284 GENUS ATRIPLEX. 



Fort Collins, Pueblo, and Grand Junction in Colorado; Chadron in Nebraska; Wyandotte 

 (rare, introduced) and Logan County in Kansas; Amedee in California; and Genoa in 

 Nevada. 



216. Atriplex argentea expansa (Watson). — Lower leaves on petioles sometimes 

 as long as the blade, the middle and upper leaves closely sessile, commonly erect or 

 incurved through the axils; blades broadly cordate-ovate to lance-ovate, often sub- 

 hastate but the lower sometimes tapering to the petiole. {A. expansa Watson, Proc. 

 Am. Acad. 9:116, 1874.) In alkaline and often in fallow soil, northern Mexico to 

 Arizona and California, most abundant in western Texas, southern New Mexico, and 

 California, in the last-named State especially on alkaline areas of the coastal slope as 

 far north as the region of San Francisco, and in the interior throughout the San Joaquin 

 Valley, less plentiful in the Sacramento Valley. Type locality, not definitely stated, 

 but the description drawn chiefly from specimens collected in the valley of the Rio 

 Grande, western Texas. Collections: Valley of the Rio Grande, Paso del Norte, 

 Chihuahua, Pringle 1996 (Gr, NY, UC, US); "western Texas to El Paso, New Mexico," 

 May to October, 1849, Wright (Gr, one of the types); El Paso, Texas, Jones 4.169J 

 (Herb. Jones); Barstow, western Texas, common, Earle 631 (NY); Mesilla Valley, 

 Dona Ana County, New Mexico, October 5, 1889, Wooton (US); California: National 

 City, San Diego County, July, 1902, Brandegee (UC); Ramona, San Diego County, 

 October, 1903, Brandegee (UC); San Bernardino, 1891, Parish (UC); Westminster, 

 Orange County, September 10, 1901, Byram (UC); Ballona Lagoon, coast of Los Angeles 

 County, Chandler 2013 (UC) ; Los Angeles, Braunton 138 (UC) ; Oxnard, Ventura County, 

 Davy 7822 (UC); Carpenteria, Santa Barbara County, October 18, 1919, Hall (UC); 

 Lancaster, west end Mojave Desert, October 21, 1919, Hall (UC); dried bed of Kern 

 Lake, San Joaquin Valley, Davy 2910 (UC); west of McFarland, Kern County, October 

 24, 1919, Hall (UC); Earlimart, Tulare County, Hall 11785 (UC); Hanford, Kings 

 County, common in strongly alkaline soil, September 28, 1901, Kearney (US); south of 

 Corcoran, Kings County, October 24, 1919, Hall (UC); south of Merced, very common, 

 October 25, 1919, Hall (UC); Manteca, San Joaquin County, October 26, 1919, Hall 

 (UC); fallow field at Livermore, Alameda County, Hall 10964 (UC); Stockton, Davy 

 1190, 1191 (UC); Brock Lane, near the Arequipa Hills, Solano County, September 22, 

 1891, Jepson (Herb. Jepson, type of A. trinervata Jepson, minor variation 10); west of 

 Norman, Glenn County, Sacramento Valley, common, Hall 11008 (UC). 



MINOR VARIATIONS AND SYNONYMS. 



A discussion of the value of the characters on which some of the following rest will be found under the heading 

 of Relationships. 



1. Atriplex argentea hillmani Jones, Contr. West. Bot. 11:21,190.3. — This is a geographic form or race of 

 A. argentea lypica. It is common in northern Nevada, southeastern Oregon, and northeastern California. The 

 only important character is the habit, the plants being low, rarely over 2 dm. high, although the branches are 

 sometimes widely spreading. However, this trait is sometimes constant over extensive areas, as, for example, 

 in the valley of the Humboldt River, especially along embankments. This variation appears to be a response 

 to the more arid climate of those districts, which has left a sufficient impress upon the plant to make its character 

 more or less permanent, or at least constant for that area. While the development of the plant is the most strik- 

 ing and constant character, the variety hillmani was based also upon other features. These were the crested 

 bracts (which recur so frequently and without regularity in argentea as to be of no value as a criterion), together 

 with the sessile character of these. It is only this last feature, and perhaps the size of plant, that separates 

 hillmani from caput-nieduxae (No. 2 of this list), but this character has been demonstrated to be much too variable 

 to be of significance. The following, the last four of which have both sessile and stalked bracts, the sides of 

 which are both smooth and appendaged on the same plant, belong to this form: Nevada: East of Reno, August 

 11, 1894, Hillman (Herb. .Jones, type); English Mill, near Reno, July 11, 1893, Hillman (US); Monitor Valley, 

 Watson 985 (Gr); Leonard Creek Ranch, northern Nevada, Griffiths and Morris 846 (US); Battle Mountain, 

 Hitchcock 686 (US); same locality, Kennedy 4001 (DS, US); Lemmon Valley, Washoe County, Kennedy 2081 

 (DS, US); Sierra Valley, California, Lemmon 1206 (Gr); Malheur County, Oregon, Cusick 1263 (Gr, US). 



