54 MALVACEAE. 



2. L. Virginianum, Linn. : stem erect, slender, smooth ; radical leaves 

 ovate and spatulate ; those of the stem linear-lanceolate, alternate ; panicle 

 lax, corymbose ; sepals acute ; capsule globose, awnless. 



Hills and fields. Can. to Flor. W. to Arkansas. June Aug. Q.Stem 

 I 2 feet high, slender. Flowers small, yellow, in a dichotomous panicle. 



Virginian Flax. 



3. S. rigidum Pitrsh. : stem rigid, angular, grooved ; leaves subseta- 

 ceous, short and erect ; margin of the calyx glandulously ciliate ; petalb 

 cuneate-oblong ; seeds pale brown. 



Woods. Mass, to Geor. W. to Fort Mandan and California. (T>.Stem about 

 6 inches high. Flowers pale yellow. Smau Wild Flax. 



ORDER XXII. MALVACEAE. MALLOWWORTS. 



Sepals 5, very seldom 3 or 4, more or less united at the base, 

 often bearing external bracts forming an involucre. Petals 

 equal in number to the sepals. Stamens indefinite, monadel- 

 phous ; anthers 1 -celled, reniform. Ovary formed by the union 

 of several carpels round a common axis, either distinct or co- 

 hering ; styles as many as the carpels. Fruit capsular or ber- 

 ried. Seeds without albumen. Herbaceous plants or shrubs. 

 Leaves alternate, more or less divided, stipulate. Flowers 

 showy. 



1. MALVA. Linn. Mallow. 



(Name altered from /zaXa^>?, soft ; in allusion to the emollient nature of the 

 species. Hook. Br. Fl) 



Calyx 5-cleft, surrounded by an involucre usually of 3, some- 

 times 1 2, or 5 6 setaceous bracts ; rarely naked. Capsules 

 dry, numerous, 1 -seeded, circularly arranged. 



1. M. sylvcstris Linn. : stem erect, herbaceous, branched hairy; leaves 

 large, roundish, with 7 somewhat acute lobes ; flowers large, axillary ; pe- 

 duncles and petioles hairy ; petals obcordate, thrice as long as the calyx. 



Fields. N. Y. July, Aug. ^.Stem 23 feet high, branched. Flmuers 

 large, 3 or 4 together, purplish rose-color, with darker veins. Whole plant mu- 

 cilaginous and emollient. Introduced from Europe. High Mallow. 



2. M. roiiindifolia Linn. : stem somewhat prostrate ; leaves roundish, 

 cordate, obtusely 5 7-lobed; peduncles bent downwards, and with the 

 petioles pubescent ; flowers axillary ; corolla twice the length of the calyx. 



Cultivated grounds. Can. to Car. W. to Miss. June Oct. 1[-. Root fusi- 

 form. Stem 10 18 inches long. Flowers small, pink, with darker veins, on 

 pedicels, 2 3 together. Extensively naturalized. Low Mallow. 



3. M. ? Americana Muhl. : leaves ovate, crenate, stipules oblong-linear ; 

 peduncles axillary, 1 -flowered. Malope malacoides Linn. 



Penn. Virg. . Stem 12 18 inches high, sparingly branched. Flowers 

 on peduncles 2 3 lines long. Petals twice as long as the calyx, yellow. Torr. 

 Sf Gr. American Mallow. 



