82 TAMACEAE. 



capsules 2-2.5 cm. long: seeds black, shining. Kather common, on dry hills 

 and roadsides, and in fence-rows. Nat. of Asia. Sum. BLACKBERRY-LILY. 



2. SISYRINCHIUM L. Scapose herbs with rootstocks. Leaf -blades flat. 

 Flowers in 1 or more clusters arising from usually 2 bracts (spathe). Sepals 

 and petals blue, white, or yellow, nearly equal, distinct, deciduous. Sum. 

 BLUE-EYED GRASS. 



Scape simple and terminated by the sessile or nearly sessile spathe or spathes. 



1. 8. angustifolium. 

 Scape branched or bearing 2 or more terminal peduncles. 2. 8. graminoldes. 



1. S. angustifolium Mill. Plants tufted, 1-4 dm. tall or more, glaucous. 

 Leaf -blades 1-3 mm. wide, usually serrulate roughened: scapes twice as long as 

 the leaves, about as wide, wing-margined : spathes mostly green, sometimes 

 purplish, the outer bract 2-6 cm. long, clasping for 2-6 mm. at its base, much 

 larger than the inner one: pedicels stiff and nearly erect: perianth violet-blue, 

 1O-12 mm. long: stamina! column 4-6 mm. high: capsules 46 mm. high, oblong- 

 globose: seeds dark-brown, 1-1.5 mm. long, obovoid-oblong, with shallow pits, 

 or nearly smooth. M. Rather common, in fields and grassy thickets. Lime- 



2. S. graminoides Bicknell. Plants often not tufted, 1.5-6 dm. high, bright- 

 green, turning dark when dry. Leaves thin and grass-like, $-f the height of 

 the scape; blades 1.5-6 mm. wide, the edges like those of the scape minutely 

 serrulate: scapes thin, wing-flattened, as broad as the leaf -blades, mostly fork- 

 ing into two peduncles 5-20 cm. long, subtended by a conspicuous bract : spathes 

 green, flat, the subequal or unequal bracts acute or acuminate, 15-20 mm. long, 

 the interior scales much shorter: perianth blue, 10 mm. long: capsules thin- 

 walled, subglobose, 3-6 mm. high, on slender spreading pedicels : seeds numerous, 

 about 1 mm. in diameter, globose, pitted. Common, on grassy banks. 



3. IRIS [Tourn.] L. Herbs with long rootstocks. Leaf-blades narrow. 

 Flowers often solitary, usually not long-stalked. Sepals and petals usually 

 showy, united below, the sepals recurved, the petals usually smaller and erect 

 or nearly so. FLAG. 



Matted herbs, the flower-stems less than 1 dm. tall, covered with leaves : outer and 



inner perianth-lobes nearly equal. 1. /. verna. 



Upright herbs, the flower-stems usually over 3 dm. tall : outer 



perianth-lobes larger than the inner. 

 Stem terete : leaf -blades less than 1 cm. wide : capsule 



sharply angled. 2. I. prismatica. 



Stem with 1 angle : leaf-blades mostly over 1 cm. wide : cap- 

 sule obscurely angled. 3. I. versicolor. 



1. I. verna L. Leaf -blades narrowly linear, elongating in age, mostly 5-7 mm. 

 wide: flowers violet-scented: perianth violet-blue or rarely white; tube barely 

 as long as the bracts, about as long as the lobes : capsule 12-15 mm. long. 

 S. Eare, on roadside banks near . Wakefield. Schists. Sum. 



2. I. prismatica Pursh. Stem 3-9 dm. tall: leaf -blades less than 1 cm. wide: 

 flowers long-pedicelled : perianth blue, variegated mainly with white, the outer 

 lobes spatulate, about 4 cm. long: capsule 2.5-4 cm. long, acute-angled. S. 

 Not common, in swamps near the serpentine barrens. Spr. 



3. I. versicolor L. Stem 8-10 dm. tall: leaf -blades mostly over 1 cm. wide: 

 flowers short-pedicelled : perianth blue or lilac, variegated with white or yellow, 

 or purple, the outer lobes spatulate to ovate-spatulate, 7-9 cm. long : capsule 3-4 

 cm. long, obscurely angled. Common in swamps. Spr. and sum. 



