ASCLEPIADACE^:. (MILKWEED FAMILY.) 345 



* Leaves opposite. 

 -i- Cordate. 



1. A. Cornuti, Decaisne. Softly pubescent; stem stout, erect; leaves 

 oval-oblong; umbels numerous, many-flowered, long-peduncled ; corolla green- 

 ish purple ; leaves of the crown pale purple, ovate, obtuse, longer than the 

 incurved horn ; follicle ovate-oblong, woolly, armed with soft spines. Fields 

 and roadsides, North Carolina ( Groom), and northward. June -July. Stem 

 3 -4 high. Leaves 4' - 8' long. Corolla \' wide. 



2. A. rubra, L. Smooth; stem naked at the summit; leaves ovate or 

 ovate-lanceolate, acuminate ; umbels single, or 1 - 3 in a terminal cluster, few- 

 flowered; corolla reddish purple; leaves of the crown oblong, acute, purplish, 

 barely longer than the subulate incurved horn, twice as long as the short- 

 stalked gynostegium ; follicle smooth. Wet pine barrens, Georgia, and 

 northward. June -July. Stem 2 -4 high. Leaves 2' -4' long. 



3. A. obtusif olia, Michx. Smooth and somewhat glaucous ; stem 

 erect; leaves oblong, undulate, partly clasping; umbels 1-3, long-peduncled, 

 many-flowered; corolla greenish purple; leaves of the crown truncated and 

 somewhat toothed at the apex, rather longer than the gynostegium, much 

 shorter than the subulate incurved horn ; follicle smooth. Sandy soil. 

 June - July. Stem 2 - 3 high. Leaves 2' - 3' long. Corolla lobes 3" long. 



4. A. amplexicaulis, Michx. Smooth and glaucous ; stem decumbent, 

 very leafy ; leaves large, fleshy, ovate, clasping, white-veined ; umbels 3-6, 

 many-flowered ; corolla ash-color ; leaves of the crown oval, obtuse, white, 

 longer than the gynostegium, and the nearly straight horn. Dry sandy pine 

 barrens in the lower districts. April -May. Stems several, l-2 long. 



Leaves 4' - 5' long. 



i -i- Leaves contracted into a petiole. 



w- Ova!, oblong, or olovate. 



5. A. phytolaCCOides, Pursh. Stem tall, smooth; leaves ovate or 

 ovate-lanceolate, tapering at each end, paler beneath, niembranaceous ; um- 

 bels 2-4, long-peduncled, many-flowered; pedicels drooping; corolla pale 

 greenish : leaves of the crown white, truncated, 2-toothed, shorter than the 

 subulate incurved horn. Low grounds along the mountains. June -July. 

 Stem 3 - 5 high. Leaves 6' - 9' long. Pedicels 2' - 3' long. 



fi. A. purpurascens, L Stem smooth; leaves ovate-oblong, acute, 

 short-petioled, paler and pubescent beneath; umbels 1-2, many-flowered; 

 corolla dark purple ; leaves of the crown oblong, abruptly contracted above, 

 twice as long as the incurved horn and nearly sessile gynostegium. Thickets 

 and borders of woods, Tennessee, North Carolina, and northward. Juiie- 

 Julv. Stem 2-3 high. Leaves 4' -7' long. Pedicels 9"- 15" long, 

 pubescent. 



7. A. variegata, L. Stem stout, leafless below, pubescent in lines; 

 leaves oval, oblong, or ohovate, smooth ; umbels 3-5, pubescent, closely flow- 

 ered, the upper ones corymbose ; corolla white ; leaves of the crown roundish, 

 longer than the purplish gynostegium, equalling the thick awl-pointed incurved 

 horn. Dry open woods and borders of fields. May -June. Stem 2 -3 

 high, purplish. Leaves rather thick, 2' -3' long. Peduncles 9"- 12" long. 



