WOOTON AND STANDLEY FLORA OF NEW MEXICO. 261 



1. ARGEMONE L. Prickly poppy. 



Coarse herbaceous biennials or perennials, 40 to 90 cm. high, frequently much 

 branched, spiny throughout, with alternate, pinnatifid or bipinnatifid, more or 

 less glaucous leaves; sap thickened; flowers large, 10 cm. in diameter or less; petals 

 thin and delicate, falling readily, white; stamens numerous, forming a conspicuous 

 yellow center; fruit a 4-valved capsule with numerous seeds. 



KEY TO THE SPECIES. 



Stems spiny and hispid 1. A. hispida. 



Stems spiny but not hispid. 



Spines of the capsule herbaceous near the base and furnished 



with small spines or hairs 2. A. squarrosa. 



Spines of the capsule not herbaceous below, simple. 



Valves of the capsule sparsely spiny; horns of the sepals 



pyramidal or terete, smooth on the outer sm-face 3. A. intermedia. 



Valves of the capsule densely armed; horns of the sepals 



dilated, spiny on the outer surface 4. A. platyceras. 



1. Argemone hispida A. Gray, Mem. Amer. Acad. n. ser. 4: 5. 1849. 

 Enomegra hispida A. Nels. Key PI. Rocky Mount. 27. 1902. 



Type locality: Low, sandy places around Santa Fe, New Mexico. Type collected 

 by Fendler (no. 16). 



Range: Wyoming to Utah and northern New Mexico. 



New Mexico: Santa Fe; Raton; Sierra Grande. Dry plains, in the Upper Sonoran 

 Zone. 



This is the common species farther north, coming into our range from that direction. 



2. Argemone squarrosa Greene, Pittonia 4: 68. 1901. 



Type locality: Near Gray, Lincoln County, New Mexico. Type collected by 

 Miss Josephine Skehan (no. 79). 

 Range: Central New Mexico. 

 New Mexico: Gray; Fort Stanton. Upper Sonoran Zone. 



3. Argemone intermedia Sweet, Hort. Brit. ed. 2. 585. 1830. 

 Type locality: Mexico. 



Range: Nebraska and Kansas to Texas and Arizona, southward into Mexico. 

 New Mexico: Organ Mountains; near Gloiieta; headwaters of the Pecos. Dry 

 plains and hills, in the Upper Sonoran Zone. 



4. Argemone platyceras Link & Otto, Icon. PI. Rar. 1 : 85. 1828. 

 Argemone pleiacantha Greene, Repert. Nov. Sp. Fedde 6: 161. 1908. 

 Argemone platyceras pleiacantha Fedde in Engl. Pflanzenreich 40: 285. 1909. 

 Type locality: "In Mexico, in Confre de Perote prope Hacienda de la Laguna." 

 Range: Wyoming and Nebraska to Arizona and Texas, southward into Mexico. 

 New Mexico: Chiz; Silver City; Mangas Springs; Kingston; north base of Animas 



Peak; Cloverdale; Rio Fresnal; La Luz Canyon. On dry plains and hillsides, in the 

 Upper Sonoran and sometimes the Transition zone. 



This is the common species at middle levels throughout the State, occuriing in wide 

 arroyos, on flats along the foothills, and in open parks in the mountains. Within its 

 altitudinal range it is frequently a conspicuous range weed, indicating an advanced 

 stage of deterioration resulting from overstocking. It produces an abundance of seed 

 which is eaten freely by doves. It usually goes under the name of " thistle " in New 

 Mexico. The type of A. pleiacantha was collected near Kingston by Metcalfe. 



