RUBIACE^E MADDER FAMILY 



BUTTON-BUSH. HONEY BALLS 



Cephalanthus occidentalis. 



CephalanthnS) of Greek derivation, from cephale, head, and 

 anthos, a flower ; the flowers growing in heads. 



Strong, vigorous, erect shrub, varying from four to fifteen feet 

 high ; stem often contorted ; found on the banks of slow-flowing 

 streams and growing in swamps. Ranges from New Brunswick 

 to western Ontario and south to Florida, Texas and Arizona ; 

 also on the Pacific coast. Root large, stout, often contorted. 



Bark. Dark gray, cracked, flaky, surface plates thin and 

 loose, even on small branches. Branchlets at first brownish 

 green or reddish brown, later pale dull brown, finally dark 

 ashen gray. 



Leaves. Opposite or in threes, simple, three to six inches 

 long, oblong-oval or ovate, rounded or wedge-shaped at base, 

 entire, acute or acuminate at apex ; midvein, primary and 

 secondary veins depressed above, very prominent beneath ; when 

 full grown are thick, dark shining green above, paler, sometimes 

 downy, beneath. In autumn they turn a dull yellow or fall with 

 little change of color. Petioles one-half to one inch long, stout, 

 grooved, sometimes twisted. Stipules short, connecting the 

 bases of opposite leaf stems. 



Flowers. July, August. Perfect, white, fragrant, tubular, 

 sessile, borne in dense spherical heads at the extremities of the 

 branches ; often in groups of threes ; heads exclusive of styles 

 about an inch in diameter ; filled with nectar. Peduncles one to 

 two inches long. Remain in bloom a long time. 



