146 



ASCLEPIADE.E. LI. ANANTHERIX. LII. XYSMALOBIUM. LIII. CALOTROPIS. 



inside. Column of fructification or gynostegium pedicellate. 

 Follicles smooth. 



4 A. PU'MILUS (Nutt. in amer. phil. soc. trans. 5. p. 203.) 

 leaves linear, nearly opposite, sessile ; segments of corolla 

 almost 3 times longer than the corona. If. . H. Native of 

 Georgia, in pine barrens, in Effingham county, Elliott ; near 

 St. Mary's, Balwyn ; near Charleston, Eraser ; on dry sandy 

 fields, South Carolina, Walter ; near Fort Barrington, Lyon. 

 Stylandra pumila, Nutt. gen. amer. 1. p. 170. Podostigma pu- 

 bescens, Ell. sketch. 1. p. 326. Asclepias pedicellata, Walt. fl. 

 car. p. 106. Pursh, fl. 1. p. 182. Leaves downy, rough from 

 dots above. Segments of corona lunulate. Flowers greenish 

 yellow. Plant 3 inches high. 



Z)n>ar/ Anantherix. Fl. June, Aug. Clt. 1824. PI. ft. 



5 A. BU'NGEI ; stems simple, erect, glabrous ; leaves oppo- 

 site, lanceolate-linear, acute, glabrous beneath ; but having the 

 margins rather hispid above ; panicle terminal, dichotomous, 

 loose, many-flowered. 1. H. Native of China, at the foot 

 of the mountains near Lun-zuan-ssy. Asclepias paniculata, 

 Bunge, in mem. acad. petersb. 2. p. 117. Petals oblong, blunt- 

 ish, greenish, glabrous. Cuculi concave, obtuse. 



Bunge's Anantherix. PI. -| foot. ? 



"f- Doubtful species. 



6 A. TORREYA'NUS ; leaves ovate. I/ . H. Native of North 

 America, among the Rocky Mountains. Anantherix, nov. spec. 

 Nutt. mss. ex Torrey. ann. lye. new york, 2. p. 219. 



Torrey's Anantherix. PI. ? 



7 A. NUTTALLIA'NUS ; leaves linear-lanceolate, obtuse at the 

 base, petiolate. 1. H. Native along with the preceding. 

 Anantherix, nov. spec. Nutt. mss. ex Torrey. 1. c. 



Nuttall's Anantherix. PI. ? 



Cult, For culture and propagation see Asclepias, p. 142. 



LII. XYSMALO'BIUM (v<r/na, xysma, a thread, and \of3oy, 

 lobos, a pod ; in reference to the follicles being clothed with 

 ramenta). R. Br. in mem. wern. soc. 1. p. 38. Asclepias spec. 

 Lin. and Thunb. 



LIN. SYST. Pentandria, Digynia. Corolla 5-cleft, spreading. 

 Stamineous corona seated on the top of the tube of the fila- 

 ments, in a simple series of 10 parts; 5 of the segments or 

 parts are fleshy, roundish, naked inside, and opposite the anthers, 

 the other 5 are small. Anthers terminated by a membrane ; 

 pollen masses compressed, fixed by their apexes, pendulous, with 

 broadish connecting processes. Stigma mutic. Follicles ven- 

 tricose, ramentaceous. Seeds comose Erect shrubs, natives 

 of south Africa. Leaves opposite. Umbels interpetiolar. 

 Flowers largish : having the limb sometimes bearded. 



1 X. UNDULA'TUM (R. Br. 1. c.) stems villous, simple ; leaves 

 sessile, oblong-lanceolate, undulated, glabrous ; petals ciliated. 

 Jj . G. Native of the Cape of Good Hope, on hills, about 

 Paradys, in Kamanasie, and elsewhere. Asclepias undulata, 

 Lin. spec. 312. Thunb. prod. 1. p. 47. fl. cap. 2. p. 155. 

 Asclepias cilikta, Lin. syst. ed. 15. p. 271 Commel. rar. t. 16. 

 Lower leaves a span long. Umbels frequently sessile. Corolla 

 bearded, " greenish," ex Lam. 



Waved-leaved. Xysmalobium. Fl. July. Clt. 1783. Shrub 

 1 to 2 feet. 



2 X. GRANDIFLORUM (R. Br. 1. c.) stems simple, hairy ; leaves 

 petiolate, oblong, hairy ; umbels pedunculate. Fj . G. Native 

 of the Cape of Good Hope, in Kamanasie and elsewhere. 

 Asclepias grandiflora, Lin. suppl. p. 170. Thunb. prod. 1. 



E. 47. fl. cap. 2. p. 156. Leaves 2 inches long. Flowers 

 irge, checquered like those of Fritillaria meleagris, ex Lin. ; 

 large, glabrous, variegated with purple, ex Thunb. 

 Great-lowered Xysmalobium. Shrub 1 foot. 

 Cult. For culture and propagation see Gomphocdrpus, p. 144. 



LIII. CALOTROPIS (from raXoe, kalos, beautiful, and 

 Tpoirtf, tropis, a keel ; the flowers are beautiful, and the leaflets 

 of the corona are keeled). R. Br. in mem. wern. soc. 1. p. 39. 

 Asclepias species of Lin. and Roxb. 



LIN. SYST. Pentandria, Digynia. Corolla subcampanulate, 

 with an angular tube; angles saccate; limb 5-parted. Stami- 

 neous corona 5-leaved : leaflets keel-formed, length of the tube 

 of the filaments (gynostegium), and adnate to it, recurved at the 

 base. Anthers terminated by a membrane; pollen masses com- 

 pressed, fixed by their tapering apexes, pendulous. Stigma 

 mutic. Follicles ventricose, smooth. Seeds comose. Erect, 

 glabrous shrubs, natives of the East Indies, Africa, and Persia. 

 Leaves broad, opposite. Umbels interpetiolar. Flowers large, 

 showy. 



1. Leaves almost sessile, cuneate-oblong or broad-ovate, 

 refuse, or subcordate at the base. 



1 C. PROCE'RA (R. Br. in hort. kew. ed. 2. vol. 2. p. 78.) 

 leaves obovate-oblong, on short petioles, whitish from wool ; 

 segments of corolla spreading. 1? . S. Native of Persia. As- 

 clepias procera, Ait. hort. kew. ed. 1. vol. 1. p. 305. Willd. 

 spec. 1. p. 1263. Schneevogt. icon. t. 18. Asclepias gigantea, 

 Andr. bot. rep. t. 271. Lam. diet. 1. p. 280. Badelsar, Alp. 

 egypt. 85. t. 86. and Zja Rack, Brun. trav. 315. t. 184. 

 probably belongs to the present plant. Corollas white ; petals 

 marked at top by a purple spot. 



Tall Calotropis. Fl. July, Sept. Clt. 1714. Shrub 6 feet. 



2 C. GIGANTE'A (R. Br. 1. c.) shrub hoary ; leaves stem- 

 clasping, oblong-ovate, downy beneath ; segments of corolla 

 reflexed, with revolute edges ; corona shorter than the gynos- 

 tegium, obtuse, circinnately recurved at the base; incurved 

 and subtridentate at the apex. Pj . S. Native of the East 

 Indies, common ; and now become almost indigenous to South 

 America and Africa ; as we have seen it growing in great pro- 

 fusion on rocks in St. Jago, and in sand about the Gambia, 

 Senegal, and the island of Goree. Asclepias gigantea, Lin. 

 spec. p. 312. ? Ait. hort. kew. ed. 1. vol. 1. p. 305. Willd. 

 spec. 1. p. 1264. Roxb. fl. ind. 2. p. 30. Jacq. obs. 3. p. 17. 

 t. 69. Asclepias gigantea /3, Lam. diet. 1. p. 280. Seb. thes. 

 1. p. 41. t. 26. f. 1. Ericu, Rheed. mal. 2. p. 53. t. 31. 

 Madorus, Rumph. amb. 7. t. 14. f. 1. Bark ash-coloured; 

 young shoots covered by soft woolly down. Leaves decussate, 

 broad, wedge-shaped, bearded on the upper side at the base, 

 pretty smooth on the upper surface, but clothed with woolly down 

 on the under side, 4-6 inches long, and 2-3 broad. Umbels 

 sometimes, though rarely, compound, surrounded by several 

 involucral scales. Flowers beautiful, a mixture of rose colour 

 and purple. Nella jeberoo is the Telinga name of this plant, 

 Urku the Sanscrit name, and Aknnea the I3engalese name. The 

 milky juice which flows from this plant when wounded is applied 

 to various medicinal purposes by the natives ; besides which 

 they employ the plant itself, and preparations thereof, to cure 

 all kinds of fits, epileptic, convulsive, spasmodic, and paralytic, 

 as well as poisonous bites and venereal complaints. A fine sort 

 of silky flax is prepared from the young shoots in some places. 

 A large species of gryllus feed upon the leaves. It is the 

 Mador and Mudor plant, from which the late Dr. Duncan, of 

 Edinburgh, obtained that singular substance called Mudarine, 

 which possesses the property of congealing by heat, and becom- 

 ing again fluid on exposure to cold. 



Var. ft ; albiflbra ; flowers white. I? . S. Native of the 

 East Indies, along with the species. Belericu, Rheed. mal. 1. c, 

 Zella Jeeleereo of the Telingas ; Swetakind of the Bengalese, 

 and Ulurka in Sanscrit. 



Giant Calotropis. Fl. Jul. Sept. Clt. 1690. Sh. 6 to 10 ft. 



3 C. HAMILTONII (Wight, contrib. ind. bot. p. 53.) segments 

 of corolla erect ; leaflets of corona equal in length to the gynos- 



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