404 



ASARUM 



ASCLEPIAS 



A. Plant markedly pubescent. 



canadense, Linn. Wild Gin'cer. Canada Snake- 

 root. Lvs. iilioiit 2 to a plant, thin, kidney-shaped, 

 pointed, with a deep and open sinus, not mottled: fl. 

 slender-stalkotl, with lance-acuminate calyx-lobes an 

 inch or more across at the 

 expanded mouth, chocolate- 

 brown ; stvle G-lobed. Frequent 

 in woods "E. B.M. 27C9. A.G. 

 13:517. 



Hfirtwegii, Wat.s. Tufted, 

 loos(>-|iubest'ent: Ivs. large and 

 thick, cordate, with rounded 

 basiJ lobes, mostly acute at 

 the apex, margin ciliate, gla- 

 brous and mottled above: fl. 

 stout-stalked, 

 the lobes often 

 ovate and long- 

 pointed, the 

 ovary inferior; 

 styles 6. Sierra 

 Nevadas, 4,0(X)- 

 7,000 ft. alti- 

 tude. 



europseum, 

 Linn. Lvs. kid- 

 ney-shaped, evergreen, 

 dark green, the petiole 

 3-5 in.: fls. greenish 

 purple, 3^211! with in- 

 curved lobes; styles 6, 

 and grooved or 2- 

 parted, recurved. Eu. 



AA. Pl<inl slightly or 

 not at all pubescent. 



caudatum, Lindl. 

 Wild Ginger. Rather 

 slender, with long 

 rootstocks, sparingly 

 pubescent: lvs. cor- 

 date - kidney - shaped, 

 and more or less cup- 

 pefl or cucullate, acute 

 or obtusish: fls. slen- 

 der-stalked, the calyx- 

 lobes oblong or trian- 

 gular and attenuate; 

 styles united. Pacific coast. — Evergreen. 



Lemmonii, Wats. Like the last, but lvs. plane or flat, 

 rounded at apex, less pubescent, calyx-lobes short. 

 Sierra Xevadfus. 



virginicum, Linn. Lvs. broad-ovate or orbicular, 

 rounded at the top, the sinus narrow: fl. short-stalked, 

 purple, the calyx-lobes broad and rounded; styles 6, 

 2-lobefl; anthers not pointed. Va., S. in mts. 



arifdlium, Michx. Lvs. thickish and usually mottled, 

 orbicular to hastate, obtuse: fls. stout-stalked, urn- 

 shaped and much contracted at the throat; styles 6, 2- 

 lobed: anthers pointed. Va., S. L. IL B. 



ASCLEPIAS (ancient Greek and Latinized name). 

 Asclepwitlficea;. Milkweed. .Silkweed. Perennial 

 milky-juiced herbs, sometimes u.sed in the hardy 

 border or wild garden. 



Erect, with deep thick and hard perennial roots: lvs. 

 opposite or verticillate Crarely alternate), entire: fls. 

 gamopetalous, the corolla segms. generally strongly 

 reflexefJ; stameas 5, attached to the corolla, the anthers 

 more or less imited about the stigma; between the 

 corolla and the stamens is a crown of 5 cornucopia-like 

 horns or appendages; pollen cohering into a waxy mass 

 (poUinium; which is removed bodily by in.sects that 

 visit the fl.: fr. 2 warty, or echinate or .smooth follicles. 



Plume of 

 Dooax. 



Anindo 



The pollination of an asclepias fl. is shown in Fig. 398. 

 The i)ollen-masses are usually twin (as at 6), and the 

 handle or caudide lies in a chink on the side of the 

 stigma. The pollen-masses become attached to the 

 legs or mouth parts of the insect, and are thereby trans- 

 ferred to another fl. — The milkweeds are common in 

 waste places in N. Amer., and are rarely cult. About 

 80 species are known, mostly North American, but 

 others in Cent, and S. Amer. and Afr. Several species 

 (described below) have been offered by dealers in native 

 plants. The butterfly-weed and some others are very 

 showy and worthy of more general attention. The 

 large-lvd. kinds are desirable when heavy foliage effects 

 are wanted. They are all perennials of the easiest cult. 

 Prop, by division, rarely by seeds. 



A. Fls. {corolla and crown) orange. 



tuberosa, Linn. Butterfly-Weed. Pleurisy 

 Root. Fig. 399. Hairy, 2-3 ft. high, from long, hori- 

 zontal roots, with more or less alternate, lance-oblong 

 or lance-linear lvs.: umbels several, short-peduncled: 

 pods pubescent, erect. Dry banks and fields; wide- 

 spread, and not infrequent. B.R. 76. — A handsome 

 plant. 



AA. Fls. in shades of red or purple. 



Curassavica, Linn. Plant glabrous, 2 ft. or less: lvs. 

 opposite and short-petioled, thin, oblong-lanceolate: 

 corolla scarlet: pods glabrous, erect. Fla. and La. 

 B.R. 8L 



incamata, Linn. Glabrous or nearly so, leafy and 

 branching, 3 ft.: lvs. opposite, oblong-lanceolate: cor- 

 olla rose-purple to flesh-color, with oblong lobes: pods 

 glabrous, erect. B.R. 250. Var. pulchra, Pers. Hirsute, 

 and lvs. broader. Swamps. — Common. 



AAA. Fls. greenish, yellowish or white (.sometimes 

 purple-tinged, especially in A. quadrifolia). 



B. Pods tomentose and soft-spiny. 



specidsa, Torr. {A. Doiiglasii, Hook.). St. stout and 

 simple, 3 ft. or less, fine-tomento.se or becoming gla- 

 brous: lvs. large and broad, ovate, transversely veined, 

 short-petioled: fls. purplish and large, the peduncle of 

 the umbel shorter than the lvs. Neb. W. and S. B.M. 

 4413. 



Com&tii, Decne. (A. syriaca, Linn.). Differs from 

 last in having obtuse and short hoods to the crown, 

 taller, less pubescent: lvs. oblong or oval: fls. dull pur- 

 ple, in large, more or less nodding umbels. Mn. 7 :221. — 

 The common milkweed of the eastern states. 



BB. Pods glabrous and unarmed. 



c. Fruiting pedicels dccurved or deflexed, the pods erect 

 or ascertding. 



amplexicaiUis, Michx. Plant glabrous and glaucous: 

 st. decumbent, 1-2 ft. long: lvs. numerous, cordate- 

 ovate and clasping, obtuse, succulent: corolla green- 

 purple. Barrens, N. C. and S. 



phytolaccoides, Pursh 



(A. nlvca, Sims). Plant 

 glabrous and green, 3-4 

 ft., erect: lvs. thin, oval to 

 lance-oval, acuminate and 

 short-petioled: fls. green- 

 ish, in large, loose umbels. 

 Moist ground; frequent. 

 B.M. 1181. 



Hallii, Gray. Stout, 

 pubcrulent: lvs. thickish, 

 ovate-lanceolate or oblong 

 (3-5 in. long), short- 

 petioled : fls. greenish white 

 and purple, in few many- 

 fld. umbels. Colo. G.C. 398. Milkweed flower, showing 

 in. 28:183. poUination. 



