VIXCA.] APOCYNEsE. 239 



follicles, sometimes a berry or drupe. Seeds compressed, sometimes winged, 

 hihun basilar or lateral, with often a pencil of silky hairs at the hilar (rarely 

 at the other) end, albumen fleshy or hard or ; embryo straight, cotyledons 

 flat thin, radicle variable in direction. DISTRIB. Chiefly trop. ; genera 100 ; 

 species 500-600. AFFINITIES. With Asdepiadece, and Rubiacece. PRO- 

 VERTIES. Usually poisonous drastic purgatives, or febrifuges. 

 VIN'CA, L. PERIWINKLE. 



Perennial herbs or slender decumbent undershrubs. Leaves evergreen. 

 Flowers solitary, white blue or purple. Calyx 5 -partite, lobes acuminate, 

 glandular at the base inside. Corolla salver-shaped ; tube hairy inside ; 

 throat thickened angled ; lobes 5, oblique. Stamens 5, filaments short ; 

 anthers inflexed, tipped with a bearded membrane, pollen glutinous. Disk 

 of 2 glands alternating with the carpels. Chary of 2 carpels ; style 

 thickened above, terminated by a cup-shaped reflexed membrane, within 

 which is the short conical entire or 2-lobed stigma. Follicles 2, slender, 

 terete, many-seeded. Seeds subcylindric, testa black tuberculate, hilum 

 lateral, albumen fleshy ; embryo axile. DISTRIB. Europe, Asia, Africa ; 

 species about 10. ETYM. vincere, from a use of the stems in binding. 



V. MI'NOR, L. ; flowerless-stems prostrate rooting, leaves elliptic-ovate 

 margins glabrous, calyx-lobes glabrous ^ the length of the corolla-tube. 

 Woods, copses, and hedgebanks, from Stafford southwards, but often only 



naturalized; a denizen, Watson; not indigenous in Scotland or Ireland; 



fl. April-May. Stems 1-2 ft., trailing, tough, flowering ones short, erect. 



Leaves 1-1 J in., very shortly petioled. Floicers 1 in. diam.; peduncles not 



as long. Corolla blue-purple. Fruit rarely found. DISTRIB. Europe from 



Denmark southwards (excl. Greece), W. Asia. 



V. MA'JOR, L. ; flowerless-stems prostrate not rooting, leaves ovate 

 or cordate at the base ciliate, calyx-lobes ciliate equalling the corolla- 

 tube. 



Copses and hedges, naturalized; an alien, Watson; fl. April-May. Much 

 larger in all its parts than V. minor ; flowerless-stems not tough, rooting at 

 the tip only ; flowering erect in flower, elongating afterwards. DISTRIB. 

 Mid. and S. Europe, N. Africa. 



ORDER XLVII. GENTIA NE.ffi. 



Herbs, usually glabrous, erect, 3-chotomously branched ; juice bitter. 

 Leaves opposite, quite entire, rarely whorled (alternate and 3-foliolate in 

 Menyantnes, alternate and floating in Limnanthemum) ; exstipulate. 

 Flmvers regular, solitary, or in 2-3-chotomous cymes. Calyx inferior, 

 4-8-toothed or lobed ; lobes twisted or valvate in bud. Corolla hypo- 

 gynous, often persistent, rotate campanulate or funnel-shaped ; throat 

 naked fimbriate or scaly ; lobes 4-8, usually contorted in bud. Stamens 

 4-8, inserted on the corolla-tube, filaments filiform ; anthers introrse, 

 turning over and becoming extrorse during flowering, sometimes twisted. 

 Ovary 1- or almost 2-celled ; style continuous with the ovary or ; stigma 

 2-fid or 2-lamellar; ovules many, 1-2-seriate on 2 opposite placentas, 



