CL. XIV.] DIDYNAMIA GYMNOSPEKMIA. 245 



the upper slightly notched. Filaments awl-shaped, straight, 

 distant, arising from the throat of the corolla ; anthers two- 

 lobed. Germen superior, four-lobed. Style thread-shaped, 

 erect ; stigma protruded, divided into two sharp, equal, spread- 

 ing segments. Seeds four, small, in the bottom of the calyx. 

 Name, minthe, an ancient Greek term. 284. 



1. M. sylvestris. Horse Mint. Spikes oblong, scarcely inter- 

 rupted; leaves deeply serrate, acute, downy; bracteas narrow 



lance-shaped ; calyx hairy. The whole plant covered with fine 



downy hairs : stems erect, two or three feet high, branched, leafy, 

 with deflected hairs : leaves sessile, egg-shaped, hoary : spikes 

 terminal, with linear bracteas, and pale-purple flowers. Peren- 

 nial : flowers in August and September : grows in moist waste 

 ground : not common. Eng. Sot. vol. x. pi. 686. Eng. Fl. vol. iii. p. 

 73. 854. 



2. M. viridis. Spear Mint. Spikes elongated, interrupted ; 

 leaves lance-shaped, acute, naked, sessile ; bracteas linear ; flower- 

 stalks smooth. Stems two or three feet high, erect, branched, 



acutely four-cornered, smooth : spikes panicled, elongated, acute, 

 the whorls of pale-purple flowers a little distant. All the species 

 of mint have a strong aromatic smell, but the properties of this 

 being more agreeable than those of the others, it has been pre- 

 ferred, and is employed for culinary and medicinal purposes. Pe- 

 rennial : flowers in August : grows in watery places : rare, and 

 perhaps never truly wild. Eng. Bot. vol. xxxiv. pi. 2424. Eng. Fl. 

 vol. iii. p. 75. 855. 



3. M. rotundifolia. Round-leaved Mint. Spikes oblong, inter- 

 rupted, somewhat hairy ; leaves elliptical, obtuse, wrinkled, 



acutely crenate, shaggy beneath ; bracteas lance-shaped. The 



whole plant covered with long soft hairs : stems about two feet 

 high : under surface of the leaves white and woolly. Perennial : 

 flowers in August and September : grows in wet places : not com- 

 mon. Eng. Bot. vol. vii. pi. 446. Eng. Fl. vol. iii. p. 74. 856. 



4. M. piperita. Pepper Mint. Spikes obtuse, interrupted below ; 

 leaves stalked, somewhat egg-shaped, smoothish ; calyx very 

 smooth at the base. Stems nearly erect, roughish, with re- 

 curved hairs, from two to four feet high : leaves dark- green, acute, 

 serrate, more hairy beneath : spikes interrupted and leafy below : 

 corollas purple : bracteas lance-shaped, fringed. Perennial : 

 flowers in August and September : grows in watery places. The 

 only apparently natural station that I have seen for it is the pools 

 near Selkirk, formed by the Yarrow. The essential oil and distil- 

 led water of this plant are used in a variety of cordial or medicinal 

 preparations. Eng. Bot. vol. x. pi. 687. Eng. Fl. vol. iii. p. 76. 857. 



5. M. citrdta. Bergamot Mint. Spikes in heads, very obtuse ; 

 leaves stalked, heart-shaped, naked on both sides ; calyx and 



flower-stalks smooth. Stems about two feet high, branched : 



leaves serrate : flowers in round, terminal heads : corolla reddish- 

 purple. Perennial : flowers in August and September : grows in 

 watery places: rare, and not indigenous. Eng. Bot. vol. xv. pi. 

 1025 : M. odorata. Eng. Fl.vol. iii. p. 78. 858. 



6. M. hirsuta. Hairy Mint. Flowers in heads or whorls ; leaves 

 stalked, egg-shaped, serrate, hairy; calyx hairy; flower-stalks 



