4^4 FLORA. 



4, orange-yellow within; stamens usually 8, rarely 4-6. Decorah, Iowa. May- 

 June. It has been confused with C. alternifoliwn L. with dull punctate leaves 

 with truncate lobes and C. telrandrum PVies, with thick 3-5-lobed leaves and 4 

 stamens. 



Family 6. HYDRANGEACEAE Dumort. 

 Hydrangea Family. 



Shrubs or trees with simple opposite leaves and no stipules. Flowers 

 perfect or the exterior ones of the clusters sterile and conspicuous. Petals 

 and sepals generally 5. Stamens twice as many or numerous, epigynous. 

 Carpels 2-10, wholly united or the apex free, the lower half at least en- 

 closed by and adnate to the calyx. Seeds numerous ; endosperm gen- 

 erally copious ; embryo small. About 16 genera and 80 species, of tem- 

 perate and tropical regions. 



Stamens 8-10; exterior flowers of the corymb usually neutral. i. Hydrangea. 

 Stamens 20 40 ; all flowers perfect. 



Vines; style i ; petals small. 2. Decumaria. 



Shrubs; styles 3-5; petals large. 3. Philadelphus. 



1. HYDRANGEA L. 



Shrubs, or some Asiatic species small trees, with opposite simple petioled leaves 

 and terminal corymbose flowers. Exterior flowers of the corymb often apetalous, 

 slender-pedicelled, sterile, but with enlarged and very conspicuous calyx-lobes; fer- 

 tile flowers small. Calyx-tube hemispheric or obconic, 4-5-lobed. Petals 4 or 5. 

 Stamens inserted on the disk. Filaments filiform. Ovary 2- (seldom 3-4-) celled; 

 styles 2-4, distinct, or united at the base; ovules oo . Capsule membranous, usually 

 2-celled, ribbed, many-seeded, dehiscent at the bases of the styles. [Greek, water- 

 vessel, from the shape of the capsule.] About 35 species, natives of eastern N. 

 Am., Asia and S. Am. Besides the following, 2 others occur in the southeastern 

 States. 



Leaves glabrous or somewhat pubescent beneath. i. H. arborscens. 



Leaves grayish-tomentose beneath. 2. H. cinerea. 



1. Hydrangea arborescens L. WILD HYDRANGEA. (I. F. f. 1858.) A 

 shrub, 1-3 m. high. Petioles 3-10 cm. long; leaves ovate, thin, 7-15 cm. long, 

 acute or often acuminate at the apex, rounded, cordate or rarely broadly cuneate 

 at the base, sharply dentate, green both sides, sometimes pubescent beneath; 

 cymes 5-13 cm. broad; marginal sterile flowers usually few or none, but some- 

 times numerous. On rocky stream or river banks, southern N. Y. and N. J. to 

 Iowa, Fla. and Mo. June-July. 



Hydrangea arborescens Kanawhkna Millsp. Leaves pale or somewhat glaucous be- 

 neath. W. Va. 



2. Hydrangea cinerea Small. GRAY HYDRANGEA. ((I. F. f. 1859.) A 

 shrub 2-3 m. high. Leaves slender-petioled, ovate, rounded or cordate at the base, 

 acute or acuminate at the apex, 7-15 cm. long, green and nearly glabrous above; 

 marginal flowers, or at least some of them, sterile and conspicuous. Has been 

 confused with H. radiata. Mo. to Tenn. and Ga. June-July. 



2. DECUMARIA L. 



Woody climbing vines, with opposite petioled leaves, and terminal corymbose 

 flowers. Stipules none. Calyx -tube top-shaped, adnate to the ovary, its limb 

 7-io-toothed. Petals 7-10, narrow. Stamens inserted on the disk ; filaments 

 subulate. Ovary 5-io-celled, io-i5-rib6ed, its apex conic; style thick; stigma 

 capitate, 5-io-lobed ; ovules oo . Capsule fragile, ribbed, opening between the 

 ribs. Seeds numerous, the testa membranou c , reticulated, produced into a club- 

 shaped appendage. [Latin, decent, ten; the parts being often in ID'S.] A mono- 

 typic genus of southeastern N. Am. 



I. Decumaria barbara L. DECUMARIA. (I. F. f. 1860.) Climbing by 

 aerial rootlets. Petioles 1-3 cm. long ; leaves ovate, 5-10 cm. long, entire or 



