ONAGRACEAE (EVENING PRIMROSE FAMILY) 



293 



the axils on very short peduncles; they are 

 nearly an inch broad, with four light yellow, 

 rounded petals, between wilich show the 

 four-pointed, spreading, leaf -like lobes of the 

 calyx, about as long. When plucked, the 

 petals almost always fall away ; stamens four, 

 inserted with the petals ; ovary four-celled. 

 Capsules smooth, square, with winged angles 

 and rounded base, about a quarter-inch 

 high ; the seeds become loose and rattle about 

 in them when the plant is shaken. These 

 seed-vessels readily float on water and are 

 often blown far on crusted snow. (Fig. 204.) 



Means of control 



Drainage of the ground, followed by a 

 cultivated crop, very thoroughly tilled. Or 

 starvation of the perennial roots by close 

 and frequent cutting throughout the growing 



FIG. 204. Seed- 

 WATER PURSLANE box (Ludvigia alterni- 



folia). Xi. 



Ludvigia palustris, Ell. 

 (Isndrdia palustris, L.) 



Other English names: Ditch Purslane, Marsh Purslane, False 



Loosestrife. 

 Introduced. Perennial. Propagates by seeds and by rooting at 



the joints. 



Time of bloom: June to October. 

 Seed-time: July to November. 

 Range: Nova Scotia to Manitoba and Oregon, southward to 



Florida, Louisiana, California, and Mexico. 

 Habitat : Swamps, wet meadows ; clogs ditches. 



A small, prostrate, often floating weed, whose habit of putting 

 forth fibrous roots at its joints makes it frequently a pest to the 

 muck farmer. 



Stems smooth, succulent, much branched at the base, often 

 ruddy-colored, four to fifteen inches long. Leaves opposite, ovate 

 or spatulate, a half-inch to an inch long, narrowing to a short, 



