y(J EhATlNACEiE. hRatine. 



Order XVIII. ELATINACE^. 



Low annuals, witli juciiibiajioud blipulcs botwecu tlu'. oi)posito dotless leaves, 



regular aiul coiupletuly .synuuetiical lluwers, with free sepals, liypogynuus petals 



and stamens, and distinct styles bearing capitate stigmas, all oi' the same number 



(2 to 5), or the stamens rarely twice as many ; the ovary 2-5-eelletl, axile placenta 



many-ovuled, capsular fruit mostly septicidal or septii'ragal, and anatropous seeds 



.with a crustaceous coat, tilled by the embryo. Seeds straight or somewhat curved, 



and the embryo taking the form of the seed. — Comprises only the two fallowing 



genera. Flowers axillary. 



1. Elatine. Small inostnitu minaticb. Taits of the llower eacli 2 to 4. Sepals obtuse. 

 '2. Bergia. Erect. Purls of the llower in lives. Sepals acute. 



1. ELATINE, 1-inn. 



Parts of the llower in twos, threes, t)r fours. Sepals membranaceous, obtuse, 

 nerveless. Ovary globose. Capside membranaceous, the partitions remaining at- 

 tached to the axis or evanescent. — Small prostrate glabrous annuals, growing in 

 water or wet places, with entire leaves and oblong usually solitary llowers. 



A genus of lialf a dozen species, beloiiyiug to temperate or subtroijical regions, all round the 

 world. 



1. E, Americana, Arnott. Stems an inch or two long, tufted : leaves obovate 

 to linear, 1 to 4 lines Icjng : flowers sessile, their parts in twos or rarely in threes : 

 capsule half a line or more in diameter, M'ith 5 or 6 oblong seeds in each cell, rising 

 from the base. — Gray, Gen. 111. i. 220, t. i)5. 



Near Waslioe Lake (I'orrcy) ; Oregon (ITaU) ; in the Rocky Mountains, and frequent in the 

 Atlantic States. Also in Australia and the Fiji Islands. 



2. BERGIA, linn. 



Parts of the llower in lives. Sepals with a strong midrib or lierbaceous in the 



middle, acute. Ovary ovoid. Capsule somewhat crustaceous, more or less of the 



partitions in dehiscence remaining with the axis. — Branching and often pubescent, 



nearly erect, with entire or serrate leaves, and larger fascicled or solitary flowers. 



About 14 species in warm or tro[iical regions, the following the only species found in tin; 

 United Slates. 



1. B. Tezana, Seubert. Annual, glandular-j)ubescent, branching from the 

 base, a span high, the lower branches somewhat decumbent : leaves oblauceolate, 

 acute, serrulate, | to 1| inches long, attemiate to a short petiole : flowers fascicled, 

 shortly pedicelled : sejjals carinate, nearly 1^ lines long, exceeding the petals and 

 stamens: capsule globose: seeds smooth and shining. — Watson, Bot. King Exp. 

 45. Merimea (?) Texaita, Hook. Ic. PI. t. 278. Elatine Texaiui, Torr. & Gray, 

 la i. G78; (Jray, Gen. Jll. i. 218, t. 9G. liaydla Texanu, Schnitz. Icon. t. 219, 

 flg. 1, 2, and 20. 



Sandy rivcr-ltank near SacranuMito {Greene); Carson River bottom, Nevada (/ra/w/i) : iden- 

 tical witii the plant common in Texas. 



Order XIX. HYPERICACE^. 



Herbs or .shrubs, with opposite entire leaves punctate with translucent or dark- 

 colored glandular dots (containing balsamic-resinous secretion), no stipules, and per- 



