Vol. III.] 



I. Echium vulgare L. 

 Blueweed. (Fij 



BORAGE FAMILY, 

 Vipsr's Bugloss. 



:• 3056.) 



Echium vulgare L. Sp. PI. 140. 1753. 



Bristly-hairy, biennial; stem erect, at length much 

 branched, i°-2><° high. Leaves oblong, linear-ob- 

 long, or linear- lanceolate, obtuse or acute, entire, 2'- 

 6' long, sessile, or the lower and basal ones nar- 

 rowed into petioles; flowers bright blue, varying to 

 violet purple, S"-i2" long, numerous in short i- 

 sided spikes, forming a narrow thyrsus; calyx-seg- 

 ments much shorter than the corolla; limb of the 

 corolla oblique, the lobes very unequal. 



In fields and waste places, New Brunswick to Vir- 

 ginia, west to Ontario and Nebraska. A troublesome 

 weed in some sections of tile Nortli. Naturalized from 

 Furope. Native also of Asia. June-July. Called also 

 Viper's-herb, Viper's-grass, Snake-flower, Blue-thistle. 





1805. 



Family 24. VERBENACEAE J. St. Hil. Expos. Fam. i: 245. 



Verv.\ix Family. 

 Herbs, shrubs or some tropical genera trees, with opposite verticillate or 

 rarely alternate leaves, and perfect more or less irregular, or sometimes regitlar 

 flowers, in terminal or axillary spikes, racemes, cymes or panicles. Calyx in- 

 ferior, mostly persistent, usually 4-5-lobed or 4-5-cleft. Corolla gamopetalous, 

 regular, or 2-lipped, the tube usually cylindric and the limb 4-5-cleft. Stamens 

 4, didynamous, rarely only 2, or as many as the corolla-lobes, inserted on the 

 corolla and alternate with its lobes; anthers 2-celled, the sacs longitudinally de- 

 hiscent. Ovary superior, 2-4-celled (rarely 8-io-celled), composed of 2 carpels, 

 each carpel with 2 anatropous or amphitropous ovules, thus in 4-celled ovaries 

 I ovule in each cavity; style terminal, simple; stigmas i or 2. Fruit dry, sep- 

 arating at maturity into 2-4 nutlets, or a drupe containing the 2-4 nutlets. 

 Endosperm little or none, or rarely fleshy; embryo straight. 



About 70 genera and 1200 species, of wide geographic distributionin temperate and warm regions. 

 Flowers in heads or spikes; ovary 2-4-celled; fruit of 2 or 4 erect nutlets; ours herbs. 



Corolla-limb 5-lobed, regidar or nearly so; nutlets 4. i. Verbena. 



Corolla-limb 4-lobed, 2-lipped; nutlets 2. 2. Lippia. 



Flowers in axillarj- cymes; shrubs; fruit drupaceous. 3. Calhcarpa. 



I. VERBENA L. Sp. PI. 18. 1753. 

 Herbs (some exotic species shrubby), mostly with opposite leaves, and variously colored 

 bracted flowers, in terminal solitary corymbed or panicled spikes. Calyx usually tubular, 

 5-angled, more or less unequally 5-toothed. Corolla salverform or funnelform, the tube 

 straight or somewhat curved, the limb spreading, 5-lobcd, slightly 2-lipped or regular. 

 Stamens <), didynamous, or very rarclj- only 2, included; connective of the anthers unappen- 

 daged, or sometimes provided with a gland. Ovary 4-celled; ovule i in each cavity; style 

 usually short, 2-lobed at the summit, one of the lobes stigmatic. Fruit dry, mostly enclosed 

 by the calyx, at length separating into 4, i-seeded linear or linear-oblong crustaceous smooth 

 papillose or rugose nutlets. [Latin name of a sacred herb.] 



About 100 species, natives of .America, or a single one indigenous in the Mediterranean region. 

 Besides the following, some 13 others occur in the southern and western parts of North America. 

 Flowers 2"-5" long, in narrow spikes; anthers unajipendaged. 

 Spikes fdiforra or slender; bracts shorter than the flowers. 

 Spikes filiform; fruit scattered; corolla usually white. 



Leaves incised or pinnatifid; diffuse annual; fruit short. i. 



Leaves serrate (rarely incised); erect perennial; fruit oblong. 2. 



Spikes slender; fruits densely imliricated; corolla blue. 



Plants glabrous or sparingly rough-pubescent; corolla 2"-3" long. 

 Leaves lanceolate, acuminate, petioled. 3. 



Leaves linear or spalulate-lanceolate. mostly obtuse and sessile. 4. 

 Plants densely soft-pubescent; corolla 4"-5" long. 5. 



Spikes thick, dense; bracts longer than the flowers. 6. 



Flowers 7" -1.2" long, in short dense elongating spikes; connective of the longer stamens appendaged. 

 Corolla-limb 6"-io" broad; bracts mostly shorter than the calyx. 7. ('. Canadensis. 



Corolla-limb 4"-5" broad; bracts equalling or exceeding the calyx. 8. V. bipinnalifida. 



V. officinalis. 

 V. urlici/olia. 



f. Iiaslata. 

 V. an^ustifolia. 

 V. stiicla. 

 V. hraclcosa. 



