EMPETRE^. 309 





2. A. serpentaria Linn. : stem flexuous ; leaves cordate, oblong, 

 acuminate ; peduncles radical ; lip of the corol lanceolate. 



HAB. Shady woods. Penn. to Car. June. 2J..Stem 812 

 inches high, pubescent, geniculate and knotty at base. Flowers 

 few, purplish-brown. Possesses valuable medicinal properties. 

 'See Big. Med. But. iiL 82. Virginia Snakeroot. 



2. ASARUM. Linn. 



Perianth campanulate, 3-cleft. Stamens 12, placed upon 

 the ovary ; anthers adaate with the middle of the filaments. 

 Style short. Stigma stellate, 6-lobed. Capsuh 6-celled. 



Gynandria. Decandria. 



1. A. canadcnse Linn* .- leaves by pairs, broad reniform ; perianth 

 woolly, cleft to the base; the segments sublanceolate, reflexed. A. ca* 

 rolinianum Walt. 



HAB. Woods. Can. to Car. W. to Miss. April. If.. Stem 

 none. Leaves generally 2, with long and hairy petioles. Flow- 

 er somewhat campanulate, solitary, on a short peduncle, some- 

 times nearly buried in the ground. The root has an agreeable 

 and aromatic flavor. . Wild Ginger. 



2. A. virginicum 1 Mich. : leaves solitary, cordate, nearly round, gla- 

 brous, coriaceous ; flower nearly sessile; perianth externally gla- 

 brous, short, campanulate. 



HAB. . Rocky woods. N. J. to Car. April. If. Leaves spot- 

 ted or clouded, smooth. Segments of the perianth obtuse. Ve- 

 ry similar in habit to the preceding. 



ORDER CVI. EMPETRE^E. Mutt. Lind. 



Flowers dioecious. Perianth consisting of 2 4 imbricat- 

 ed rows of hypogynous scales. Stamens equal in number to 

 the scales and alternate with them ; anthers roundish, 2-cell- 

 ed, the cells distinct, bursting longitudinally. Ovary supe- 

 rior, seated in a fleshy disk, 3 6 or 9-celled ; ovules solitary, 

 ascending ; style 1 ; stigma radiating, multifid. Fruit fleshy, 

 seated in the persistent perianth. Seed solitary, ascending ; 

 embryo taper in the axis of the fleshy albumen ; radicle infe- 

 rior. 



Small acrid shrubs, with heath-like evergreen leaves with- 

 out stipules, and minute flowers in their axils. 



1. EMPETRUM. Linn. 



Dioecious. Perianth consisting of 2 rows of scales. STE- 

 RILE FL. Stamens 3, upon long filaments. FERTILE FL. 



