COMPOSITE. (COMPOSITE FAMILY.) 487 



at back, beak long or short, filiform or stout, of the same color as 

 akene or -white. Pappus coinposed of hairs on a disk at the tip of the 

 beak — Monocarpic or perennial plants, with yellow, pale red or blue 

 flowers, and usually with milky juice. 



* Heads more than 5-Jtower^, .025 to .03 hmg. QUibrous-glaucescent 



plfints. 



1. Ij. Cretica, Desf. @ .8 to 1 or more ; stem thick, terete, 

 panicled. Leaves oblong-lanceolate, the lower tapering into a petiole, 

 the rest half clasping, all usually runcinate with denticulate lobes, 

 rarely undivided ; floral leaves scale-like. Flowers yelloio ; akenes 

 black, ovate, much flattened, one-half to one-third as long as slender, 

 white beak — May — Coast ; Moab ; Antilebanon 



2. JL, tull>ero§a, L. (D .8 to 1 or more ; stem thick, terete, 

 racemose-panicled. Leaves obovate-oblong, entire or runcinate, with 

 toothed lobes. Flowers hluish-purple ; akenes much flattened, oblong, 

 one-third to one-fourth as long as slender, white beak — May — Coast 

 and lower mountains ; Palmyrene desert. 



* * Heads more than 5-Jlowered, about .01 long. More or less jjrich'y 



plants. 



3. Ij, virosa, L. (D 1 or more ; root fusiform, long ; stem leafy, 

 sometimes sparingly aculeate below, panicled above. Leaves horizontal, 

 with aculeolate midrib, the lower obovate, petioled, the upper sagit- 

 tate at base, obovate-oblong to oblong, mucronate-denticulate, entire or 

 sinuate, rarely somewhat runcinate. Flowers sulphur-colored ; akenes 

 black, elliptical, flattened, margined, 5-2-ribbed on each side, as long 

 as white beak — Summer — Middle zone of Lebanon. Probably ad- 

 ventive. 



4. li. IScariola, L. (D 1 to 2 ; stem leafy, panicled, often 

 prickly. Leaves usually prickly, ovate-oblong, mucronate-toothed, 

 or runcinate, with oblong, falcate lobes, rarely entire. Flowers p^/ere^?/ 

 akenes elliptical, 7-9-ribbed on each side ; beak as long as akene or 

 longer — Summer — Fields and hedges ; Sinai ; Lebanon, Coelesyria, 

 Antilebanon and Damascus to Antioch, Aintab, Akherdagh, and north- 

 ward. 



Yar. sativa, Boiss, Usually unarmed ; leaves entire ; panicles 

 densely-corymbose — Lebanon ; Damascus. The wild state of the Lettuce 

 of the gardens. 



5. L<. saligna, L. (D Libbein-esh- Sheikh. 1 or more ; stem 

 simple, erect, or several from neck, whitish, racemed-spiked. Leaves 

 prickly or unarmed, linear-lanceolate to linear, the lowest ovate, 

 runcinate-pinnatitid ; stem-leaves usually entire, sagittate at base. 

 Heads on short pedicels ; foicers yelloic or dryh\g violet-bine ; akenes 

 ovate-oblong, 5-7-striate on each side ; beak white, as long as seed to 

 twice as long — Summer — Fields ; common to subalpiue regions. 



* * * Heads more than ^-flowered., minute. Akenes 1-nerxed on each side. 



6. L(. uiidulata, Ledeb. .2 to .3, glabrous or papillose ; 

 stem or stems corymbose. Root-leaves obovate, toothed or lyrate ; 

 stem-leaves pinnatifid or -parted. Flowers blue; akenes rough, trans- 

 yersely wrinkled ; beak setaceous, 3-4 times as long as seed, 2-legged 

 at base —Spring — Foot of Sinai at el-Bustan. 



