Vemonia.] composite. 169 



5 narrow lobes. Achenes mostly striate or angular, rarely cylindrical. Pappus 

 of numerous capillary bristles, usually surrounded by an outer row of very 

 short often scaly bristles, which are rarely entirely wanting. — Herbs, shrubs, 

 or climbers. Leaves alternate. Flower-heads terminal or in the upper axils, 

 in cymes or panicles or sometimes solitary. 



A very numerous genus, widely spread over the warmer regions of the globe, but most 

 abundant in America, where it extends beyond the tropics both to the northward and south- 

 ward. 



Annuals. Involucral bracts very pointed. 



Panicles cymose, leafless. Achenes cylindrical, hairy, with a very 



short outer pappus 1. V. cinerea. 



Panicles divaricate, leafy. Achenes angular, glabrous. Pappus very 



deciduous, without any outer row 2. V. chinensis. 



Tall perennials. Involucral bracts more or less obtuse. 



Erect softly villous plant. Involucral bracts very obtuse and 



cottony. Achenes glabrous, angular. Outer pappus very short . 3. V. solanifolia. 

 Tall climber, slightly pubescent or rough. Involucral bracts rather 

 obtuse. Achenes striate, pubescent. Outer pappus half as long 

 as the inner 4. V. 



1. V. cinerea, Less. ; DC. Trod. v. 24. An erect annual, 1 to \\ feet 

 high, usually of an ashy-grey colour, owing to a minute pubescence on the stem, 

 leaves, and involucres. Lower leaves stalked, ovate, oblong, or lanceolate, 

 often irregularly toothed or sinuate, the upper ones few and narrow. Flower- 

 heads small, on slender pedicels, forming a terminal, leafless, cymose panicle. 

 Involucral bracts very pointed. Achenes cylindrical, scarcely striate, hairy. 

 Pappus very white, the outer row very short, and sometimes reduced to very 

 few bristles. 



Frequent in waste places near Victoria, Champion and others. A common weed all over 

 S. Asia, from Ceylon and the Peninsula to the Archipelago, extending northwards to Loochoo 

 and Bonin, and eastwards to N. Australia. 



2. V. chinensis, Less. ; Miq. Fl. Ned. Lnd. ii. 18. An annual, like 

 the last, but very spreading, and the ashy pubescence is often whiter and more 

 cottony, especially on the under side of the leaves. Leaves usually ovate, on 

 rather long stalks. Flower-heads at first ovoid, then globular, or nearly 

 hemispherical, on short pedicels, clustered 2 or 3 together at the ends of the 

 branches, forming a spreading leafy panicle. Florets numerous, purple. In- 

 volucral bracts finely pointed. Achenes short, 4- to 5-angled, glabrous. 

 Pappus of white, very deciduous, bristles, without any outer row. — Cyanopis 

 pubescens, Bl. ; DC. Prod. v. 69. 



In waste places, Champion, Hance, Wright. Common in S. Asia, from Ceylon and the 

 Peninsula to the Archipelago, and extending northwards to Khasia, S. China and the Phi- 

 lippines. 



3. V. solanifolia, BentJi. in Lond. Journ. Bot. i. 486, and in Kew 

 Journ. Bot. iv. 232. Stem tall and erect, apparently woody at the base, the 

 branches and under side of the leaves thickly clothed with soft velvety or 

 almost woolly hairs, which are shorter and less dense on the upper surface. 

 Leaves stalked, ovate or ovate-lanceolate, 3 to 4 inches long, the lower ones 

 sometimes broad and cordate. Panicle large, terminal, leafy at the base, 

 crowded with numerous heads, containing each about 10 highly perfumed 



