RUBIACEAE 1115 



coK)lla 3-4 mm. long ; tube narrowly funnelform ; lobes oblong or oblong-lanceolate, much 

 shorter than the tube. 



In sand, Florida. Native of South America. Spring to fall. 



19. ERNODEA Sw. 



Perennial shrubby plants, with decumbent stems and glabrous foliage. Leaves oppo- 

 site : blades leathery, rather narrow, entire : stipules fringed, persistent. Flowers perfect, 

 solitary and sessile in the axils. Sepals 4-6, persistent. Corolla yellowish, funnelform, 

 rather fleshy, naked in the throat : lobes 4-6, narrow, valvate. Stamens 4-6, adnate to 

 the corolla-tube. Disk fleshy. Ovary 2-celled : styles united, filiform : stigmas capitate 

 or slightly 2-lobed. Ovule solitary in each cavity, amphitropous. Drupe somewhat 

 fleshy, 2-grooved, the carpels permanently united, with cartilaginous nutlets. Seeds flat- 

 tened on one side. Testa membranous. Endosperm fleshy. 



1. Ernodea littoralis Sw. A spreading or prostrate shrub, the foliage glabrous. 

 Stems 4-angled, the branches alternate : leaves usually clustered ; blades fleshy-leathery, 

 linear-elliptic, varying to broadest above or below the middle, 1-2.5 cm. long, entire, ses- 

 sile or nearly so : sepals lanceolate-subulate or nearly so, longer than the tube : corolla 

 yellow ; tube 1 cm. long ; lobes curved, shorter than the tube : drupes oval or subglobose, 

 4-6 mm. in diameter, yellow. 



On or near the coast, southern peninsular Florida and the Keys. Also in the West Indies. Spring. 



20. CRUSEA Cham. 



Annual or perennial caulescent herbs. Leaves opposite : blades flat : stipules sheath- 

 ing. Flowers perfect, in clusters subtended by involucres of 4 bracts. Hypanthium 

 flattened, ovoid or obovoid. Sepals 4, sometimes accompanied by several teeth, persistent- 

 Corolla pink, funnelform : tube slender : lobes 4, valvate, spreading. Stamens 4, adnate 

 up to the mouth of the corolla-tube : filaments bent : anthers exserted. Ovary 2-celled : 

 styles wholly or partially united, capillary. Ovule solitary in each cavity, amphitropous. 

 Capsule didymous, the carpels indehiscent but separating from each other, the walls very 

 thin. Seeds mainly oblong. 



1. Crusea tricdcca (T. & G. ) Heller. Foliage hirsute or glabrate. Stems diffusely 

 branched at the base, the branches 2-15 cm. long, spreading or prostrate : leaf-blades 

 linear to oblong-lanceolate, 1-2.5 cm. long, acute or somewhat acuminate, often scythe- 

 shaped, sessile: sepals lanceolate, 1.5-2 mm. long: corolla 3-4 mm. long; tube funnel- 

 form ; lobes shorter than the tube : fruit ovoid-globose, 2-2.5 mm. long. [C. allococca A. 

 Gray.] 



On plains or prairies, Texas and adjacent Mexico. Spring to fall. 



21. DIODIA L. 



Annual or perennial herbs. Stems decumbent or procumbent. Leaves opposite : 

 blades entire, sessile, usually longitudinally striate : stipules sheathing. Flowers perfect, 

 axillary. Hypanthium obovoid or obconic. Sepals 2-4, sometimes accompanied by 

 smaller teeth. Corolla white or lilac, funnelform or salverform : lobes 4, short, valvate. 

 Stamens mostly 4, adnate to the throat of the corolla-tube. Disk obsolete. Ovary typi- 

 cally 2-celled : styles united : .stigma 2-lobed. Ovules solitary in each cavity, amphi- 

 tropous. Fruit oblong or globose, the 2 or rarely 3-4 indehiscent carpels separating, the 

 walls firm. Seeds elongated, free. BUTTON-WEED. 

 Styles partially united : corolla salverform. 

 Foliage glabrous or sparingly pubescent. 



Leaf-blades narrowed at the base : capsules oblong. 1. D. Virginiana. 



Leaf-blades truncate or subcordate at the base: capsules ovoid. 2. Z>. tetragona. 



Foliage copiously hirsute. 3. D. hirsuta. 



Styles united to the entire or 2-lobed stigma : corolla funnelform. 4. D. tercs. 



1. Diodia Virginiana L. Perennial, glabrate or hirsute. Stems branched at the 

 base, the branches prostrate, 1-15 dm. long, sometimes creeping: leaf-blades oblong, ellip- 

 tic or linear-oblong, or oblong-spatulate at the base of the stem, 3-8 cm. long, acute or 

 acuminate, attenuate to the base, sessile : flowers solitary in the axils or clustered : sepals 

 linear or linear-lanceolate, 4-6 mm. long : corolla white ; tube slender, 6-8 mm. long ; 

 lobes oblong or oblong-lanceolate, shorter than the tube : capsules oblong, 7-9 mm. long. 



In wet soil, New Jersey to Missouri, Florida and Texas. Spring to fall. 



