18 CABOMBACE^E. ( WATER-SHIELD FAMILY.) 



4. JEFFERSONIA, Barton. TWIN-LEAF. 



Sepals 4, petal-like, caducous. Petals 8, oblong. Stamens 8. Stigma nearly 

 sessile, 2-lobed. Capsule coriaceous, obovate, many-seeded, opening transversely 

 on the back, near the summit Seeds numerous, furnished with a fleshy lacini- 

 ated aril. A low stemless perennial herb, with long-petioled, 2-partcd leaves, 

 and naked scapes, bearing a single white flower. 



1. J. diphylla, Pers. Rich shady woods, Tennessee and northward. 

 April. Lobes of the leaves half-ovate, entire or toothed. Scapes 6' - 12' high. 

 Flowers 1' wide. 



5. PODOPHYLLUM, L. MAY-APPLE. 



Sepals 6, caducous. Petals 6-9, obovate. Stamens twice as many (in our 

 species) as the petals. Anthers opening longitudinally. Stigma large, peltate, 

 sessile. Fruit baccate, many-seeded. Seeds enveloped in a pulpy aril. A low 

 perennial herb, with the naked stem terminated by two large peltate, 5 - 9-parted, 

 lobed and toothed leaves, with a solitary nodding flowef in the fork. 



1. P. peltatum, L. (MANDRAKE.) Rich woods, Florida and north- 

 ward. April and May. Stems 1 high, the barren ones terminated by a 

 single centrally peltate leaf, smooth. Leaves 4' -6' wide. Flowers 1' wide, 

 greenish. Berry l'-2' long, ovoid, yellow, fragrant. 



ORDER 6. NELUMBIACE^. (NELUMBO FAMILY.) 



Aquatic herbs, with large circular centrally peltate floating leaves, and 

 solitary hypogynous flowers on long peduncles. Sepals and petals sim- 

 ilar, in several rows, imbricated in the bud, deciduous. Stamens indefi- 

 nite, the slender filaments prolonged above the linear, adnate, introrse 

 anthers. Ovaries separate, 1 -celled, 1-ovuled, imbedded in the flat sum- 

 mit of the large obconical torus, forming large globular nuts in fruit. 

 Stigma nearly sessile, peltate. Seeds suspended. Embryo large. Al- 

 bumen none. 



1. NELUMBITJM, Juss. NELUMBO. 



Characters of the order. 



1. N. luteum, Willd. (WATER CHINQUEPIN.) Lakes and still water, 

 Florida, near Tallahassee, and northward and westward. Not common. July. 

 Rhizoma large, creeping. Leaves l-2 wide, depressed in the centre. 

 Flowers 5' - 6' wide, pale yellow. Appendage of the anthers linear. 



ORDER 7. CABOMBACE^E. (WATER-SHIELD FAMILY.) 



Aquatic perennial herbs, with peltate or dissected leaves, and solitary 

 hypogynous flowers on long axillary peduncles. Sepals 3-4, colored 



