COMPOSITAE (COMPOSITK FAMILY) 791 



gaurea, vais. Randii and Rcdfieldii Porter ; 8. humilis Man. ed. 6, in part, 

 not Pursh.) Dry or rocky (commonly granitic, etc.) soil, e. Me. to Mich., 

 southw. along the mts. to s. N. H. and w. Mass. July-early Sept. Passing 

 freely to var. MouxfcoLA (Porter) Fernald. Lower (0/>-f> dm. high), with a 

 dense solitary thyrse 2-10 cm. long. (S. Virgaurea, var. Porter ; S. Virgaurea, 

 var. Deanei Porter.) More exposed situations. 



2. Midrib of the leaves usually obscure; inflorescence \-several racemes or 

 interrupted thyrses, many of the pedicels 5-15 (or rarely 25) mm. long. 



15. S. racembsa Greene. Often glutinous ; stems usually clustered, rather 

 strict, slender and nearly terete, very leafy, 1-6 dm. high ; basal and lower 

 leaves oblanceolate, mostly acute or subacute, 3-12 cm. long, 5-7 mm. broad, 

 more or less crenate or serrate above the middle ; cauline leaves 10-30 or more, 

 nhliinceolate to linear, the uppermost entire and 1-3.5 cm. long, all (in well- 

 developed plants') bearing axillary fascicles ; racemes solitary, 5-15 cm. long, 

 rarely panicled ; involucre 5-8 mm. high, the linear bracts obtuse or acutish ; 

 achencs 2-3 mm. long, finely appressed-setulose ; pappus minutely serrulate. 

 (S. humilis Man. ed. 6, in great part, not Pursh ; S. Purshii Porter, as to 

 description, but not as to type, i.e. the Pursh plant.) Calcareous ledges and 

 cliffs, local, N. B. to Va., w. to the sand-hills of L. Mich. July-Sept. 



Var. Gillmani (Gray) Fernald. Much larger; basal leaves 1.5-3 dm. long, 

 coarsely toothed; the abundant racemes forming a panicle 3-4 dm. long. 

 (S. humilis, var. Gray; S. Virgaurea, var. Porter.) Sand-hills and rocks 

 along the Great Lakes, Out. and Mich. 



16. S. decumbens Greene. Similar; the decumbent rigid stems 0.5-4 dm. 

 high, simple, remotely leafy; basal and lower leaves spatulate-obovate to 

 -oblanceolate, chiefly rounded or blunt at tip, 1.5-9 cm. long, 8-20 mm. broad, 

 toothed above the middle ; cauline leaves 4-9 below the inflorescence, without 

 axillary fascicles ; raceme lax, 3-20 cm. long ; involucre 6-7 mm. high, its firm 

 linear bracts obtuse. Serpentine rock, Mt. Albert, Que. ; shores of L. Superior ; 

 Alb. and B. C. to Col., and Wash. July, Aug. 



- -i- -i- Heads small or middle-sized, the involucres 2-5 (rarely 6) mm. long, 

 panicled or thyrsoidal, not in a terminal corymbiform cyme ; neither alpine 

 nor high-northern. 



*+ Leaves commonly veiny, not 3-ribbed (but sometimes obscurely triple- 

 nerved). 



Heads in a slender virgate or thyrsoid panicle, 

 a. Stem puberulent or pulverulent. 



17. S. pubSrula Nutt. Stem (2-10 dm. high, simple or branched) und pan- 

 icle minutely hoary; stem-leaves numerous, lanceolate, acute, tapering to the 

 base, mostly entire, smoothish, the uppermost 1.5-5 cm. long ; the lower wedge- 

 lanceolate and sparingly toothed ; heads very numerous and crowded in compact 

 short racemes forming a prolonged and dense slender or pyramidal panifh ; 

 involucre 3-4 mm. long, its bracts linear-<twl-shaped, appressed ; rays about 10. 

 Dry or sandy soil, P. E. I. to w. Que., s. to Fla. and Miss., mostly near the 

 coast. Aug.-Oct. 



6. Stem glabrous. 



1. Axis and branches of the inflorescence glabrous. 



18. S. stricta Ait. Very smooth throughout ; stem strict and simple, wand- 

 like, 0.5-2.5 in. high, slender, beset with small and entire oppressed lanceolate- 

 oblong thickish leaves, these gradually reduced upioard to mere bracts (5-15 mm. 

 long} ; the lowest oblong-spatulate ; heads crowded in a very slender compound 

 spicate raceme ; involucre 4-5 mm. long ; rays 5-7. Damp pine barrens and 

 prairies, N. J. to Fla. and Tex. Sept.-Nov. (W. I.) 



2. Axis and branches of the inflorescence pubescent. 



19. S. uligmbsa Nutt. Smooth up to the inflorescence ; stem simple, strict, 

 3-10 dm. high ; leaves thickish, lanceolate, pointed, the lower 1-4 dm. long, 



