RUMEX 



when in fl., glabrous: root-lvs. (Fig. 1336, Vol. II) 

 elliptic-ovate, tapering both ways, the margins undu- 

 late, the blade 8-12 in. long; st.-lvs. ovate-lanceolate, 

 long-acuminate, more or less rounded at the base: infl. 

 long and compound (often 2 ft. long), dense in fr.: 

 wings cordate, about }ai. across, veiny, entire, one of 

 them bearing a small tubercle near the base. Eu., but 

 naturalized in many places. An excellent plant for 

 greens, the strong robt-lvs. being used in early spring. 



crispus, Linn. CURLY DOCK. YELLOW DOCK. Tall, 

 often 3-3 H ft.: Ivs. long-lanceolate, wavy-margined, 

 rounded at "the base: valves entire, the tubercles usu- 

 ally 3, the infl. not leafy. Naturalized from Eu., and now 

 one of the common docks about yards and in old fields. 

 Not cult., but the Ivs. sometimes used for greens. 



obtusifdlius, Linn. BITTER DOCK. A common weed: 

 Ivs. much broader, very obtuse or even cordate at base, 

 obtuse at apex, not wavy-margined: valves long-toothed, 

 the tubercle usually 1, the infl. somewhat leafy below. 

 Eu. 



BB. Wings of calyx not tuber de-bearing. 



vendsus, Pursh. Perennial, 1 1 A ft- or less tall, gla- 

 brous, branched: Ivs. oblong-ovate or ovate-lanceolate, 

 usually tapering at both ends, entire, the stipular 

 sheaths lochrese) funnelform and prominent: valves of 

 fr. large and thin, entire, 1 in. or more across, red- 

 veined and showy, the pedicels hanging in fr. Mo., 

 north and west.^Once offered as an ornamental plant 

 because of the very showy wide-winged fruiting calices. 



hymenosepalus, Torr. CAXAIGRE. RAIZ COLORADA. 

 Erect, reaching 3 ft., glabrous, the root of clustered 

 fusiform tubers: Ivs. oblong-lanceolate, sometimes 1 ft. 

 long, narrow at either end, short-petioled, entire, gray- 

 green, somewhat mottled beneath: fls. perfect, large, 

 in crowded panicles, green: fruiting calyx-lobes %in. 

 across, brown, entire, veiny, the pedicels drooping. 

 Okla. and Texas to Calif. B.M. 7433. The plant has 

 some ornamental value, but is of economic importance 

 as a tannin-producing plant, although the supply is 

 insufficient to maintain an industry. The tannin is 

 secured from the dahlia-like roots. For literature on the 

 economic uses of the plant, consult reports of experi- 

 ment stations in Ariz., Calif., and elsewhere, and 

 Wopton & Standley, Flora of New Mexico (Smith- 

 sonian Institution). 



occidentalis, Wats. Stout perennial, reaching 3 ft., 

 glabrous: Ivs. lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, more or 

 less wavy-margined, obtuse or nearly so, the base sub- 

 cordate, long-stalked: valves of the fr. subtriangular, 

 somewhat toothed, veiny, brown, ^in. across. Labra- 

 dor to Alaska, descending along the Rocky Mts. and 

 reaching Texas and New Mex. Once intro. as an orna- 

 mental subject, because of its profuse and somewhat 

 showy fruiting calices. 



Hydrolapathum, Huds. GREAT WATER-DOCK of 

 Great Britain and elsewhere in Eu., a stout perennial 

 4-6 ft. high, with very large Ivs., sometimes planted for 

 bold effects along water-courses: Ivs. broadly oblong- 

 lanceolate to lanceolate, sometimes 2 ft. long, tapering 

 below but the base often somewhat rounded, acute at 

 apex, the margins crenulate: panicle very large, with 

 rather crowded mostly leafless whorls, the fruiting pedi- 

 cels jointed near the base and equaling or exceeding 

 the sepals: valves broad, nearly entire, all tubercle- 

 bearing. 



AA. Sorrels: Ivs. mostly (at least the radical ones) hastate 

 or sagittate: fls. imperfect, the plants sometimes 

 dioecious. 



B. Plant annual. 



rdseus, Linn. One to 2 ft., with spreading and 

 branched sts., glabrous and somewhat glaucous: Ivs. 

 small, deltoid-ovate, entire, short-pointed, truncate- 

 cuneate or almost cordate at base: racemes short and 



RUSCUS 



3037 



leafless or nearly so, the pedicels drooping in fr. : valves 

 cordate-orbicular, M~^ m - across, thin, rosy-veined, 

 without callosities. Egypt to Persia. Rarely cult, as 

 an ornamental for its showy fruiting calices. 



BB. Plant perennial (R. AcetoseUa sometimes annual). 



Acetdsa, Linn. GARDEN SORREL. St. strong and 

 erect (3 ft. or more tall in fr.), furrowed, the plant gla- 

 brous: root-lvs. thin and light green, oblong and obtuse, 

 with sharp auricles at the base (Fig. 1337, Vol. II), the 

 petioles slender; st.-lvs. relatively narrow, acuminate: 

 infl. large and ample, the larger part of the fls. sterile 

 (plant sometimes dioecious) : valves entire or very nearly 

 so, not over J-gin. across, cordate-ovate, each with a cal- 

 losity near the base, the outer small scales reflexed. Eu. 

 and Asia, and naturalized in some places in this country. 

 Useful for early spring greens, but later in foliage than 

 R. Patientia. 



Acetosella, Linn. COMMON FIELD or SHEEP SORREL. 

 Common in all old fields, where it is taken to indicate 

 sterile or at least unproductive soil: Ivs. oblong, from a 

 hastate-lobed base: fls. reddish, in erect racemes. Eu. 

 Xot cult., but the sour root-lvs. are sometimes used 

 for greens. 



scutatus, Linn. FRENCH SORREL. Lower, with many 

 branching prostrate or ascending sts., glaucous: Ivs. 

 somewhat fleshy, the radical ones long-stalked and cor- 

 date-ovate-obtuse, the st.-lvs. short-stalked and has- 

 tate-fiddleform and acute or sometimes 3-lobed: valves 

 thin, cordate, without callosities. Eu., Asia. Grown 

 in several varieties in Eu., and sometimes cult, in this 

 country for greens. It is a summer sorrel. L. jj. g 



RUNGIA (named for F. F. Runge). Acanthaceae. 

 Creeping, diffuse or erect herbs, glabrous or villous; 

 warmhouse plants: Ivs. entire: spikes cone-like; bracts 

 in 4 ranks (whereof 2 alternate are sterile), much larger 

 than the calyx, broad with prominently scarious mar- 

 gins; calyx 5-parted, segms. acuminate; corolla-tube 

 short, straight, limb 2-lipped, posterior lip entire or 

 2-toothed, anterior often longer, spreading and 3-cleft; 

 staminodia none; disk annular or short-cup-shaped: 

 caps, ovoid or oblong. About 30 species in the warmer 

 parts of the Old World. R. eriostochya, Hua. St. 

 pubescent: Ivs. ovate-lanceolate, 2-3 in. long: fls. white 

 and yellow in crowded spikes; the bracts and calices 

 covered with long white hairs. Trop. Afr. 



RUPICOLA (Greek rock and grower, presumably 

 referring to its place of growth). Epacridaces. Shrub: 

 Ivs. small, short-petioled: fls. solitary in the If .-axils, 

 borne on bracteate pedicels which are shorter than the 

 fls.; calyx-lobes 5; corolla 5-cleft, with a very short 

 tube and with spreading divisions which cover them- 

 selves in the bud in the form of a quincunx; ovary 

 5-celled, with numerous seeds. One species, New S. 

 Wales. The genus is closely allied to Epacris. R. 

 sprengelimdes, Maiden. Shrub 2% ft. high with twiggy 

 branches: Ivs. linear-lanceolate jf-1 in. long, rigid: fls. 

 solitary, axillary, forming a raceme-like leafy infl. with 

 a barren apex; corolla subrotate, almost J^in. across, 

 milky white; segms. ovate. B.M. 8438. 



RUSCUS (an old Latin name). L&iatxs. BUTCHER'S 

 BROOM. Erect shrubs with branched partially woody 

 stems, hardy in southern Europe and the southern- 

 most United States. 



Leaves minute, bract-like, on If .-Like branches (cla- 

 dodia) which are alternate, leathery', persistent, and 

 sessile: fls. small, fascicled in the middle of the upper, 

 rarely lower surface of the cladodia, dioecious: berry 

 globose, pulpy, and indehiscent. Three to 5 species, 

 Eu., Madeira, and Caucasus. The foliage of this plant 

 (Fig. 3511) is composed of If .-Like branches or clado- 

 phylls, as in the florists' smilax. Dried, bleached, and 



