RANUNCULACEAE. 73 



Family RANUNCULACEAE. Buttercup Family. 

 A large family, chiefly herbaceous, of no great economic 

 use but often becoming troublesome weeds ; the paeonies and 

 virgin's bowers are largely planted. 



PAEONIA. Paeony. 



Usually herbs and not evergreen, with alternate pinnately 

 parted large leaves ; large white or red polypetalous perfect 

 flowers ; and fruit of several often large follicles each with 

 several large seeds. 



Not woody : ovaries not sheathed. Herbaceous paeonies. 



Soft-woody : ovaries sheathed at base. P. suffruticosa. 



CLEMATIS. Virgin's Bower. 



More or less -woody plants mostly climbing by their per- 

 sistent leaf-stalks, with 6-sided or ribbed slender steins ; soft 

 wood with large crowded vernal ducts, few and minute summer 

 ducts, and coarse wedge-shaped medullary rays ; relatively large 

 roundish homogeneous pale pith ; opposite mostly pinnate stalked 

 leaves with the leaflets not falling from a distinct scar when 

 deciduous; axillary solitary or clustered usually perfect often 

 very large apetalous flowers with corolla-like calyx; and large 

 akenes with long often feathery style. 



1. Leaves simple. 2. 

 Leaves compound. 6. 



2. Leaves entire. 3. 



Leaves toothed : not climbing. C. Fremontii. 



3. Flowers creamy : not climbing. C. ochroleuca. 

 Flowrs blue or purple. 4. 



4. Not climbing: flowers small, urn-shaped. C. integrifolia. 

 Climbing: flowers large and open. C. lanuginosa. 



5. Leaflets entire. 6. 

 Leaflets toothed. 12. 



6. Flowers urn-shaped, small. 7. 

 Flowers open. 9. 



7. Styles hairy in fruit. 8. 



Styles not feathery. C crispa. 



