﻿Farwell: Notes on Michigan Liliace^ 355 



A careful study of a series of specimens, ranging from Oregon 

 to Hungary, allows of but one conclusion— that there is but a single 

 species and that the plant recently described by Mr. Fernald as 

 Maianthemum canadense var. interius, is, in reality, identical with 

 the Linnean Convallaria bifolia and is, consequently, UnifoHum 

 bifolium (L.) Greene. The plant from the Black Hills, Figs. 7, 

 8, it will be observed, corresponds with that from Denmark, 

 Fig. 6; the collections of Mr. Hicks, Figs. 9, ^o, are nearly 

 identical with those from Hungary and Bavaria, Figs, i, 2; and 

 my own collection from Stoney Creek, Fig. ii, is very close to 

 another plant. Fig. 3, from Bavaria; the outlines of the leaves of 

 the var. canadense, Figs. 12-19, are the same as those of the 

 type, no other difference, save that of pubescence, being detectable ; 

 the apex in both is acute or obtuse, the base cordate or sagittate; 

 the western variety kamtschaticum, Figs. 22, 23, shows the broad- 

 est sinus; the European type, the deepest; the var. canadense, the 

 shallowest; and the var. ovale, Figs. 20, 21, the narrowest; but 

 there is a regular graduation from one extreme to another. The 

 var. kamtschatictm has the longest petiole with the blade prom- 

 inently decurrent on it; the plants of Loher, Fig. 3, and Cavas- 

 sius. Fig. 4, show the blades slightly decurrent on the petioles, 

 thus in a measure paralleling the western form. The pedicels 

 vary from 2-6 mm. in length in all the forms; the petioles of the 

 upper leaf measure 1-6 mm., and of the lower leaf. 2-16 mm., in 

 all the forms except the western, which has much longer petioles. 

 There is in Michigan a plant with broadly ovate or oval leaves. 

 Figs. 20 (stem-leaf), 21 (root-leaf); Pursh traversed the region of 

 " the Lesser and Great Lakes" and I have no doubt that this form 

 is the basis of his Smilacina canadensis var. ovalis; the base of the 

 leaf is cordate or rather sagittate but the sinus is closed or nearly 

 so, which renders it inconspicuous. There is a form which has 

 three leaves to the stem and in Europe forms are found with but 

 one leaf. The differences in length of petioles, pedicels, and the size 

 of the leaf-sinus cannot be correlated with other characters with 

 a sufficient degree of accuracy to warrant separating the different 

 forms as species; such differences as exist are of degree and not of 

 kind and therefore are not of specific value. The species and its 

 forms may be listed as follows: 



