GENUS 2. 



WATER-WORT FAMILY. 



539 



2. BERGIA L. Mant. i: 152, 241. 1771. 



Herbs, or somewhat shrubby plants, branching, erect, ascending or prostrate, more or 

 less pubescent, with opposite serrate or entire leaves, and small axillary solitary or clustered 

 flowers. Parts of the flowers in s's (very rarely in 4's or 3's). Sepals acute. Pod crus- 

 taceous, ovoid, 5-valved. Seeds numerous, striate longitudinally and transversely. [In honor 

 of Dr. P. J. Bergius, 1723-1790, professor of Natural History in Stockholm.] 



About 15 species, natives of warm and temperate regions. Type 

 species : Bergia capensis L. 



i. Bergia texana 



(Hook.) Seub. 

 Fig. 2908. 



Texas Bergia. 



Merimea texana Hook. Icon. PI. pi. 278. 1840. 

 Bergia texana Seub. ; Walp. Rep. i : 285. 1842. 



Prostrate or ascending, diffusely branched, pubescent, stems 

 6'-io' long. Leaves spatulate or obovate, i'-ii' long, 6 "-8" 

 wide, acutish or obtuse, serrate, narrowed into a short petiole; 

 stipules scarious, about i" long, ciliate-serrulate ; flowers very 

 short-peduncled, about li" broad, solitary or 2-3 together in 

 the axils; sepals ovate, acuminate, denticulate, slightly longer 

 than the oblong obtuse petals; capsule globose, i" in diameter, 

 its dehiscence septifragal; seeds oblong, striate longitudinally 

 and cross-barred. 



Southern Illinois to Texas, west to Nevada and California. 

 Summer. 



Family 89. CISTACEAE Lindl. Nat. Syst. Ed. 2, 91. 1836. 

 ROCK-ROSE FAMILY. 



Shrubs or low woody herbs, with alternate or opposite simple leaves, and 

 solitary racemose clustered or paniculate flowers. Flowers regular, generally per- 

 fect. Sepals 3 or 5, persistent, when 5 the 2 exterior ones smaller and bract-like, 

 the 3 inner convolute. Petals 5 or 3, or sometimes wanting, fugacious. Stamens 

 oo, hypogynous. Ovary i, sessile, i -several-celled ; ovules orthotropous, stalked; 

 style simple; stigma entire or 3~lobed. Capsule dehiscent by valves. Seeds several 

 or numerous ; embryo slender, straight or curved ; endosperm starchy or fleshy. 



Eight genera and about 160 species, mostly natives of the northern hemisphere. 



Petals 5, yellow, fugacious, or wanting. 



Leaves broad, lanceolate or oblong; style short. i. Crocanthemum. 



Leaves subulate or scale-like, imbricated ; style long. 2. Hudsonia. 



Petals 3, not yellow, persistent ; flowers minute ; style none. 3. Lechea. 



i. CROCANTHEMUM Spach, Ann. Sci. Nat. II. 6 : 370. 1836. 



Woody herbs or low shrubs, more or less branching, with showy yellow flowers, and 

 with other much smaller apetalous cleistogamous ones. Petals in the larger flowers large, 

 fugacious, the stamens numerous. Placentae or false septa 3. Ovules 2 on each placenta; 

 style short; stigma capitate or 3-lobed; capsule i-celled; seeds with long funicles; embryo 

 curved. [Greek, golden flower.] 



About 20 species, natives of North and Central America, a few in South America. Besides the 

 following, about 8 others occur in the Southern States. Type species : Crocanthemum carolinianum 

 (L.) Spach. Some of the species are known as Rock-rose or Sun-rose. The genus has been in- 

 cluded by authors in the Old World genera Helianthemum L., and Halimium Spach. 



Petaliferous flowers solitary, few or several ; apetalous flowers in axillary sessile clusters. 



Petaliferous flowers 5-12, in a short terminal cymose raceme, their capsules i^"-2" long, little, 

 if at all, overtopped by the short later axillary branches; capsules of the apetalous flowers 

 about i" in diameter. i.C.majus. 



Petaliferous flowers solitary, rarely 2, their capsules 3" -4" long, much overtopped by the later 

 elongated axillary branches ; capsules of the apetalous flowers nearly 2" in diameter. 



2. C. canadense. 

 Flowers all cymose at the summit of the stem, the petaliferous ones slender-pedicelled. 



3. C. corymbosum. 



