, WCTAfJINACE-E. Ahronia. 



4 



A genus peculiar to Western Xortli America. The wings of the fruit are often very Unequally 

 developed. 

 § 1. Wlnqs coriaceous, lateral and not completely encircling the fruit. — Abronia 



proper. 

 * Body of the fruit more or less rigid or ligneous, the wing consisting of a slnij)le 



lamina. 



1 A umbellata, Lam. Perennial, prostrate, slender, viscidly puberulent, the 

 sterna u'lt.n cloimate'l, 1 to 3 feet long : leaves nearly glabrous, ovate to nar- 

 rowly oblon<% 1 "to 1 h inches long, attenuate into a slender petiole, obtuse, the 

 m-ir.'in often'' .sonie\vlu{t sinuate: peduncles 2 to 6 inches long: involucral bracts 

 smafl narrowly lanceolate, 2 or 3 lines long, 10- 15-flowered : perianth rose-colored, 

 6 to 8 lines long, with emarginate lobes : fruit 4 or 5 lines long, nearly glabrous, 

 the body oblong^ attenuate at each end ; the thin wings nearly as long, rounded, 

 broadest above anil often truncate, narrowing downward to the base of the fruit : 

 akene U lines long. — 111. i. 469, t. 105; Hook. Exot. FL iii. t. 194; Watson, 

 Bot. King Exp. 476, t. 31, fig. 7. 



Common on the sands of the sea-coast, from the Columbia Eiver to Lower California. Flowers 

 with little fragrance. 



2. A. maritima, Nutt. in herb. Very stout, prostrate, somewhat pubescent 

 anil viscitl : leaves thick, broadly ovate to oblong, cuneate or rounded at base, about 

 an inch long, on short stout petioles : peduncles usually a little exceeding the 

 leaves : invofucral bracts short, ovate oblong : flowers " bright red," half an inch 

 Ion" : fruit viscid-pubescent, the Avings somewhat coriaceous, otherwise nearly as in 

 the last. 



On tlie soa-coast from Santa Barbara to San Diego ; resembling A. latifolia in habit. 



3. A. villosa, Watson. A smaller and more slender plant than A. umbellata, 

 apparently annual, covered with a more or less dense spreading glandular villous 

 pubescence : leaves usually small, rarely an inch long : peduncles 1 to 3 inches 

 long, 5 -15-flowered: involucral bracts lanceolate, acuminate, 3 or 4 lines long: 

 perianth rose-colored or purplish, the lobes obcordate with a deep sinus : fruit 3 

 lines long, strongly reticulate-veined, the broad wings usually truncate and acute or 

 rounded above. —Amer. Naturalist, vii. 302. 



Colorado Valley (Palmer), and eastward to Southern Utah, Whcchr, Janvkm Parry. 



A GRACiTTs Benth Bot. Sulphur, 44, from the coast of Lower California, may perhaps be dis- 

 tinc^iisl'ied froi'n very slender forms of A. umbellata by the more strongly sinuate leaves, and by 

 the"body of the smaller fruit not attenuate above the wings. 



A MEixiFKRA, Dougl. (Hook. Bot. Mag. t. 2879), the only other species of the group, is found 

 in Washington Territory and Oregon, at a distance from the coast, and may be known froni A. 

 umhellata bv its stouter habit, much larger scarious involucre, and larger white flowers ; the truit 

 4 or 5 lines long, with narrower wings, often laterally elongated. 



* * Fi^rlt v'holhj coriaceous and the central cavltij extending through the wings. 

 4. A. latifolia, Esch.scholtz. Perennial, stout and fleshy, very viscid-pubescent, 

 the stems a foot or two long, pro.strate : leaves thick, broadly ovate or reniforni, i 

 to \h inches long, obtuse, on short thick petioles : peduncles usually exceeding the 

 leaves : involucral bracts 5, rounded to ovate or oblong, 2 to 4 lines long : flowers 

 numerous, 5 or 6 lines long, bright yellow, the lobes emarginate : fruit 4 to 6 lines 

 long, coriaceous, acute at each end, tlie wings more or less developed, usually nar- 

 row. —Mem. Acad. Petersb. x. 281. A. arenarla, Menzies ; Hook. Exot. El. 

 t. 193; Watson, Bot. King Exp. 476. 



Common on the seashore from Vancouver Island to Monterey, and perhaps still further to the 

 south. The root is stout and fusiform, often several feet long, said to be sometimes eaten by the 

 Indians. The flowers are very fragrant, with the odor of orange-blossoms ; in spnng and early 



