COMMELINACEAE 239 



sheaths 1-2 cm. long, conspicuously ribbed : bracts 2, somewhat unequal, lanceolate, 

 saccate at the base and broader than the leaves, sometimes sparingly ciliate near the base : 

 sepals elliptic, slightly hooded, glandular-pilose like the pedicels : corolla deep blue or 

 often red : petals orbicular-ovate, about 1.5 cm. long : mature capsule not seen. 



In valleys and along streams, Minnesota and South Dakota to Texas. Spring and summer. 



3. Tradescantia occidentalis Britton. Stems rarely solitary, slender, 3-8 dm. tall, 

 often branched : leaf -blades linear, usually 2-3 dm. long, involutely folded, curved ; 

 sheaths 1-4 cm. long, conspicuously ribbed, rarely with a few cilia : bracts 2, linear, 

 slightly unequal : pedicels rather slender, 1-2 cm. long : sepals oblong or elliptic, appar- 

 ently lanceolate from the involute edges, 8-10 mm. long, glandular-pilose : petals blue or 

 reddish, rather small, about 1 cm. long, orbicular-obovate : capsules obovoid or oblong, 

 5-6 mm. long, glabrous except the puberulent apex : seeds oblong, nearly 3 mm. long, 

 pitted and ridged. 



On sand hills or in stony grounds, Iowa to Texas and the Rocky Mountains. Summer. 



4. Tradescantia Virginiana L. Stems usually clustered, stout or stoutish, erect, 2 

 dm. or mostly 3-4 dm. tall, nearly straight, simple : leaf-blades linear or linear-lanceolate, 

 1 or usually 2-7 dm. long, acuminate, more or less curved, nearly flat or involutely folded ; 

 sheaths 1-3 cm. long, sometimes slightly ciliate : bracts 2, lanceolate or linear-lanceolate, 

 nearly equal or very unequal, usually much smaller than the leaves : pedicels 2.5-5 cm. 

 long : sepals large, elliptic, ovate or ovate-lanceolate, 12-18 mm. long, obtuse or acutish, 

 villous with long non-glandular hairs, about twice as long as broad, becoming membran- 

 ous : corolla dark blue or purplish or rarely white, about 3-4 cm. broad : petals sub- 

 orbicular, 1.4-2 cm. in diameter : capsules 5-7 mm. long, glabrous : seeds oblong, about 

 3 inm. long. 



On hillsides and along streams, New York to Illinois, North Carolina and Arkansas. Spring. 



5. Tradescantia refl6xa Raf. Stems often solitary, 4-9 dm. tall, nearly straight, 

 commonly branched, glaucous or sometimes purplish : leaf-blades nearly linear, 2-5 dm. 

 long, straight, or somewhat curved, long-attenuate, glaucous ; sheaths large, 1-3 cm. long, 

 glabrous or rarely slightly villous : bracts 2, unequal, finally reflexed : cymes usually dense 

 at maturity : pedicels slender, 2-2.5 cm. long, crowded : sepals oblong or elliptic, ap- 

 parently lanceolate from the involute edges, 8-10 mm. long, hooded, mostly with a tuft of 

 hairs at the apex, sometimes glabrate, 3-4 times as long as broad, leathery : corolla blue, 

 2-3 cm. broad : petals suborbicular : capsules ovoid or oblong, 5-6 mm. long, glabrous, 

 constricted above the middle : seeds oblong, 3 mm. long, with irregular transverse ridges. 



In sandy or clay soil, in the Gulf States and from South Carolina to the Indian Territory and 

 Texas ; ascends the Mississippi Valley to Minnesota. Spring and summer. 



6. Tradescantia gigantea Rose. Stems tufted, erect, 6-10.5 dm. tall, stout, some- 

 what branched, glabrous and glaucous below : leaf-blades linear-oblong, 3 dm. long or 

 shorter, glaucous, ciliate ; sheaths glabrous : bracts of the involucre 2-3, narrowly linear 

 beyond the sac-like bases, like the upper joint of the stem densely hairy with almost 

 velvety pubescence: cymes with 50 or more flowers : pedicels 3-4 cm. long, softly pubescent 

 but not glandular : sepals oblong-ovate to oblong-lanceolate, about 10 mm. long, acute, 

 pubescent like the pedicels : corolla blue, pink or white. 



On plains or prairies, Texas. Spring. 



7. Tradescantia incarnata Small. Stems stout, 3-7 dm. tall, sometimes branched 

 above : leaf -blades narrowly lanceolate to almost linear, mostly 2-5 dm. long, undulate ; 

 large sheaths ciliate \vith glandless hairs : bracts 2, 1-2.5 cm. long, shorter than the umbel : 

 pedicels glabrous : sepals oblong to ovate, 6-8 mm. long, one, at least, bearded at the apex : 

 corolla bright red, about 2.5 cm. broad : petals ovate, often acutish : capsules 5-6 mm. long. 



In sandy soil, Mississippi. Spring. 



8. Tradescantia hirsuticaulis Small. Stems, like all the foliage, hirsute throughout 

 with long brownish or whitish hairs, or partially glabrous above, several together, erect or 

 nearly so, 3-4 dm. tall, leafy throughout, simple or nearly simple : leaf-blades narrowly 

 linear, 2-3 dm. long, more or less curved, involutely folded, less densely pubescent than 

 the stem ; sheaths rather pale, 1-2.5 cm. long, conspicuously ribbed : bracts 2, linear, very 

 .unequal, somewhat smaller than the stem-leaves : pedicels slender, 2-2.5 cm. long : sepals 

 variable in the same flower, ovate or lanceolate, 9-15 mm. long, rather villous and some- 

 what glandular : corolla 2.5-3 cm. broad : petals suborbicular, pink-purple or bright blue, 

 broader than long and undulate : mature capsules not seen. 



In sandy places, Georgia, Alabama and Florida. Spring and early summer. 



9. Tradescantia humilis Rose. Stems, like the rest of the foliage, scabrous-pubescent, 

 finally branched at the base ; branches spreading, 3 dm. long or shorter : leaf -blades broadly 

 linear or narrowly linear-lanceolate, 8-20 cm. long, deep green ; sheaths imbricated at the 

 base of the stem : cymes several-flowered : bracts of the involucre 2 or rarely 1, quite sim- 



