MYEICACEAE 337 



1. COMFTONIA Banks. 



Commonly monoecious aromatic shrubs. Leaves approximate : blades narrow, pin- 

 natifid, rather thin. Staminate aments elongated, axillary. Stamens 3-6 on each bract : 

 filaments shorter than the anthers : anthers erect. Pistillate aments axillary, subglobose, 

 spiny. Ovary 1-celled, subtended by 2 bractlets and surrounded by 8 long persistent awl- 

 shaped scales : nut smooth, surrounded by a bur-like involucre formed by the accrescent 

 scales of the flower. 



1. Comptonia peregrina (L.) Coulter. An aromatic finely pubescent shrub, 3-10 

 dm. tall, with erect or spreading branches. Leaves deciduous : blades linear-oblong or 

 linear-lanceolate, 4-10 cm. long, acute or acutish, pinnately cleft into many oblique obtuse 

 entire or sparingly toothed segments, minutely pubescent, especially beneath, short- 

 petioled : staminate aments narrowly-cylindric, 1-3 cm. long, with triangular-reniform 

 acuminate pubescent subcordate bracts* which vary from 3-4 mm. in length. Pistillate 

 aments bur-like, their bracts reniform, the 8 scales surrounding the ovary awl-shaped : 

 nut ovoid, 5 mm. long, brown, shining, striate. [Comptonia asplenifolia (L. ) Gaertn.] 



On dry hillsides, Nova Scotia to Manitoba, Michigan, Indiana, Tennessee and North Carolina. 

 Spring. SWEET FERN. 



2. MORELLA Lour. 



Mostly dioecious, sometimes evergreen, aromatic shrubs, or small trees. Leaves alter- 

 nate : blades fleshy-leathery, often toothed, especially toward the apex. Staminate aments 

 axillary, elongated. Stamens 2-8 on a bract : filaments short, somewhat adherent at the 

 base : anthers erect, 2-celled. Pistillate aments axillary, short, not spiny. Ovary solitary, 

 1-celled, subtended by 2-4, or rarely more, short inconspicuous scales. Drupe-like nut 

 with a fleshy epicarp which excretes granules of wax. WAX-MYRTLE. BAY-BERRY. 



Shrub, 2-6 dm. tall, with woody horizontal underground stems (rootstocks). 1. M. pumila. 

 Trees or shrubs, 1-12 m. tall, without rootstocks. 



Drupes 2-3 mm. in diameter. 2. M. cerifera. 

 Drupes 4-7 mm. in diameter. 



Leaf-blades dull above, toothed, usually pubescent and glandular beneath. 3. M. Carolinensis. 



Leaf-blades lustrous above, entire, glabrous and dull green beneath. 4. M. inodora. 



1. Morella pumila (Michx. ) Small. A low much branched shrub, 2-6 dm. tall, 

 spreading by horizontal rootstocks. Stems erect or ascending, often tufted : leaves numer- 

 ous ; blades leathery, varying from obovate to linear-spatulate, cuneately narrowed at the 

 base, obtuse or acute at the apex, commonly toothed near the apex, glandular, mostly 

 pubescent beneath, dark green above, sessile or nearly so : staminate aments 5-8 mm. long, 

 with reniform-flabellate bracts : pistillate aments much smaller, their bracts suborbicular, 

 often broader than long: fruits globose, 3.5-4 mm. in diameter. [Myriea cerifera y pumila 

 Michx.] 



In sandy barrens, Georgia and Florida. Flowers in winter or in early spring and fruits in the fall. 



2. Morella cerifera ( L. ) Small. An evergreen shrub, or a small tree, reaching a maxi- 

 mum height of about 12 m., with a maximum trunk diameter of 30 cm. Stems usually 

 ascending, often much curved, with a pale bark : leaf-blades oblanceolate or oblong-oblan- 

 ceolate, 3-10 cm. long, acute or acutish, entire or sharply and coarsely toothed, especially 

 toward the apex, glandular, becoming glabrous, except the midnerve beneath, yellowish- 

 resinous, narrowed into slender petioles, which are usually less than 1 cm. long : staminate 

 aments about 1-1.5 cm. long, with reniform-flabellate bracts : pistillate aments shorter than 

 the sterile, with broadly ovate bracts : fruits globose, about 2-3 mm. in diameter : seeds 

 oblong. [ Myrica cerifera L. ] 



In sandy soil, Maryland and Arkansas to Florida and Texas. Spring. 



3. Morella Caroline* nsis (Mill. ) Small. A shrub 1-3 m. tall, with little or no pubes- 

 cence. Stems erect or ascending, more or less twisted, clothed with a pale smooth bark : 

 leaf-blades elliptic, oblong, oblanceolate or obovate, 2-10 cm. long, obtuse or sometimes 

 acute, entire near the base, shallowly toothed toward the apex, glandular and sometimes 

 pubescent beneath ; petioles usually 5 mm. long, rarely about 1 cm. long : staminate aments 

 1-1.5 cm. long, their bracts mainly reniform-flabellate: pistillate aments much smaller 

 than the staminate, with ovate, acute bracts : fruits globose, 4-5 mm. in diameter : seeds 

 oblong. [Myrica Carolinensis Mill. ] 



In sandy soil, Nova Scotia to Florida and Alabama, chiefly near the coast, but also on the shores 

 of Lake Erie, and in swamps inland. Spring. 



4. Morella iaodora (Bartr. ) Small. An evergreen shrub or small tree reaching a 

 height of 6 m. , with a maximum trunk diameter of nearly 9 cm. Stems often straight, clothed 



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