A SYNOPSIS OF THE PLANT KINGDOM 



29 



trees both of greenhouse and the South, used for timber 

 and edible fruit; Eriogonum, garden plants; Fagopyrum 

 (Buckwheat), grain; Muehlenbeckia (cultivated as 

 Coccoloba or Tapeworm Plant), greenhouse; Poly- 

 gonum (Smartweed, Jointweed, Knotweed, Prince's 

 Feather, Kiss - me - over - the - garden - gate, Lady's 

 Thumb, Mountain Fleece, Secaline), hardy ornamental 

 herbs; Rheum (Rhubarb, Pie-plant, Wine Plant), food, 

 medicine, and ornament; Rumex (Dock, Sorrel, Sheep 

 Sorrel, Canaigre, Rais Colorada, Herb Patience, Spin- 

 age Dock, Curly Dock), ornamental plants, food-plants 

 and weeds. 



Order 33. CENTROSPERM/E 



65. Chenopodiaceae (from the genus Chenopodium, 

 which means goose foot, from the shape of the leaves). 

 GOOSEFOOT FAMILY. Fig. 18. Herbs, shrubs, or rarely 

 small trees, often very fleshy with reduced branching 

 and foliage, and very diverse and remarkable in form: 

 leaves alternate, rarely opposite, often fleshy or reduced 

 to scales: flowers bisexual or unisexual, regular, very 

 small; perianth of one series, the parts 1-5, separate 

 or united, greenish, imbricated, persistent; stamens as 

 . many as the perianth parts, or fewer, opposite them, 

 hypogynous or borne on the perianth, often connate; 

 hypogynous disk usually present; ovary superior, 

 1-celled, 1-ovuled; style and stigmas 1-4: fruit dry, 

 rarely fleshy, usually indehiscent, inclosed in the very 

 diverse perianth which is often hard, or fleshy, or 

 thorny, or hooked; embryo coiled. 



This family contains 73 genera and about 550 

 species, distributed all over the world, but principally 

 confined to saline or alkaline habitats. A few have 

 become weeds in good garden soil. The family is 

 closely related to the Amarantacea;, Phytolaccacese, 

 Caryophyllacea? and Portulacaceac, all of which have 

 an annular embryo. The fleshy habit, absence of 

 scarious bracts, 1-celled, 1-seeded ovary, and coiled 

 embryo are distinctive. A remarkable family of lit- 

 toral plants, often with water-storing tissue, spines, 

 queer fruits, and the like. 



The most important economic species is the beet 

 (Beta vulgaris), the enlarged root of which is used for 

 food and for sugar, the foliage as a pot-herb. Species 

 of Chenopodium, Atriplex, Spinacia and others are 

 eaten as greens. Of these spinach is the most famous. 

 The young shoots of Salicornia (glasswort, marsh sam- 

 phire) are eaten as a pot-herb and are pickled. These 

 shoots are also used for making glass and soaps be- 

 cause of the soda contained. The seeds of Chenopodium 

 Quinoa are made into flour in Peru. The foliage of Chen- 

 opodium Botrys and Chenopodium ambrosioides is fra- 

 grant-scented. The seeds of Chenopodium anlhelminli- 

 cum (wormseed) are a well-known vermifuge. Cheno- 

 podium mexicanum yields saponin. Atriplex hortensis 

 (orach) of Europe and Asia, yields an indigo dye, and 

 the leaves are edible. Soda is obtained by burning 

 many species. Salsokt Kali var. lenuifolia (Russian 

 thistle) is a bad weed. 



Several genera are in cultivation in America, largely 

 for food, but some for ornament. Among these are: 

 Atriplex (Orach, Sea Purslane), food and ornament; 

 Beta (Beet, Mangel-wurzel, Mangel, Chard, Swiss 

 Chard, Spinach Beet) , food and ornament ; Chenopodium 

 (Good King Henry, Mercury, Markery, Feather Gera- 

 nium, Jerusalem Oak, Wormseed, Mexican Tea), orna- 

 ment, food, medicine; Cycloloma (Cyclone Plant), 

 ornament; Kochia (Mock Cypress), ornament; Spinacia 

 (Spinach, Spinage), food. 



06. Amarantaceae (from the genus Amarantus, de- 

 rived from the Greek, signifying unfading', the bracts 

 are scarious and unchanging) . AMARANTH FAMILY. Fig. 

 18. Herbs, shrubs, or rarely trees: leaves opposite or 

 alternate, rarely fleshy: flowers bisexual or unisexual, 

 small, regular, usually surrounded by scarious bracts; 

 perianth simple, in one series of 5, rarely 1, 2, 3, or 4, 



separate or united parts; stamens opposite the perianth 

 parts, of the same number or fewer, rarely more nu- 

 merous, hypogynous or perigynous, separate or united, 

 the stamen-tube often with fringed appendages at the 

 top; hypogynous disk usually present; ovary superior, 

 free or slightly united with the perianth, 1-celled, 

 1 to many-seeded; style 0, or 1, or several; stigmas vari- 

 ous: fruit a berry, an achene, or dehiscent by a lid; 

 usually surrounded by the perianth; embryo coiled. 



The 40 genera and about 450 species are distributed 

 everywhere except in the arctics; most abundant 

 within the tropics. The family is very closely related 

 to the Chenopodiacese and Phytolaccaceso, also to the 

 Caryophyllaceje and Portulacacea. The single peri- 

 anth, scarious persistent bracts, and 1-seeded fruit 

 are distinctive. 



Many species of Amarantus are eaten as greens. 

 Gomphrena arborescens is a tonic. Many Amaran- 

 tacea? are weeds in cultivated grounds. Some are im- 

 portant ornamental plants. The garden forms of 

 Celosia cristate are remarkable for their fasciated 

 inflorescence. 



In cultivation in America are: Amarantus (Love- 

 lies-bleeding, Prince's Feather, Joseph's Coat), gar- 

 den annuals; Bosea, ornamental; Celosia (Cocks- 

 comb), garden annuals; Gomphrena (Globe Amaranth, 

 Bachelor's Button), garden annual; Iresine or Achy- 

 ranthes, bedding plants; Telanthera (Alternanthera), 

 bedding plants; Trichinium or Ptilotus, greenhouse. 



67. Nyctaginaceae (from the generic name Nyctago, 

 a synonym of Mirabilis, meaning night, in reference to 

 the crepuscular or nocturnal flowering of the Four- 

 O'clock). FOUR-O'CLOCK FAMILY. Fig. 19. Herbs, 

 shrubs, or trees: leaves usually opposite, entire: flowers 

 bisexual, rarely unisexual, surrounded by an involucre 

 of separate or united bracts which incloses 1 or several 

 flowers; corolla absent; perianth parts united, very 

 diverse in consistency, form and color, often petaloid, 



19. NYCTAGINACE*: 1. Mirabilis, a, flower; 6, floral diagram, 

 2. Neea, flower. PHYTOLACCACE.E: 3. Phytolacca, a, flower; 0. 

 floral diagram; c, vertical section of seed. AIZOACE.B: 4. Mollugo, 

 a, flower; b, vertical section of seed. 5. Aizoon, floral diagram. 6. 

 Mesembryanthemum, flower. PORTULACACEJS: 7. Calandnnia, 

 flower. 



