666 



SELAGINACE^. 



[Pertgvxous Exogens. 



Ordkr CCLVIII. SELAGINACEJE.— Selagids. 



Selagineae, Jits.f. Ann. Mns. 7. 71. (1806) ; Richard in Pers. Synops. 2. 146; Choisy Mhnoire, (1823) ; 

 Bartl. Ord. Nat. 177; Endl. Gen. cxl. : E. Meyer, Comment, pi. Afr. Austr. 245; Meimer Gen. p. 

 292.— Globularineae, DC. Fl. Fr. 3. 427. (1815) ; Cambesse'des in Ann. des Sciences, 9. 15; Endl. 

 Gen. cxxxix. ; Link Uandb. 1.675; Meisner, p. 315. 



Diagnosis. — Echial Exogens, with irregular unsymmetrical flowers, confluent nuts, pendu- 

 lous ovules, and l-celled anthers. 



Herbaceous plants, or small branched shrubs. Leaves alternate, generally sessile, 



toothed, or entire, without stipules, usually in clusters. 



Flowers sessile, spiked, with large bracts. Calyx spa- 



thaceous, or tubular, per- 

 sistent, with a definite num- 

 ber of teeth or divisions, 

 rarely consisting of two 

 sepals. Corolla tubular, 

 hypogynous, more or less 

 irregular, with 5 lobes, im- 

 bricated in aestivation. 

 Stamens 4, usually didyna- 

 mous, arising from the top 

 of the tube of the corolla, 

 seldom 2 ; anthers l-celled, 

 usually adnate to the dilated 

 top of the filament, rarely 

 versatile. Ovary superior ; 

 style 1, filiform ; stigma 

 nearly capitate ; ovules soli- 

 tary, pendulous, anatropal. 

 Disk hypogynous, fleshy. 

 Fruit 2-celled ; the cells 



Fig. CCCCXLIV 



Fig. CCCCXLV. 



either separable or inseparable, 1-seeded, membranous. Seed solitary, pendulous ; 

 embryo in the axis of a little fleshy albumen ; radicle superior. 



The very small group collected under the name of Selagids is nearly allied on the one 

 hand to Verbenes, and the other to Myoporads, from both which it is known by having 

 l-celled anthers. It also differs from Verbenes in having pendulous ovules. Globularia, 

 which has been regarded as the type of a particular Order, does not seem to differ in 

 anything more than having a solitary carpel ; for its anthers are l-celled. The resem- 

 blance of that genus to Primworts is very inconsiderable ; but it may be regarded as 

 being more like a form of Teazelworts (Dipsacacere), with a superior ovary. The 

 genus Globularia is moreover in some respects analogous to Brunonia, which however 

 differs abundantly in having hypogynous stamens, symmetrical flowers, and no albumen. 



The principal part of this Order comes from the Cape of Good Hope ; Gymnandra is 

 however Siberian, and the Globularias European, chiefly inhabiting the southern king- 

 doms and the basin of the Mediterranean. 



The speeies seem to be of small importance. Some are sweet-scented ; Hebenstrei- 

 tia dentata is said to be scentless in the morning, strong-smelling at mid-day, and sweet 

 in the evening. Globularia Alypum is a bitter, drastic purgative, once supposed to be 



Fig. CCCCXLIV.— Globularia orientalis. 1. a flower ; 2. section of calyx and ovary ; 3. section of fruit 

 Fig. CCCCXLV.— Selago distans. 1. a flower; 2. an anther; 3. a perpendicular section of an 

 ovary ; 4. section of seed of Microdot ovatum. 



