790 



HYPERICUM 



3-5 clusters, sometimes with interposed hypogynous 

 glands: ovary free, 1-celled, with a central placenta or 

 incompletely or completely 3-5-ceIled, sometimes longi- 

 tudinally furrowed : fr. a berry or capsule, with numer- 

 nn<J -jfiMN linriK- ■ij.mi the placenta or introflexed mar- 



^'iii- <'t tJM [..I - . t^ I.-S3-5, free or united, persistent. 



IIm M :.i ,: "M- i; in. to 5 ft. high, of erect to 



j.i i-r,,,: I ..f them tender or of uncertain 



liimlin. , I' ;iiiiii J -ime winter protection. Many 

 kinds In-iii ih.' -...ntlirfu I'nitr.l Stat.-< and southern 



Europe, iiihrrwi-.- - i. ;ii-r unrvli.il.l.- from lack o£ 



hardiiii'ss. S.-v.ral N. Anirri.-an s|irri,.s not yet in cul- 

 tivation !in> ..rnaiiii-ntal aii.l lianly. The few useful 

 species furnish a brilliant color, l»Iooming when nmst 

 shrubs do not. All are of simple culture, succeeding' in 

 almost any garden soil, but generally preferring a liu'lit. 

 warm land; hence useful in sandy soils, flowering hit.r 

 and longer if partly shaded. They are prop, by seeds, 

 suckers, cuttings and strong pieces of creeping-rooted 

 kinds. The twigs are terete, 2-angled or 4-angled. The 

 smaller species are useful as rock-plants, the larger as 

 border plants, in the front of shrubberies or in unmixed 

 masses. Their common name, St. John's-Wort, comes 

 from the fact that the common people of some European 

 nations used to gather the flowers of H. perforatum to 

 decorate their dwellings on St. John's Day. The Hy- 

 pericums are mostly short-lived, and need renewal every 

 6-7 years. 



INDKX. 



adpressum, 9. 



fastigiatun 



Flo 



Nepalense, 3. 

 niidiflomm, 21. 

 oblonglfolium, 2. 

 patulum, 3. 

 prolificum, 22. 



eHon 



B. StjiU-s 5. 

 C. PUmt hcrhttcvous. 



1. Ascyron, Linn. (H. pyramidAtiim, Dryand.). Up- 

 right perennial, 2-6 ft. high, with tetragonal stems : Ivs. 

 clasjiing, ovate-oblong or ovate-hmceolate, acuminate 

 fi"iii III'- liasi.., 2-5 in. long : cviii's t.riiiinal. ::-12-fld., 

 aiip.ani.- in .July: fls. 1-2 in. in .iiam.: ~r|i,,l, small, 

 .IX at. -lane. (.late ; petals thin, narv.i\\ ly mIi.i\,iIi- or ob- 

 lan.-i-.,iat.', .-uriously shaped and t\\isi.-.l, |i.rsi^t.-nt un- 

 til withered; stamens in 5 clusters; styles somewhat 

 spreading; stigmas capitate: capsule ovoid, % in. long. 

 — A somewhat coarse and ungainly plant living on river 

 banks, native to both North America and N. Asia. B.B. 

 2:429. — Toward fall apt to beunsightly through the lower 

 Ivs. dying and remaining. 



cc. Plant shmbbtj or suffruticose. 

 D. Stems terete. 



2. Hookerianum, Wi!,'lit ,ic Arn. {IT. i>hln„iiift,rium, 

 Hook., not Choisy. //. /r;/7.'.,»». . Hhniu- 1. .\ suffruti- 

 cose species, 2'_. it. hi;,'li. thin Lrmwin-: hs. ann.ng the 

 largest of the g.-nns, 1-4 in. Inn^'. .m rmi in, ..vate or 

 oblong, sessile, dark blu.-L'rii II :il"i ' . [il. ni >1 jian.-ous 

 below, minutely pellu.'i.l ihiih •:< i veral- 

 fld., of large golden y.'ll.iw lU, m ii ii, :: in. in 

 diam.; sepals large, ol..>vat.' ; |,ii;i|. \n lum, firm, 

 sub-rotund ; stamens in 5 clusters; styles recurved, 

 longer than the stamens : ovary broad-ovate, longitudi- 

 nally furrowed.— Considered to be one of the best spe- 

 cies because of its large fls. and hardiness. August. 

 From the higher altitudes of the Himalayas. B.M.4949. 

 Gn. 54, p. 490.— Easily prop, by cuttings. 



3. pfttnlum, Thunb. (i?. I^cjHh >«, Don. B.NepaUnse, 

 Hort.). An evergreen spreading under-shnib, lK-2 ft. 

 high, with many smooth, purplish arching branches: 

 Ivs. ovate-lanceolate, acute, without dots : fls. many, 

 solitary or in cymes, large, 2 in. in diam., of good sub- 

 stance; sepals suborbicular; styles recurved: capsule 

 ovate, more or less longitudinally furrowed. Japan, 

 China and the Himalayas. Not very hardy, but one of the 



HYPERICUM 



best where it succeeds. Gn. 54, p. 491. B.M. 2375, 5C93. 

 R.H. 1875:171.— Not so showy as some American spe- 

 cies, but graceful and delicate, and one of the best for 

 rock-gardens. Earliest to bloom. 



4. MoseriJlaum, Andre. Gold Flo\ver. Hybrid raised 

 by Moser, of France, from 11. pattttum and H. calyci- 

 num, generally resembling the latter but lacking its 

 coarseness, and surpassing both parents in good quali- 

 ties. A glabrous subshrub 2 ft. high, erect, with the 

 tips of the branches pendulous: Ivs. similar to those of 

 H. ctilycinum, ovate-obtuse-mucronulate, opaque, 2 in. 

 long, dark green above, pale below: inflorescence with 

 1-a ris. per stalk, which are golden yellow, 2 in. in diam., 

 bill. Mil ing for some time: calyx of foliaceous oblong se- 

 pals, e.ir.illa of broad rounded petals, their color height- 

 . 11. il ly the many tufted yellow stamens with reddish 

 anthers: capsule top-shaped. July, Aug. R.H. 1889, p. 

 404. Gn. 54:1201. E.B. 16:97. G.C. III. 10:333.-Not 

 hardy in N. England, but successful farther south. Not 

 good individually, but good in masses, better adapted to 

 the herbaceous border than the shrubbery. May be 

 used as a pot-plant. Var. tricolor. Variegated form of 

 white and green edged with red. Habit like H.putulum, 

 but more horizontal, the Ivs. smaller and narrower: fls. 

 one-fourth the size of those of H. Moserianum but 

 similar. Less hardy. 



DD. Stems angled. 



5. calycinum, Linn. Rose of Sharon. Aaron's 

 Beard. A subshrub, 1 ft. or less high, with many pro- 

 cumbent or ascending stems occurring in thick tufts: 

 Ivs. ovate, evergreen, leathery, dark green, glaucous 

 below, 2^ in. long, filled with pellucid dots: fls. large, 

 solitary, or 2-3 together, 3 in. in diameter; sepals large, 

 nboratp, spreading; stamens long and showy, in 5 clus- 

 ters, with r.'.i anthers; styles shorter than the stamens, 

 .liv. 1 -I lit : .apsiile ovate,4 in. long. July-Sept. B.M.I46. 



— A rapidly sjireading plant, creeping by woody root- 

 stalks completely covering the soil. Used as a ground 

 cover abroail. Not very hardy in New England, the 

 annual killing -back preventing its covering wide 

 stretches, but not destroying its bloom each year, nor 

 its usefulness in the herbaceous border, or in the margin 

 of a shrubbery. May be protected, and its dark, persis- 

 tent foliage preserved. Thrives in sun and moderate 

 shade. From Greece and Asia Minor. Prop, by root and 

 ripe wood cuttings. 



6. KalmUnum, Linn. A shrub, 2-3 ft. high, with 

 rather contorted stems: Ivs. oblong-linear, or oblanceo- 

 late, 1-2M in. long, bluish, more or less glaucous below, 

 crowded: fls. small, }^-l in. in diameter, in 3- several- 

 flowered cymes; sepals foliaceous oblong; stamens dis- 

 tinct; stvles united below to form a beak: capsule ovoid, 

 longitudinally furrowed. G.F. 3:113. Mn. 6:141.— A rare 

 species, confined to the rocks and sands of Niagara and 

 the northern lakes, enduring considerable dryness. 

 Easily adapted to the garden, succeeding in the shade. 

 Not so showy in fl. as some other species, but good be- 

 cause of its bright, narrow Ivs. and hardiness. 



7. lobocirpum, Gattinger. Upright, hardy shrub, 1% 

 ft. high, in the South 5-7 ft.: Ivs. oblong-lanceolate or 

 linear-lanceolate, obtuse or barely acute, lK-2 in. long; 

 fls. profuse, small, in many-flowered naked cymes; 

 sepals linear-lanceolate ; stamens numerous ; styles 

 connivent: capsule oblong, 5-angled, furrowed. Last of 

 August. Tenn.,where it frequents marshes. G.F. 10:453. 



— Straggling plant of inferior quality. 



BB. Styles 3. 

 c. Fmit a berry: Ivs. ovate. 



8. Androssemum, Linn. {Androsiemum officindle. 

 All . ) . Sweet Amber. Common Tutsan. A dense under- 

 shrub with erect, quadrangular stems: Ivs. ovate, 4 in. 

 long, subcordate, minutely dotted, dark green, whitish 

 below: fls. solitary or in cymes of ;i-'J, large, light yel- 

 low- sepals ovate ; stamens in 5 clusters, longer than 

 the crolln : ovary subglobuLir or oval, incompletely 

 :ii.ii-.i -III.- il'ivergent, persistent: fr. berry-like, 

 M ■ I 111.' size of a pea. June-Sept. Lives in 

 -Il i . , . s. W. Europe. — Not yet proved hardy 

 ai ill. N.iili lis. not particularly attractive, but good 

 in fruit and foliage. All parts very aromatic. 



