170 



GAMOPETALOUS EXOGENS 



242. CUE V THRA, L. 



[Klethra, the Greek name for the Alder ; which it resembles.] 

 Calyx 5-parted. Corolla of 5 obovate-oblong distinct petals ! Sta- 

 mens 10, often exserted ; anthers inversely sagittate, reflexed in the 

 bud, opening by terminal pores, or chinks. Style slender ; stigmas 

 3. Capsule 3-celled, 3-valved, inclosed by the calyx. Shrubs: 

 leaves deciduous ; flowers racemose, white. 



1. C. <ll iiif'olia, L. Leaves cuneate-obovate, acute, coarsely 

 serrate, green on both sides; racemes mostly simple, bracteate, 

 hoary -tomentose. 

 ALDER-LEAVED CLETHRA. Sweet Pepper-bush. White Alder. 



Stem 4 to 6 or 8 feet high, branched. Leaves 2 to 3 inches long; petioles % to % 

 of an inch in length. Racemes 3 to 6 inches long, sometimes with 2 or 3 branches 

 from the base, bearing numerous fragrant flowers : pedicels short, each with a 

 lance-linear bract at base longer than the pedicel. 

 Hob. Wet thickets; E. Marlborough : not common. Fl. July. Fr. Octo. 



TRIBE 2. RHODO^REAE. 



Fruit a capsule, opening septicidaUy. 



243. AZAXEA, L. 



[Gr. azaleas, arid; from a mistaken idea that it belongs to a dry soil.] 

 Calyx 6-parted, minute and hairy. Corolla funnel-form, irregularly 

 5-lobed, the lobes spreading. Stamens 5, with long exserted fila- 

 ments, which are declined, or curved, along with the similar style ; 

 anthers short, opening by terminal pores. Capsule oblong, 5-celled, 

 6-valved, many-seeded; seeds minute, scale-like. Shrubs: leaves 

 deciduous ; flowers in umbelled clusters, from large ovoid terminal 

 buds. 



1. A. Vise lisa, L. Young branches bristly; leaves oblong- 

 obovate ; flowers glandular-hairy and very clammy, appearing after 

 the leaves ; stamens a little exserted 

 Rhododendron viscosum. Torr. $ Fl. Cestr. ed. 2. p. 263. 

 CLAMMY AZALEA. Sweet Wild Honeysuckle. 



Stem 4 to 6 feet high, with short spreading and often crooked branches above. 

 Leaves 1 to 2 inches long, the margins and midrib bristly ; petioles 1 to 2 lines in 

 length. Corolla white, the tube much longer than the lobes. 



Hob. Rocky woods; N. Valley-hill; New Red Lion: not common. Fl. June. Fr. 

 Obs. This species is readily known by its white, clammy, sweet- 

 smelling flowers. The large terminal buds, which are formed in 

 autumn, on the Azaleas, and some other members of this family, 

 contain the flowers of the ensuing year, perfectly formed though in 

 miniature. Something like this seems to be the fact, in all trees in 

 which the branches have a definite annual development of wood, 

 leaves, and flowers ; such as the Horse-Chestnut, &c. The buds of 

 the Firs, also, contain the undeveloped branches of the succeeding 

 year, with all their tiny leaves completely formed, and closely 

 packed together. The phenomenon is happily noticed by the Poet, 

 COWPER: 



" The beauties of the wilderness are His, 

 That make so gay the solitary place, 

 Where no eye sees them. And the fairer forms, 

 That cultivation glories in, are His. 



