 
on the Pacific Coast to California. Has been confounded 
with R. marittimus I. of the Old World. July-Oct. 
