Vol. III.] 



MINT FAMILY. 



119 



10. ^f. genlilis. 

 M. saliva. 



leaves sharpls- serrate; calyx -teeth subulate. 



Calyx-teeth ciliate, the tube glabrous; leaves ovate. 

 Calyx densely or sparsely pubescent all over. 



Leaves ovate, pubescent on both sides; hairs of the stem reflexed. 



Leaves oblong or ovate-oblong, nearly or quite glabrous. 12. M. Canadensis. 



I. Mentha spicata I^. Spearmint. Our 

 Lady's Mint. (Fig. 3174.) 



Mentha spicata L. Sp. PI. 576. 1753. 

 Mentha spicata var. ziridis L. loc. cit. 1753. 

 Men/ha z'iridis L. Sp. PI. Ed. 2, S04. 1763. 



Glabrous, perennial by leafy stolons; stem erect, 

 branched, i°-i^° liigl"- Leaves lanceolate, ses- 

 sile or short-petioled, sharply serrate, acute or 

 acuminate at the apex, narrowed at the base, the 

 largest about 2;^' long; whorls of flowers in ter- 

 minal narrow acute usually interrupted spikes, 

 which become 2^-4' long in fruit, the one terminat- 

 ing the stem surpassing the lateral ones; bracts 

 subulate-lanceolate, ciliate, some of them usually 

 longer than the flowers; calyx canipanulate, its 

 teeth hirsute or glabrate, subulate, nearly as long 

 as the tube; corolla glabrous. 



In moist fields or waste places, Nova Scotia to Onta- 

 rio, Minnesota and Utah, south to Florida and K.insas. 

 Naturalized from Europe. Native also of .Vsia. Othe 

 names are Garden-, Brown- or Mackerel-Mint, Sag 

 Bethlehem. July-Sept. 



2. Mentha piperita 



L. Peppermint. (Fig. 3175.) 



Menllia piperita L. Sp. PI. 576. 1753. 



Perennial by subterranean suckers; stems gla- 

 brous, mostly erect, branched, i°-3° high. Leaves 

 lanceolate, petioled, dark green, acute at the apex, 

 rounded or narrowed at the base, rather firm, 

 sharply serrate, glabrous on both sides, or pubes- 

 cent on the veins beneath, the larger i}i'-y long, 

 I'-i^' wide; whorls of flowers in terminal dense 

 or interrupted spikes, which are thick and obtuse, 

 and become i'-3' long in fruit, the middle one at 

 length overtopped by the lateral ones; bracts lance- 

 olate, acuminate, not longer than the flowers.or the 

 lower occasionally foliaceous; calyx tubular-cam- 

 panulate, glabrous below, its teeth subulate, usu- 

 ally ciliate, one-half as long as the tube or more; 

 corolla glabrous; style occasionally 3-cleft. 



In wet soil. Nova Scotia to Ontario and Minnesota, 

 south to Florida and Tennessee. Naturalized from 

 Europe. Lamb- or Brandy-Mint. July-Sept. 



3. Mentha citrata Ehrh. Bergamot 

 Mint. (Fig. 3176.) 



Mentha citrata Ehrh. Beitr. 7: 150. 1792. 



Perennial by leafy stolons, glabrous throughout; 

 stem weak, branched, decumlient or ascending, i°- 

 2° long. Leaves petioled, thin, ovate or ovate-or- 

 bicular, obtuse or the upper acute at the apex, 

 rounded or subcordatc at the base, sharply serrate 

 with low teeth, the larger about 2' long, i'-i)4' 

 wide; whorls of flowers in terminal dense thick ob- 

 tuse spikes, and commonly also in the 'uppermost 

 axils; spikes scarcely more than i' long in fruit; 

 calyx glabrous, its teeth subulate, one-half as long 

 as the tube, or longer; corolla glabrous. 



In wet soil, Staten Island. N. Y., and Ohio, .\dven- 

 tive from Europe. July-Sept. 



