MACLOSKIE I COMPOSITE. 823 



entire, or broader and serrate, 3-nerved, revolute edged, 6 cm. long. 

 Flower-heads solitary, terminal, rather large, above the leaves. Involucral 

 scales 4-seriate, the inner larger, passing into the rceptacle-pales. 

 Achenes compressed, not winged, .silkyf Pappus of 3 pales, scarcely 

 united, lacerate above. Some short neuter flowers. 

 N. Patagon., by Rio Negro. 



38. SPILANTHES Jacq. 



Branching herbs, with opposite leaves and rather small, long-peduncled, 

 discoid and radiate heads, or rayless. Involucre with green scales, 2- 

 seriate. Receptacle convex or elongated, chaffy about the achenes. An- 

 thers basitruncate. Style-branches of the disk long, often tufted. Achenes 

 3-sided (ray), or compressed. Pappus of 1-3 or more awns. 



Species 30, in warm regions. (Fig. in Eng. & Prantl, iv, 5, p. 237.) 



S. ARNICOIDES DC. (S. helenioides Hook & Arn.) 



Stem creeping, ascending, hirtellous, sparsely branching. Leaves crowded 

 at base, opposite, attenuate-cuneate to a long petiole, elliptical or ovate- 

 lanceolate, subdentate, smooth. Peduncle long, i -headed, erect, sparsely 

 puberulous; head subglobose. Involucral scales about 12, oval-oblong, 

 obtuse. Ligules 12-15, three times as long as the involucre. Achenes 

 of ray abortive, of disk ciliate, 2-awned. Corolla intense yellow. 



(Brazil) ; N. Patagon., a campos plant ; "nim-nim," its root is chewed to 

 allay thirst. 



S. ARNICOIDES LEPTOPHYLLA (DC.). 



N. Patagon., by Rio Negro. 



39. VERBESINA Linn, (including Ximenesia Cass.). 



Mostly pubescent or scabrid herbs, with heads small to mid-sized, and 

 broad involucre with few-seriate scales. Receptacle convex, chaffy, its 

 chaff enclosing the disk-flowers. Ray-flowers ligulate, white, pistillate or 

 neuter. Style-branches of disk with acute appendages ; the disk-achenes 

 flattened. Pappus of 1-3 subulate awns, sometimes with intermediate 

 scales. 



Species 50, American, from southern United States to Patagon. 



