828 LYTHEACEAE 



7. LYTHRUM L. 



Herbs (ours perennials) or shrubs. Leaf -blades entire. Flowers axillary or in 

 terminal spikes or racemes. Sepals 46, alternating with spreading appendages. 

 Petals 4-6, nearly equal. Stamens adnate to the lower part of the hypanthium. Em- 

 bryo with auricled cotyledons. LOOSESTRIFE. 



Leaves mostly opposite. 



Leaf-blades oblong to orbicular or rarely cuneate. 



Hypanthium trumpet-shaped: leaf-blades short-petioled. 1. L. Vulneraria. 



Hypanthium tubular or nearly so: leaf -blades sessile. 2. L. ovalifolium. 



Leaf-blades linear. 3. L. lineare. 



Leaves mostly alternate. 



Leaf-blades narrowed at the base. 



Larger leaves with linear blades: sepals broadly triangular, the accessory 



teeth short and stout. 4. L. linear if olium. 



Larger leaves with elliptic or lanceolate blades: sepals mucro-like, the 



accessory teeth subulate. 

 Leaf-blades thick, those of the branches numerous, approximate, 



mostly less than 1.5 cm. long: hypanthium 6-8 mm. long. 5. L. lanceolatum. 



Leaf-blades thin, those of the branches few, mostly over 1.5 cm. long: 



hypanthium 3-5 mm. long. 6. L. Curtissii. 



Leaf-blades rounded or cordate at the base. 7. L. alatum. 



1. Lythrum Vulneraria Ait. Stems creeping: leaf -blades oblong to oval, 0.5-1 

 cm. long: mature hypanthium 6-8 mm. long or longer, the appendages subulate, several 

 times longer than the glabrous sepals: petals purple, cuneate-obovate, 4-5 mm. long: 

 capsules 3-4 mm. long or shorter. 



On margins of ponds and swamps, Florida to Texas and Mexico Spring to fall. 



2. Lythrum ovalifolium Engelm. Stems erect or decumbent: leaf -blades oblong 

 or orbicular-oblong, or those of the lower leaves cuneate, 1-1.5 cm. long: mature 

 hypanthium 57 mm. long, the appendages mostly lanceolate, about twice as long as 

 the ciliolate sepals : petals violet, cuneate, 5-6 mm. long : capsules 4-5 mm. long. 



In damp soil, Texas. Spring and summer. 



3. Lythrum lineare L. Stems 3-12 dm. tall: leaf -blades linear, 1-4 cm. long: 

 mature hypanthium 3-4 mm. long, the appendages triangular, about as long as the 

 deltoid sepals: petals cuneate or cuneate-oblong, 4-5 mm. long: capsules 3 mm. to 

 barely 4 mm. long. 



In or near salt meadows, New Jersey to Florida and Texas. Summer. 



4. Lythrum linearifblium (A. Gray) Small. Stems 2-5 dm. tall: leaf -blades 

 linear to linear-oblong, 1-^ cm. long: mature hypanthium 6-7 mm. long, the append- 

 ages subulate, much longer than the deltoid sepals: petals obovate, 56 mm. long: 

 capsules 4.5-5.5 mm. long. 



In moist ground, Texas to Arizona and Mexico. Spring to fall. 



5. Lythrum lanceolatum Ell. Stems 6-16 dm. tall: leaf -blades elliptic to 

 linear-elliptic, 1-6 cm. long: mature hypanthium 5-6 mm. long, the appendages subu- 

 late, much longer than the triangular sepals: petals obovate to cuneate-obovate, 6-7.5 

 mm. long: capsules 4.5-5 mm. long. 



In low grounds and in swamps, South Carolina to Oklahoma, Florida and Texas. Also 

 in the West Indies. Summer. 



6. Lythrum Curtissii Fernald. Similar to L. lanceolatum in habit : leaf -blades 

 thin, oval, elliptic or oblong-lanceolate, 2-5.5 mm. long: mature hypanthium 3-4 mm. 

 long, the appendages slender-subulate, longer than the minute sepals: petals oblong 

 to obovate-oblong, 2.5-3.5 mm. long: capsules about 4 mm. long. 



In muddy swamps, southwestern Georgia and adjacent Florida. Summer and fall. 



7. Lythrum alatum Pursh. Stems 3-13 dm. tall: leaf -blades lanceolate, oblong 

 or ovate-lanceolate, 1-5 cm. long: mature hypanthium 5-8' mm. long, the appendages 

 slender-subulate, much longer than the triangular sepals: petals obovate or cuneate- 

 obovate, 5-6 mm. long: capsules 4.5-5 mm. long. 



In swamps and along streams, Ontario to Minnesota, Kentucky and Arkansas. Sum- 

 mer and fall. 



