OF NORTH AMERICA. 6? 



649. SPIREA.BHACTEATA Raf. levigata? L. 

 or of some botanists. Quite smooth, branches 

 terete yellowish, leaves quite sessile oblong en- 

 tire, base cuneate, apex obtuse cuspidate, some 

 mixt ovate elliptic, panicle racemose, bracts 

 ovate acute Sibiria and New Sibiria, proba- 

 bly a large shrub, branches thick, leaves 2 or 4 

 inches long, one broad, base almost semiam- 

 plex. panicle compound, flowers white race- 

 mose. In my specimen some elliptical smaller 

 leaves intermixt. Not quite answering to Sp. 

 levigata see below, yet sent me as such. 



650. SPIREA CUNEIFOLIA Raf. Herb. Quite 

 smooth branches terete dark purple, leaves ses- 

 sile cuneate entire, apex very obtuse cuspidate, 

 panicles axillary and terminal racemose, bracts 

 subulate Origon and New Albion, a fine hand- 

 some shrub disc, by Walton, quite different 

 from last by red flowers, small bracts and large 

 leaves 3 to 6 inches long, quite cuneiform or ta- 

 pering from end to base. The real Sp. levi- 

 gata of Lin. is akin to both these sp. but it ap- 

 pears to differ by lanceolate glaucous less ob- 

 tuse leaves and white flowers, (some botanists 

 call the cuneate leaves lanceolate ! which is the 

 reverse tapering from base to end) while Smith 

 blends .the Sp. altaica with it, which I add for 

 contrast. 



651. SPIREA ALTAICA Pallas fl. ross. t. 23. 

 Stem terete redish, leaves fasciculate sessile 

 cuneate acute repand glaucous, racemes pani- 

 culate axillary and terminal, bracts lanceolate. 

 Altaic Mts. flowers white large, capsules 

 large smooth 2sperme, leaves 2 or 3 inches 

 long, not cuspidate nor obtuse ; thus quite dif- 

 ferent from the two last. Is it the real levigata 

 of Linneus as deemed by most of botanists? 



