50 VIOLACEJE. [Viola. 



hardly distinguishable forms. — Sandy shores from the Clyde to Cornwall ; 

 Ireland. 

 Sub-sp. V. ltj'tea, Huds. ; rootstock brandhed, branches slender with short 

 stems and underground runners, mid lobe of stipules entire, petals spread- 

 ing much longer than the sepals blue purple (var. amre'na) or yellow, capsule 

 oblong 3 -gonous. V. grandijlo'ra, Huds. ed. 2. — Hilly districts from Mid. 

 England and Wales to Koss ; ascends to 2,800 ft. 



Order X. POLYGALE5!. 



Herbs or shrubs, erect or climbing. Leaves alternate or subopposite, 

 simple, exstipulate. Flowers irregular. Sepals imbricate in bud ; 2 inner 

 larger, petal oid, winglike. Petals 3-5, hypogynous, 2 outer (lateral) separate 

 or united with the hooded lower one into a tube split at the base behind ; 

 2 inner equal to the outer, or smaller or 0. Stamens 8, filaments connate 

 in a split sheath which is usually adnate to the petals ; anthers 1- rarely 

 2-celled, opening by pores, rarely by valves. Disk small. Ovary free, 

 2-celled ; style simple, curved, stigma various ; ovules 1 in each cell, 

 pendulous, anatropous, raphe ventral. Seeds pendulous, testa often hairy, 

 arillate, albumen fleshy or ; embryo straight. — Distrib. Temp, and 

 trop. regions ; genera 15 ; species 400. — Affinities, distant with Sapin- 

 dacecB, Violacece, and Pittosporece. — Properties. Bitter, emetic, purgative, 

 aud diuretic. 



1. POiiYG'ALA, L. Milkwort. 



Herbs or shrubs. Leaves alternate, rarely subopposite or whorled. 

 Flowers in terminal or lateral racemes or spikes ; pedicels bracteate and 

 2-bracteolate. Petals combined below with the staminal sheath, which 

 has reversed hairs within, and a viscid gland at the mouth. Stamens 8 ; 

 anthers 1 -2-celled, opening by transverse pores. Stigma spathulate. 

 Capsule compressed, loculieidal at the margins. Seeds usually downy ; 

 aril very variable, 2-auricled. Distrib. Trop. and temp, regions ; 

 species 200. — Etym. rr6\vs and yaka, being supposed to increase the milk 

 in cows. Flowers in some cleistogamous. 



1. P. vulga'ris, L. ; stems many leafy, leaves scattered lower oblong 



upper lanceolate, lateral nerves of inner sepals anastomosing copiously, 



central nearly simple. 



Heaths and meadows, N. to Shetland ; Ireland ; Channel Islands ; fl. June- 

 Aug. — A small wiry perennial, 2-10 in., glabrous or very rarely pubescent. 

 Rootstock short. Leaves 5-I5 in., rather coriaceous, quite entire. Flowers 

 £-£ in., white, pink, blue, lilac, or purple. Sepals purplish in flower, green 

 in fruit, inner elliptic-obovate. Capsule £ in. diam., obcordate or nearly 

 orbicular and notched. Aril with nearly equal lobes. — Distrib. Europe 

 (Arctic), N. Africa, Siberia, and W. Asia. 



P. vulga'bis proper, stems ascending, branches straight, leaves all linear or 

 lanceolate, racemes many-fld., bract as long as the flowering pedicel, pedicels 



