45Q 



COMPOSITAE. 



[Vol. IIL 



78. HELENIUM L. Sp. PI. 886. 1753. 

 Erect, mostly branching herbs, with alternate, mainly decurrent, punctate bitter entire or 

 dentate leaves, and large peduncled heads of both tubular and radiate, yellow or brownish-yel- 

 low flowers, or rays sometimes wanting. Involucre broad and short, its bracts in 1 or 2 series, 

 linear or subulate, reflexed or spreading. Receptacle convex, sub-globose or oblong, naked. 

 Ray-flowers pistillate and fertile, or neutral, the rays cuneate, 3-5-lobed. Disk-flowers per- 

 fect, fertile, their corollas 4-5-toothed, the teeth glandular-pubescent. Anthers 2-toothedor 

 sagittate at the base. Style-branches of the disk-flowers dilated and truncate at the apex. 

 Achenes turbinate, ribbed. Pappus of 5-8 entire, dentate or incised, acuminate or aristate 

 scales. [The Greek name of some plant, from Helenus or Helena.] 



About 24 species, natives of North and Central America. In addition to the following, some 18 

 others occur in the southern and southwestern parts of the United States. 

 Stem-leaves oblong-lanceolate or ovate -lanceolate, dentate; rays fertile; disk yellow. 



1. H. autumnale. 

 Stem-leaves lanceolate or linear-lanceolate, mainly entire; rays neutral; disk purple. 



2. H. nudiflorum. 

 Leaves all linear-filiform, entire; rays fertile. 



Helenium autumnale L,. False or Swamp Sunflower. 



(Fig- 3972.) 



3. H. tenuifolium. 



Sneezeweed. 



Helenium autumnale L. Sp. PI. 886. 1753. 



Perennial; stem puberulent or glabrous, 

 rather stout, narrowly winged by the decur- 

 rent bases of the leaves, corymbosely branch- 

 ed above,2-6 high. Leaves firm, oblong, lan- 

 ceolate or ovate-lanceolate,acuminate or acute 

 at apex, narrowed to the sessile base.pinnately 

 few-veined, 2 / ~5 / long, X'-s'wide, dentate or 

 denticulate, puberulent or glabrous, bright 

 green; heads numerous, i / -2 / broad, borne 

 on long puberulent peduncles; bracts of the 

 flatfish involucre densely canescent; rays 

 10-18, drooping, bright yellow, equalling or 

 longer than the globose yellow disk, pistillate 

 and fertile, 3- cleft; achenes pubescent on the 

 angles; pappus-scales ovate, acuminate or 

 aristate, often lacerate or toothed. 



In swamps and wet meadows, Quebec to Flor- 

 ida, west to the Northwest Territory and Arizona. 

 Called also Yellow-star, Ox-eye. Ascends to- 

 2600 ft. in Virginia. Aug.-Oct. 

 Helenium autumnale pubescens (Ait.) Britton, 

 Mem. Torn Club, 5: 339. 1894. 

 Helenium pubescens Kit. Hort. Kew. 3: 287. 1789. 

 Leaves pale, pubescent, or densely canescent beneath. Minnesota to British Columbia, Nebraska 

 and Texas. 



2. Helenium nudifldrum Nutt. Pur- 

 ple-head Sneezeweed. (Fig. 3973.) 



Helenium nudiflorum Nutt. Trans. Am. Phil. 



Soc. (II.) 7:384. 1841. 

 Leplopoda brachypoda T. & G. Fl. N. A. 2: 388. 



1842. 



Perennial; stem mostly slender, puberulent 

 at least above, corymbosely branched near the 

 summit, i-3 high, narrowly winged by the 

 decurrent leaf-bases. Stem-leaves lanceolate or 

 linear-lanceolate, entire or sparingly denticu- 

 late, acute or obtusish at the apex, l> / -3 / long, 

 2 // -6 // wide, sessile; basal and lower leaves 

 spatulate, obtuse, more or less dentate, taper- 

 ing into margined petioles; heads several or 

 numerous, i / -i^ / broad, on slender or short- 

 puberulent peduncles; rays 10-15 (sometimes 

 wanting), drooping, yellow, yellow with a 

 brown base, or brown throughout, 3-toothed, 

 neutral, or with rudimentary pistils, sterile, 

 equalling or exceeding the brown or purple 

 globose disk; pappus-scales ovate, aristate. 



In moist soil, Missouri and Illinois to Texas, 

 east to North Carolina and Florida. Also near 

 Philadelphia, where it is apparently naturalized from the south. June-Oct 



