44 DICOTYLEDONOUS PLANTS. 



1. POLYGALA. Tourn. 



Sepals of the calyx persistent; two inner ones wing- 

 shaped and coloured. Petals 3 5, united to the stamens, 

 lower one keelform. Capsule compressed, elliptic, obovateor 

 obcordate. Seeds pubescent, Diadetyhia. Octandria, 



* Flowers in racemes or spikes. 



1. P. vulgaris Linn. : stem herbaceous, procumbent ; leaves linear- 

 lanceolate, rather obtuse ; flowers in a terminal spike, erect ; wings 

 of the calyx obtuse, longer than the corol. 



HAB. Banks of the Mohawk, N. Y. Nutt. June. It- Stem* 

 numerous. Flowers blue, cristate. According to De Candolle 

 there are 7 varieties of this species. 



2. P. incarnata Linn. : glaucous ; stem erect, slender, nearly sim- 

 ple ; leaves scattered, few, subulate ; racemes spiked, oblong, with- 

 out glands ; corol with a long tube. 



HAB. N. J. to Car. Near Niagara Falls. Hooker. June, July, 

 0. Stem 12 18 inches high, somewhat angled, with few re- 

 mote subulate leaves. Flowers flesh-coloured, in a somewhat 

 loose terminal spike; petals united into a long slender tube. A 

 specimen of this plant, received from Dr. Charles Pickering, and 

 gathered by him in New-Jersey, has only 4 or 5 subulate leaves 

 on the stem, which is more than a foot high. Milk Wort. 



3. P. cruciata Nutt. : stem fastigiate, winged at the angles ; leave* 

 whorled in fours, linear-lanceolate, punctate ; spikes dense, sessile ; 

 flowers subcristate ; wings of the calyx cordate, acuminate, mucronate. 



HAB. Wet places. Can. to Geor. July, Sept. . Stem 8 19 

 inches high, with spreading branches. Flowers greenish-purple, 

 Corol slightly fimbriate. 



4. P. brectfoUa, Nutt. : stem erect, branched, winged at the angles ; 

 leaves whorled in fours, oblong-linear, short, sprinkled with resinous 

 dots ; spikes pedunculate, partly capitate ; flowers subcristate ; wingg 

 of the calyx cordate-ovate, acute, scarcely longer than the capsule. 



HAB. Sandy swamps. N. J. to Ohio. July, Aug. 0. Stem 

 slender. Flowers brightish red. Resembles the former, but is 

 quite distinct. Dr. Hooker thinks this may be the true P. cruci- 

 ata ofLinmeus, while the P. cruciata of Nuttall is distinct. But 

 there is still some doubt with regard to the correctness of thia 

 opinion. 



5. P.fastigiata Nutt.,- stem slender and fastigiately branched; leave* 

 alternate, linear, acute; spikes subcapitate, pedunculate ; flowers sub- 

 cristate ; wings of the calyx spreading, ovate, acute, scarcely longer 

 than the capsule. P. setacea Muhl. 



HAB. N. J. . Nutt. Nearly allied to P. cruciata. 



6. P. purpurea Nutt. : stem fastigiately branched ; leaves alternate, 

 oblong-linear ; flowers beardless, imbricated in obtuse cylindrical 



