ft 



HYPERICACEAE 201 



sphere. Of the two that occur in eastern North America, one 

 is native in Illinois. 



ASCYRUM HYPERICOIDES Linnaeus 

 St. Andrew's Cross 



The St. Andrew's Cross, fig. 51, is a low, diffuse shrub with 

 creeping stems from which flattened, 2-edged branchlets rise 

 erectly to a height of 6 to 12 inches. The branchlets are many 

 and reddish brown, and the bark is shreddy. The sessile, oppo- 

 site leaves are oblanceolate or spatulate, about i/^ to 1 inch 

 long by 14 irich wide, and nearly without petioles. They are 

 obtuse or rounded at the apex, narrowed to the base, and very 

 minutely black dotted both above and below. 



The flowers, which appear in July and August, are solitary 

 in the axils of upper leaves or grouped in twos or threes at the 

 end of branchlets. They are about Y2 inch in diameter and 

 stand on very short pedicels bearing 2 bracts. The fruit matures 

 in the autumn as a flat, ovoid capsule composed of 2 cells, which 

 contain many tiny, oblong seeds, the surfaces of which are pitted 

 in many lengthwise lines. 



Distribution. — St. Andrew's Cross prefers poor soil on the 

 slopes or tops of ridges, especially in open places in wooded 

 regions. It ranges from Massachusetts to Nebraska and south 

 to Florida and Texas. In Illinois, it is distinctly southern in 

 occurrence, being limited to the southern tip of the state and 

 apparently not extending north of the Ozarks. 



HYPERICUM (Tournefort) Linnaeus 

 The St. John's-Worts 



The St. John's-worts are herbs or shrubs with opposite, 

 usually sessile leaves which are thick, entire or nearly so, and 

 punctate. The flowers are borne in cymes and have 5 somewhat 

 unequal sepals and 5 yellow petals. The stamens are numerous, 

 and the 1-celled ovary develops into a 1- to 5-celled capsule 

 containing numerous seeds. 



The are more than 200 species of St. John's-worts, with 

 wide geographic distribution. Between 30 and 35 species occur 

 in North America, and the 2 following are more or less shrubby 

 in Illinois. 



