ACCOUNT OF GENUS SEDUM AS FOUND IN CULTIVATION. 243 



of North American yellow-flowered spathulate-leaved Sedums it 

 may be distinguished by its remarkably long, acute, sub-erect petals 

 (resembUng in shape and position those of the common S. spurium), 

 and tapering buds no less than f inch long. 



Description. — A small, creeping, glabrous evergreen perennial, forming a 

 green mat tinged red. Stems many, creeping, bare below, round, smooth, with 

 many ascending branches ; barren shoots i to 3 inches high, leafy, flowering 

 shoots about 6 inches, unbranched, leaves more distant. Leaves alternate or 

 opposite, shining green, often suffused with red, flat, very fleshy, spathulate. 

 sessile, very blunt at apex, tapered below, about i by | inch ; those of flowering 

 stems similar. Inflorescence flat, i\ inch across, of 2 or 3 simple, forked, or 

 twice-forked branches with flowers in the forks, bracts similar to the leaves, 

 the uppermost ones very small. Buds ovate-elongate, f inch long, tapered to a 

 long, slender point. Flowers sessile or lower ones shortly stalked, not opening 

 widely. Sepals ovate-lanceolate, acute, green, only slightly fleshy, tube short. 

 Petals lanceolate-attenuate, erect or slightly spreading, tapering to a long point, 

 united in their lowest \, nearly thrice the sepals, yellow. Stamens yellow, erect! 

 f the petals. Scales small, yellow. Carpels green, erect, equalling the stamens, 

 nearly erect in fruit. 



Flowers July-August. 



Habitat.— Western North America from Alaska to Northern 

 California. Named after the locality in which it was first discovered 

 — the mouth of the Oregon River. 



(ii.) Leaves not broadest above {ovate to linear). 



No fewer than twenty-two of the cultivated Sedums fall under 

 this definition, natives of various parts of Europe, Asia, and America. 

 The best-marked group among these is that formed by the last seven 

 species, formed of six European and one (S. stenopetalum) N. American 

 plant, and well illustrated by the British 5. rupestre and 5. reflexum. 

 ResembHng these in their linear leaf-form, but differing by their 

 stellate fruit and smaller size, come three Himalayan or Chinese 

 plants — ^5. multicaule, trullipetalum, Celiae, belonging to the group 

 Japonica. S. nudum and lancerottense are closely allied tender species 

 with egg-shaped leaves, from the Atlantic islands. The remainder 

 are a rather miscellaneous assortment. 



humifusum Rose. trullipetalum H. f. & T. 



cupressoides Hemsley. Celiae Hamet. 



acre Lmn. multiceps Coss. & Dur. 



Stribrnyi Velen. sexangulare Linn. 



oaxacanum Rose. rupestre Linn. 



nudum Alton. reflexum Linn. 



lancerottense R. P. Murray. altissimum Poiret. 



japonicum Siebold. anopetalum DC. 



alpestre Villar. stenopetalum Pursh. 



Douglasii Hooker. pruinatum Brotero. 



multicaule Wall. amplexicaule DC. 



