426 Order 70.— COMPOSITE. 



(he branches pubescent in lines ; lvs. subclasping, lanceolate and lance-linear, taper- 

 pointed or very acute, coriaceous, rough-edged, the lower subserrate ; hds. large, 

 racomed or subcorymbed; scales about 3 row?, subequal, acute, erect, shorter 

 than the disk ; ach. pubescent. — N. Eng. to Va. (Pursh), more common westward 

 to Wis. and Iowa. Comprehends many smooth and elegant varieties, which we 

 vainly try to separate. St. 2 to 4f high. Lower lvs. 3 to 5' long. Rays blue, 

 expanding 9 to 12". Aug. — Oct. (A. laxii'olius Nees. A. scstivus Ait.) 



]i. L.ETiFLoaus. Slender ; branches divergent ; lvs. rigid, long and narrow, 



scabrous; rac loose, the peA nearly leafless. — Ohio, Wis. Beautiful, with 



long, pale purple rays. (A. salieifolius Willd.) 

 y. PR£ALT08. Strict, with erect branches, bearing tho leafy clusters near tho 



summit; lvs. very narrow, elongated, cilio-serrulato on the margin. — N. H. 



to Wis. Height 3 to 4f. Hds. somewhat smaller. (A. piaaltus Pcir.) 



40 A. longifdlius Lam. Glabrous] st. very branching, branches spreading, 

 many-flowered; lvs. subamploxicaul, linear-lanceolate, entire (the lowest rarely 

 subserrate), very smooth ; scales lanceolate, nearly equaling the disk, the outer 

 loosely squarrous-spreading ; ach. smooth — Fields and thickets, Mass., N. Y., to 

 Car. St. of high. Lvs. pale below, shining above, smooth both sides, the lower 

 ones 4 to 6' long. lids, numerous, showy, with 25 to 30, light-blue rays. Ach. 

 twice longer than in the last. Oct., Nov. — Some specimens are minutely pubes- 

 cent at tho tops of the branches. Others have the outer scales quite leaf-like. 

 (A. laevigatas Ph. A. laxua Willd. A. elodes T. k G.) 



41 A. gramhiifolius Ph. Subpubescent; st. slender, branches filiform, erect; 

 lower lvs. very numerous, narrow-linear; pcd. slender, 1 -flowered; scales linear- 

 Eubulate, loose, in one or two row3. equal, finally renexed. — N. H. (Eddy.) High 

 cliffs, Willoughby Lake, Vt. ; also on an island in Wait's River, Bradford, Vt., 

 18G0. Branches simple, leafy, naked at tho end, 1-fiowered, somewhat eorymb- 

 ous. Rays 15 to 25, much longer than tho disk, purple or rose-colored. Jn., Ji 

 — Raro and interesting, very different in aspect from any of the foregoing. 



§ 4. SCARIOSI. White-scaled Astees. 



42 A. acuminattis Mx. St. simple, flexuous, angular, branching into a corymb- 

 ous panicle above; lvs. broad-lanceolate, narrowed and entire at the base, seiTate 

 and acuminate • invol. scales lax, linear — Mts. woods, Can., N. Eng., N. Y. Stem 

 a foot high, rough, downy. Leaves largo, unequally and remotely serrate above, 

 and ending in a long, acuminate point. Panicle corymbous, terminal, few- 

 flowered, nearly or cmito naked. Tho leaves are mostly situated just below tho 

 corymb, sometimes scattered. Heads rather large, with about 15 long, white 

 rays. Aug. 



43 A. uemoralis Ait. Branches corymbed or 0; ped. 1 -flowered, nearly naked, 

 filiform ; lvs. narrowly lanceolate, acute at each end, veinless, subentive ; scales 

 very acute, loose, shorter than the disk; rays long, alwzd 20. — A handsome plant, 

 m swampy woods, N. H., Mass. to N. J. Rather rare. Stem slender, 10 — 20' 

 high. Leaves numerous, 10 — 18" by 2 — 4", rarely subdentate. Heads large, 

 few, often but one, terminating tho simplo axis or branches. Rays large, white 

 or pale purple. Sept., Oct. 



44 A. ptarmicoides T. & G. St. corymbous-fastigiate above ; lvs. linear-lanceo- 

 late, acute, rough-margined, entire, lower ones dentate, attenuated into a short 

 petiole ; rays short. — A very distinct Aster, low and leafy, found in rocky soils, 

 by streams and lakes, Vt. (Bobbins) to Mo. Rare. Stems clustered, simple, each 

 bearing a spreading panicle of heads, which are below tho middle size, and fur- 

 nished with snow-white rays. July — Sept. (Heliastrum, DC.) 



45 A. flextiosus Nutt. St. branching, slender, flexuous, very smooth; lvs. long 

 and succulent, tho lower ones sublanceolate-linear, upper ones subulate; branches 

 leafy, 1 -flowered ; invol scales lanceolate, acuminate, appressed ; rays numerous, 

 shorter than the involucre ; ach. subpubescent. — Grows in salt marshes, Mass. to 

 Flor. The whole plant very smooth, If high, with large, purple flowers; disk 

 yellow. Aug. — Oct. 



46 A. Chaprnanii Torr. & Gr. Glabrous ; st. strict, slender, corymbous at sum- 

 mit ; brandies filiform. 1-flowercd; lvs. linear-subulate, oppressed, numerous; 



