Centaueea.] COMPOSITE. 223 



inner brown and wbite ; bristles of receptacle silvery Flowers of ray few, 

 large, bright blue ; of disk smaller, purplish. Fruit grey, silky ; pappus 

 dirty white. — Distbib. Europe, N. Africa, W. Siberia, N.W. India; introd. 

 in N. America. 



4. C. paniculata, L. ; erect, paniculately branched, woolly, leaves 

 bipinnatifid, lobes linear, upper narrow, entire, involucre ovoid, bracts 

 spiny-toothed or ciliate apiculate, pappus of very short scale-like 

 bristles. 



Jersey ; fl. July. — Biennial, dwarf or tall. Stem and branches slender, acutely 

 angled. Leaves 1-3 in., lobes acute. Heads §-1 in. long ; involucre ovoid ; teeth 

 of deeply striate bracts often flexuous. Flowers purple. Fruit white, silvery, 

 glabrous.— Distrib. S. Europe. 



Section 3. Serid ia. Invol. bracts tipped by spreading reflexed spines. 



5. C. asp'era, L. ; ascending, leaves linear-oblong entire toothed or 

 lyrate, peduncles leafy, involucre globose, bracts tipped with 5 palmately 

 spreading reflexed spines, pappus shorter than the fruit. C. Isnardi, L. 



Vazon Bay, Guernsey, very rare ; fl. July-Sept. — Perennial. Stem 1-2 ft., 

 slender ; branches spreading, sparsely pubescent, tips cottony. Leaves very 

 variable, lower sessile or petioled, lanceolate or oblong. Heads 1 in. diam. ; 

 bracts coriaceous, yellow-brown, spines T V~s m - 5 bristles of receptacle white. 

 Fruit grey, pubescent; pappus white. — Distrib. W". and S. Europe to 

 Italy. 



Section 4. Calci'trapa. Invol. bracts ending in a long strong spine. 



6. C. Calci'trapa, L. ; rigid, diffusely branched from beneath the heads, 

 leaves pinnatifid, lobes recurved aristate, spines of bracts long spreading, 

 with a few smaller basal, pappus 0. Star-thistle. 



Dry waste places, rare, from Norfolk and S. Wales to Cornwall and Kent ; 

 Channel Islands; probably a denizen; fl. July-Sept. — Biennial, 1-2 ft., 

 cottony or glabrous, branches leafy, spreading, stout. Leaves 1-3 in., often 

 interruptedly pinnatifid, lobes distant, slender. Heads lateral and sessile, ex- 

 terminating leafy branches, ^ in. diam. ; spines as long, yellow and chan- 

 nelled above. Flowers rose-purple. Fruit white or mottled brown. — 

 Distrib. From Holland southd., N. Africa, N.W. India; introd. in N. 

 America. 



C. solstitia'lis, L. ; erect, branched, cottony, stem winged, lower 

 leaves lyrate, upper linear entire decurrent, spines of upper bracts long 

 spreading with a few smaller ones at the base, pappus soft. 



Fields in E. and S. England, rare; introd. with lucern, &c. ; fl. July-Sept. 

 — Annual, much branched, 1-2 ft. Stem rigid, branches twiggy, terminated 

 by peduncled heads. Leaves very variable. Heads globose, ^ in. diam., 

 spines as long, not channelled, those of the outer bracts very small. Flowers 

 yellow. Fruit white; pappus copious, white, as long as the fruit. — Distrib. 

 Mediterranean region (naturalized in all warm climates.) 



