020 



RUBIACEjE. CLXXXVI. SPERMACOCE. 



100. S. tetragona, hort. berol. Leaves pilose above ? Flowers 

 pale red. 



Su/rutescent Button-weed. Fl. June, Aug. Clt. 1824. PI. 

 | foot. 



9 S. LINEA'RIS (H. B. et Kunth, nov. gen. amer. 3. p. 343.) 

 stem suffruticose, obsoletely tetragonal, clothed with hairy down ; 

 leaves linear, scabrous above and on the margins, hairy beneath ; 

 stipulas hairy, ciliated with bristles ; whorles many-flowered, 

 sessile, axillary ; corollas glabrous ; stigma rather capitate, ex- 

 serted ; capsule oblong, hispid at top; teeth of calyx 4, ovate- 

 lanceolate. Tj . S. Native on the banks of the Orinoco. Corollas 

 white. Bigelowia linearis, Spreng. syst. 1. p. 405. 



Linear-leaved Button-weed. Shrub 1 foot. ? 



* * Species natives of Africa. 



10 S. PALMETO'RUM (D.C. prod. 4. p. 553.) plant herbaceous, 

 ascending, branched ; stem tetragonal, hairy ; branchlets com- 

 pressed ; leaves -oval-lanceolate, scabrous above and lined, hairy 

 beneath and nerved ; stipulas villous, with the bristles shorter 

 than the sheath ; flowers 5-6 together on both sides, sessile, 

 axillary, verticillate ; fruit rather hairy, obovate ; teeth of 

 calyx, 4, short, subulate, at length deciduous. Native every 

 where about the Gambia, at the roots of palm-trees, in humid 

 places, where it was collected by Leprieur and Perrottet. Al- 



. lied to S. tenuior. Perhaps Diodia scabra, Schum. pi. guin. 

 p. 76. ? 



Palm-tree Button-weed. PI. 1 foot. 



US.? PILO'SA (D. C. prod. 4. p. 553.) stem herbaceous, 

 tetragonal, with blunt, pilose angles ; leaves ovate, acute, sca- 

 brous on both surfaces ; bristles of stipulas distant, longer than 

 the sheaths ; whorles sessile, many-flowered ; fruit ovate, 

 crowned by the 4 reflexed, acute lobes of the calyx. Native 

 of Guinea. Diodia pilosa, Schum. pi. guin. p. 76. 



Pilose Button-weed. PL 1 foot. 



12 S. PHYLLOCE'PHALA (D. C. 1. c.) plant erect, glabrous, 

 sparingly branched ; stems tetragonal; leaves linear, 1 -nerved : 

 floral ones dilated at the base ; bristles of stipulas 3-5 on each 

 side, longer than the sheath ; heads of flowers axillary, verticillate, 

 very few, and a large terminal one, the latter surrounded by long, 

 squarrose leaves ; fruit solitary in the axils of the floral leaves, 

 crowded from the floral leaves being clustered ; seeds large, shin- 

 ing- O- S. Native of the west coast of Africa, at Kouma and 

 Walo, where it was collected by Perrottet and Leprieur. Seeds 

 2 lines long, almost like those of Psyllium. 



Leaf-headed Button-weed. PI. 1 foot. 



13 S. STACHY'DEA (D. C. prod. 4. p. 554.) plant erect, nearly 

 simple, villous ; stem tetragonal ; branchlets compressed ; leaves 

 linear, acute, floral ones dilated at the base ; bristles of stipulas 

 5-7, longer than the sheath, which is velvety ; heads of flowers 

 verticillate, numerous, surrounded by 6-8 aggregate, squarrose 

 leaves ; flowers solitary in the axils of the leaves, and aggre- 

 gate only from the leaves being crowded ; lobes of calyx linear- 

 subulate, nearly the length of the fruit ; seeds large, shining. 

 Q. S. Native of the west coast of Africa, among stones, at 

 Bakel, where it was collected by Leprieur. Plant about a foot 

 high. Leaves 3 inches long, and nearly 4 lines broad. Bristles 

 of stipulas blackish. Seed 2 or 2-^ lines long, larger than any 

 other of the genus. 



Stactiys-like Button-weed. PI. 1 foot. 



14 S. OALEO'PSIDIS (D. C. prod. 4. p. 554.) erect, branched; 

 stem tetragonal, hairy ; leaves lanceolate-linear, rather scabrous 

 on both surfaces ; bristles of stipulas longer than the sheath, 

 which is velvety ; flowers axillary, few, sub-verticillate ; fruit 

 large, velvety, longer than the subulate, calycine lobes. O- S. 

 Native of Senegambia, at Dagana, in sandy places. Allied to 

 S. Ruellia:, but very distinct. Herb about a foot high. Leaves 



15-16 lines long, and 3 broad, pale beneath. Stipulas yellowish. 

 Fruit larger than in any other species of the genus, almost like 

 that of a species of Diodia, but is membranous and dehiscent. 

 Seeds large. 



Galeopsis-lifce Button-weed. PI. 1 foot. 



15 S. RUE'LLLE (D. C. 1. c.) erect, branched; stem tetra- 

 gonal, hispid ; leaves lanceolate-linear, acuminated, clothed with 

 rough down on both surfaces ; heads many, verticillate, axillary; 

 bristles of stipulas many, 3 times longer than the sheath, which 

 is downy ; valves of fruit at length opening widely at the apex ; 

 lobes of calyx subulate, rather longer than the fruit. Q. S. 

 Native of Equinoctial Africa, in sandy places at Bakel, where it 

 was collected by Leprieur. Stem a foot high. Leaves 3 inches 

 long, and 5-6 lines broad. Mature fruit nearly as in the genus 

 Ruelliee. Seed a line and a half long. 



Ruellia-\ike Button- weed. PI. 1 foot. 



16 S. CH.ETOCE'PHALA (D. C. 1. c.) stem erect, simple, terete 

 at the base and glabrous, and tetragonal at the apex, with the 

 angles scabrous ; leaves linear-elongated, acuminated, glabrous ; 

 bristles of stipulas 5-7, subulate, longer than the sheath, which 

 is villous ; heads verticillate, surrounded by many leaves, and 

 the many bristles of the stipulas ; fruit pale, membranous, 

 downy at the apex ; lobes of calyx subulate, shorter than the 

 fruit. O- S. Native of Equinoctial Africa, in Gala, among 

 rocks at Bakel, where it was collected by Leprieur. Plant 1^ 

 foot high. Leaves 3 inches long, and 3 lines broad. Bristles 

 of stipulas rufous. Capsules whitish. Seeds a line long. 



Bristly-headed Button-weed. PI. 1-J foot. 



* Species natives of the Mauritius and Madagascar. 



17 S. FLAGELLIFORMIS (Poir. diet. 7. p. 314.) stem herba- 

 ceous, terete, glabrous, simple, erectish ; leaves glabrous, ob- 

 long-lanceolate, acute, revolute on the margins at the base, and 

 therefore petiole-formed ; stipulas broad-ciipshaped, having the 

 bristles rather shorter than the sheath ; flowers axillary, few, 

 sessile, verticillate ; capsule ovate, puberulous, crowned by the 

 4 slender acute teeth of the calyx. O- S. Native of the 

 Mauritius and Bourbon. S. flagellaris, Willd. in Rcem. et 

 Schultes, syst. 3. p. 532. ex Cham, et Schlecht. in Linnaea. 3. 

 p. 357. Hedyotis verticillata, Lam. ill. no. 1423. exclusive of 

 the synonymes of Desf. 



Whip-formed Button-weed. PI. 1 foot. 



18 S. MURICULA'TA (D. C. prod. 4. p. 554.) glabrous; stem 

 herbaceous, tetragonal, having the angles just under the nodi 

 rough from small tubercles ; leaves elliptic-lanceolate, acumi- 

 nated at both ends, scabrous above ; bristles of stipulas longer 

 than the sheath, which is very short ; flowers disposed in sessile, 

 glomerate whorles in the axils of the leaves; fruit ovate, downy, 

 crowned by the 2-4 very short, acute, calycine teeth, but is at 

 length nearly naked. Native of the Mauritius and Bourbon. 

 Allied to S. tenuior ; but the angles of the stem are not downy, 

 but scabrous from tubercles. 



Muriculated-stemmed Button-weed. PI. 1 to 1-j- foot. 



19 S. SERPYLLIFOLIA (Willd. in Rcem. et Schultes, syst. 3. p. 

 532.) plant diffuse, scabrous ; leaves elliptic, with revolute mar- 

 gins ; whorles few-flowered. Native of Madagascar. A true 

 species of Spermacoce ex Cham, et Schlecht. in Linnaea. 3. p. 

 357. but the rest is unknown. 



Wild-thyme-leaved Button-weed. PI. 



* * * Species natives of India. 



20 S. STRI'CTA (Lin. fil. suppl. p. 120.) stem herbaceous, 

 straight, erect, scabrous at the angles ; leaves linear-lanceolate, 

 lined, scabrous ; stipulas ciliately fringed ; whorles of flowers 

 axillary, remote, globose ; fruit obovate-globose, rather mem- 

 branous at the base, and hispid at the apex, crowned by the 4 



