Vol. ill.] 



MINT FAMILY. 



119 



Leaves sharply serrate; calyx-teeth subulate. 



Calyx-teeth ciliate, the tube glabrous; leaves ovate. 

 Calyx densely or sparsely pubescent all over. 



Leaves ovate, pubescent on both sides; hairs of the stem reflexed. 



Leaves oblong or ovate-oblong, nearly or quite glabrous. 



10. M. genlilis. 



11. M. sativa. 



12. M. Canadensis. 



I. 



Mentha spicata L,. Spearmint. 

 Lady's Mint. (Fig. 3174.) 



Our 



Mentha spicata L. Sp. PI. 576. 1753. 

 Mentha spicata var. viridis L. loc. cit. 1753- 

 Mentha viridis L. Sp. PI. Ed. 2, 804. 1763. 



Glabrous, perennial by leafy stolons; stem erect, 

 branched, i-i^ high. Leaves lanceolate, ses- 

 sile or short-petioled, sharply serrate, acute or 

 acuminate at the apex, narrowed at the base, the 

 largest about iy z f long; whorls of flowers in ter- 

 minal narrow acute usually interrupted spikes, 

 which become 2 / -4 / long in fruit, the one terminat- 

 ing the stem surpassing the lateral ones; bracts 

 subulate-lanceolate, ciliate, some of them usually 

 longer than the flowers; calyx campanulate, its 

 teeth hirsute or glabrate, subulate, nearly as long 

 as the tube; corolla glabrous. 



In moist fields or waste places, Nova Scotia to Onta- 

 rio, Minnesota and Utah, south to Florida and Kansas. 

 Naturalized from Europe. Native also of Asia. Other 

 names are Garden-, Brown- or Mackerel-Mint, Sage o 

 Bethlehem. July-Sept. 



2. Mentha piperita L. Peppermint. (Fig. 3175O 



Mentha piperita L. Sp. PI. 576. 1753. 



Perennial by subterranean suckers; stems gla- 

 brous, mostly erect, branched, i-3 high. Leaves 

 lanceolate, petioled, dark green, acute at the apex, 

 rounded or narrowed at the base, rather firm, 

 sharply serrate, glabrous on both sides, or pubes- 

 cent on the veins beneath, the larger i^ / ~3 / long, 

 \'-\y 2 ' wide; whorls of flowers in terminal dense 

 or interrupted spikes, which are thick and obtuse, 

 and become i / -3 / long in fruit, the middle one at 

 length overtopped by the lateral ones; bracts lance- 

 olate, acuminate, not longer than the flowers, or the 

 lower occasionally foliaceous; calyx tubular-cam- 

 panulate, glabrous below, its teeth subulate, usu- 

 ally ciliate, one-half as long as the tube or more; 

 corolla glabrous; style occasionally 3-cleft. 



In wet soil, Nova Scotia to Ontario and Minnesota, 

 south to Florida and Tennessee. Naturalized from 

 Europe. Lamb- or Brandy-Mint. July-Sept. 



3. Mentha citrata Ehrh. Bergamot 

 Mint. (Fig. 3176.) 



Mentha citrata Ehrh. Beitr. 7: 150. 1792. 



Perennial by leafy stolons, glabrous throughout; 

 stem weak, branched, decumbent or ascending, i- 

 2 long. Leaves petioled, thin, ovate or ovate-or- 

 bicular, obtuse or the upper acute at the apex, 

 rounded or subcordate at the base, sharply serrate 

 with low teeth, the larger about 2' long, \'-\ x / z ' 

 wide; whorls of flowers in terminal dense thick ob- 

 tuse spikes, and commonly also in the "uppermost 

 axils; spikes scarcely more than 1/ long in fruit; 

 calyx glabrous, its teeth subulate, one-half as long 

 as the tube, or longer; corolla glabrous. 



In wefrsoil, Staten Island, N. Y., and Ohio. Adven- 

 tive from Europe. July-Sept. 



