362 EUPHORBIACEAE. [VOL. II. 



i. Phyllanthus Carolinensis Walt. Carolina Phyllanthus. (Fig. 2289.) 



Phyllanthus Carolinensis Walt. Fl. Car. 228. 1788. 

 Pliy! Ian thus oboi-atus Willd. Sp. PI. 4: 574. 1805. 



Annual, dark green, glabrous. Stem sleuder, 

 erect, or ascending, 4 / -2o / high, simple or 

 branched, the branches 2-ranked; leaves obovate, 

 or oblong, 3 // -io // long, obtuse, narrowed to a 

 very short petiole, or subsessile; flowers incon- 

 spicuous, nearly sessile in the axils; calyx 6- 

 parted, its lobes linear, or oblong; stamens 3; 

 styles 3, each 2-cleft; glands of the pistillate 

 flower more or less united; capsule about i" in 

 diameter; seeds nearly y t " long, marked with 

 lines and minute black papillae. 



In sandy or gravelly soil, eastern Pennsylvania to 

 Illinois, Florida, Texas and Central America. May- 

 Oct. 



2. CROTON L. Sp. PI. 1004. 1753. 



Herbs or shrubs, monoecious or rarely dioecious, strong-scented, stellate-pubescent, more 

 or less glandular. Leaves mostly alternate, entire, toothed or lobed, sometimes with 2 glands 

 at the base of the blade. Flowers in axillary or terminal clusters, often spicate or racemose. 

 Staminate flowers uppermost; calyx 4-6-parted (usually 5-parted); petals usually present, 

 but small or rudimentary, alternating with glands; stamens 5 or more, indexed. Pistillate 

 flowers clustered below the staminate; calyx 5-ro-parted; petals usually wanting; ovary 

 mostly 3-celled; ovule i in each cavity; styles once, twice or many times 2-cleft. Capsule 

 splitting into 2-4 (usually 2) 2-valved carpels. Seeds i in each carpel, smooth, or minutely 

 pitted. Embryo straight in the fleshy endosperm. [The Greek name of the Castor-oil plant.] 



About 600 species, mostly of warm and tropical regions, a few in the temperate zones; some of 

 high medicinal value. 



Plants monoecious. 



Leaves toothed; staminate calyx 4-lobed, pistillate 5-lobed. 

 Ieaves entire; staminate calyx 3- 5-lobed, pistillate 5-i2-lobed. 



Capsules clustered, erect, depressed -globose, 3"-3&" broad. 



Capsules mostly solitary, nodding, ovoid, or oblong-ovoid, a"-2 



Plant dioecious. 



1. C. glandulosus. 



2. C. capitatus. 

 '," long. 



3. C. monanthogynus. 



4. C. Texensis. 



i. Croton glandulosus L,. Glandular 

 Croton. (Fig. 2290.) 



Croton glandulosus L- Amoen. Acad. 5: 409. 1760. 

 Annual, monoecious, usually dark green, rough 

 with stellate hairs, and somewhat glandular. 

 Stem erect or assurgent, rather slender, 8'-2% 

 high, corymbosely branched, or nearly simple; 

 leaves oblong, linear-oblong or ovate, #'-3' long, 

 coarsely serrate, bearing 2 glands at the base of 

 the blade; petiole shorter than the blade; flower- 

 clusters terminal or axillary, the staminate in 

 spikes, with a 4-parted calyx, 4 petals, a 4-rayed 

 glandular disk and 8 stamens; pistillate flowers 

 several at the base of the staminate, with 5 sepals, 

 rudimentary petals, and 3 2-cleft styles; capsule 

 subglobose, about 2> // in length; seeds oblong, 

 minutely wrinkled. 



In sandy soil, Virginia to Iowa and Kansas, south 

 to Florida and Central America. Also in the West 

 Indies and South America. March-Dec. 



