CARYOPHYLLACE^E 53 



S. ocymoides L. Stem trailing. Plant hairy, glandular at top. Leaves 

 broadly lanceolate or oblong, ciliate, i nerved. Flowers bright rose or paler, 

 shortly peduncled, in panicles. Calyx cylindric, hairy glandular, often very red. 

 Capsule oval, 4 times length of the glabrous carpophore. 



Stony slopes especially on limestone. May-July. This sub-Alpine plant 

 descends to near Nice, Menton, and Grasse, and in the Var it appears near 

 Frejus, Montrieux, Nans, La Garde, Toulon, etc., at quite low elevations. 



GYPSOPHILA L. 



Q. repens L. Stem 3-6 in. high, erect or ascending, often bent at the nodes, 

 glabrous like the leaves, which are linear, entire, acute, rather glaucous and 

 fleshly. Flowers small, white veined with pink, or pink beneath, in loose pani- 

 culate cymes. Calyx bell-shaped, 5 cleft. Capsule subglobular, with very short 

 carpophore. 



Rocks, sandy beds of torrents and grassy places in the mountains. June- 

 September. This Alpine plant is found in sandy places near Les Salles and by 

 the Verdon near Aiguines. 



VELEZIA L. 



V. rigida L. A small hairy glandular plant with rigid stem, much branched 

 and often reddish. Leaves linear, ciliate, 3-5 nerved, grooved. Flowers small, 

 pink, erect, solitary or in pairs, subsessile at the nodes of the stem and branches. 

 Petals bifid, with distinct scales. Calyx tubular, elongated. Capsule cylindric, 

 slender, without carpophore, 4 toothed. 



Dry sandy places, rare in the Var. May-July. Frejus, Le Luc, Forets des 

 Maures et du Dom. Doubtful for les Alpes-Marit. 



DIANTHUS L. PINK. 



* Calyx short, ^-angled ; scales of calyx entirely scarious ; capsule ovoid 

 (Tunica Scop.). 



D. Saxif ragus L. = Tunica Saxifraga Scop. Stem slender, glabrous, 6-8 

 in. high, with spreading branches. Leaves linear-acute. Corolla pale rose, 

 veined, small, solitary. Calyx bell-shaped. Capsule ovoid. 



Arid stony places. July-August. 



D. prolifer L. = Tunica prolifera Scop. A stiff, erect, glabrous annual, 

 6-i-s in. high, usually simple. Leaves few, narrow, erect, with broad sheath. 

 Calyx of broad, dry, shining, imbricated scales and enveloping the whole flower. 

 Flowers small, pink, in compact terminal heads. In the Var the commonest 

 form is D. velutinus Guss. 



Sandy dry places, common. April-October. 



** Flowers solitary at the summit of the stems. 



D. longicaulis Ten. (Plate VI). Leaves rough, slightly triquetrous ; scales 

 of calyx a quarter of its length. Petals not contiguous, with toothed limb, 

 glabrous at the throat, much shorter than the claw. Flowers rose, sweet 

 scented. 



Dry hills of the littoral region. June-August. 



D. Caryophyllus L. Plant 1-2 ft. high, polymorphic. Leaves broadly 

 linear, channelled. Flowers rose, sweet scented, sometimes solitary but usually 

 in a panicle. Petals contiguous, toothed. Scales of calyx 4, short, broad, shortly 

 mucronate. Calyx 25-30 mm. long. Capsule cylindrical. 



Represented in the Var by the sub-species D. virgineus L., which has non- 

 contiguous petals, and 4-6 calyx scales. Woods and hill-sides. June-September. 



D. silvestris Wtdf. Sometimes considered a sub-species of D. Caryo- 

 phyllus. It is dwarfer, more tufted, with 2 small scales to the calyx, and a 

 slight scent. Flowers bright pink and rather large, 1-3 on longish peduncles. 

 Leaves narrow, liflear, acute. 



Mountains in Alpes-Marit. June-August. 



