Melissa. LABIATE. 69 



♦* Meliphtllcm, Bcnth. Cyvmks few-Jlowered, secntul : bracts few, mostly ovate : cahjx gibbous at the base ; thevppcr 



lip smoothish; the throat naked or slightly villons. 



2. Melissa officinalis, Linn. Common Balm. 



Herbaceous, erect ; leaves oblong-ovate, coarsely crenate-serrate, rugous , the lower ones 

 often obtuse at the base; cymules axillary, loose, secund ; bracts few, lanceolate -ovale, 

 petiolate. — Lmn. sp. 2. p. 592 ; Beck, hot. p. 280 ; Darlingt.Jl. Cesl. p. 351 ; Benth. Lab. 

 p. 393. 



Perennial. Stem 1-2 feet high, branching, a little pubescent. Leaves 2 inches or more 

 in length and 1-2 inches broad, petiolate ; the upper ones obtusely cuneate at the base. 

 Flowers in small slightly peduncled axillary cymules. Bracts resembling the leaves, only 

 much smaller, ciliate. Calyx tubular-campanulaie ; the upper lip truncate, with three short 

 acute teeth : lower lip rather longer than the upper ; the teeth with subulate points : the throat 

 open. Corolla white or cream-colored. 



Road-sides and borders of woods ; rare. An European plant, naturalized in a few places. 

 July - August. Common Balm is often cultivated in gardens, and an infusion of it is used 

 as a grateful drink in fevers. The fresh plant has the odor of lemons, which is lost in drying. 



Tribe V. SCUTELLARINE^. Benth. 



Calyx 2-lipped ; the upper lip truncate, entire or somewhat 3-toothed. Corolla 2-lipped ; 

 the upper lip vaulted : tube ascending, cxserted. Stamens 4, ascending beneath the 

 upper lip of the corolla ; the lower pair longer. 



13. PRUNELLA. Li?in. ; Benth. Lab. p. il6. " SELF-HEAL. 



BRONELLi, RaT/ ; JllSS. 



[Altered by Lmnsus from Brunclla of older authors, which again is derived from the German word braune, siffnifyinir 



quinsy, which the plant was supposed to cure.] 



Calyx tubular-campanulate, 2-lipped ; the upper lip flat, dilated, truncate, with 3 short teeth ; 

 lower lip 2-cleft. Corolla 2-lipped; the upper lip erect, vaulted ; lower depending, 3-lobed : 

 the tube annulate within near the base. Stamens 4 : filaments with 2 teeth at the extremity, 

 the lower one bearing the anther. — Herbaceous plants, with the flowers in dense spikes. 



Floral leaves bract-like, roundish, imbricated. 



1. Prunella vulgaris, Linn. Conwion Self-heal. Healall. 



Leaves ovate -oblong or ovate -lanceolate, crenately toothed or nearly entire, sometimes 

 incisely toothed, petiolate. — Linn. sp. 2. p. 600 ; Engl. bot. t. 901 ; Michx. fl. 2. p. 11 

 Pursh, fl. 2. p. 412 ; Ell. sk. 2. p. 88 ; Bigel. fl. Bost. p. 240 ; Torr. compend. p. 236 

 Beck, bot. p. 281 ; Darlingt. fl. Cest. p. 352 ; Benth. Lab. p. 417. P. ovata, Fers. syn. 2 



