NELUMBONACEAE 455 



Leaf-blades dissected except the inconspicuous floating ones : petals auricled: carpels 2-4. 1. CABOMBA. 

 Leaf-blades all entire : petals entire : carpels 4-18. 2. BRASENIA. 



1. CABOMBA Aubl. 



Weak, slender aquatic mucilage-coated herbs, with branching stems. Leaves of two 

 forms : submerged opposite or whorled, divided into numerous filiform segments : floating 

 with peltate blades. Flowers white or yellow, small, solitary on long axillary pedicels 

 Sepals 3, petal-like. Petals 3, similar to the sepals, but auricled near the base. Stamens 

 6, inserted with the petals : filaments subulate : anthers extrorse. Pistils 2-4, usually 3, 

 inserted on a small receptacle : style short : stigma terminal, depressed. Ovules usually 

 3, pendulous. Fruit leathery, indehiscent. Seeds 1-3 in each carpel. 



1. Cabomba Caroliniana A. Gray. Perennial, bright green. Stems submersed, 1-2 

 m. long, branched : leaves of two kinds ; submersed opposite or whorled, 4-7 cm. long ; 

 blades petioled, cut into repeatedly forking narrowly-linear or filiform segments ; floating 

 leaves with peltate linear-oblong blades, 1.5-2 cm. long, the ends obtuse : flowers on pedi- 

 cels 3-6 cm. long, arising from the upper axils, about 1-1.5 cm. broad : sepals and petals 

 obovate, white or yellow at the base, or sometimes deep pink, truncate or retuse at the 

 apex : stamens about as long as the petals : fruit a cluster of 3 flask-shaped carpels. 



' In ponds and slow flowing water, Missouri to North Carolina, Florida and Texas. Spring and 

 summer. 



2. BRASENIA Schreb. 



Slender mucilage-coated perennial aquatic herbs, with long branching stems. Leaves 

 mostly floating : blades peltate on elongated petioles, leathery. Flowers small, dull purple, 

 solitary at the ends of long axillary pedicels : sepals 3, colored within. Petals 3, narrow, 

 recurving. Stamens 12-18 : filaments filiform or subulate. Pistils 4-8, distinct, inserted 

 on a small receptacle. Style subulate. Ovules 2-3, pendulous. Fruit leathery, indehis- 

 cent, Seeds 1-2 in each fruit. WATER-SHIELD. 



1. Brasenia purpurea ( Michx. ) Gasp. Kootstocks slender, the submersed foliage 

 mucilage-coated. Leaf-blades on delicate petioles, leathery, centrally peltate, oval, ob- 

 long or elliptic, 5-12 cm. long, rounded at each end, floating, bright green and shining 

 above, often purple beneath : flowers purple, long-pedicelled : sepals linear or linear- 

 lanceolate, 1-1.5 cm. long, obtuse or acutish : petals like the sepals : stamens exserted : 

 fruit 5-8 mm. long, the body rounded, the beak angled. [Brasenia peltata Pursh.] 



In ponds, lakes and slow streams, Nova Scotia to Manitoba, Florida and Texas. Summer. Also 

 in Cuba and Central America, and on the Pacific slope. 



FAMILY 7. NELUMBONACEAE Lindl. 1 LOTUS FAMILY. 



Perennial aquatic herbs, with large creeping rootstocks. Leaves alternate : 

 blades suborbicular, centrally peltate, concave, floating or emersed on long stout 

 petioles. Scapes arising with the petioles, stout, each terminated by a single per- 

 fect showy flower. Sepals and petals similar, hypogynous, numerous, imbri- 

 cated, inner larger and more highly colored than the outer, all deciduous. An- 

 droecium of numerous long hypogynous stamens. Anthers narrow, extrorse, 

 the connective prolonged into an incurved appendage. Gynoecium of several 

 carpels separately immersed in an obconic enlargement of the receptacle. Ovary 

 1-celled. Style very short. Stigma umbilicate. Ovules solitary or rarely 2, 

 suspended. Fruit several nuts immersed in the accrescent receptacle. Seeds 

 without endosperm. Embryo consisting of 2 thick cotyledonary bodies, enclos- 

 ing a plumule of 2-3 developing leaves. 



1. NELUMBO A dans. 



Characters of the family. WATER CHINQUAPIN. DUCK ACORN. 



1. Nelumbo lutea (Willd. ) Pers. Rootstock horizontal, stout. Foliage bright green. 

 Emersed leaves with centrally peltate orbicular strongly ribbed blades, sometimes stand- 

 ing high above the water on stout petioles, or floating, the margins more or less turned up- 

 ward : peduncles stout, 1-2 m. tall : flowers pale yellow, 1-2.5 dm. broad : petals obovate 



1 Originally spelled NELUMBIACE^:. 



