Composite L iatris. 231 



flowers. It is a member of a large genus, remarkable in having 

 almost constantly four florets in each head. Nardosmia fra- 

 gmns, Winter Heliotrope, is very near our native Butterbur, 

 Petasltes vulgaris, but it has fragrant flowers. 



Eupatorium cannablnum, Hemp Agrimony, is one of the 

 tallest and handsomest native plants belonging to this order. 

 It has hairy pinnate or 3-foliolate leaves and pale purple flowers 

 in terminal corymbs, from July to September. Two or three 

 Mexican species of this genus have been recently introduced, 

 and may prove valuable for bedding purposes. 



4. LIATRIS. 



A North American genus of handsome perennials resembling 

 the CynareoB in habit. Involucral bracts small, numerous, im- 

 bricated, in many series. Receptacle naked. Pappus feathery. 

 The name is unexplained. 



1. L. scariosa. About 2 feet high. Leaves very long and 

 narrow. Involucral bracts purple-margined ; flower-heads 2 

 inches in diameter, purple, in an elongated corymb. Sep- 

 tember. 



2. L. spicata. This grows from 1 to 2 feet high. Sterns 

 leafy. Leaves lanceolate, ciliate. Flower-heads sessile, in a 

 long spike, purple. One of the most desirable species, flowering 

 in July, and onwards for a considerable period. 



L. odoratissima and elegans are both purple-flowered, the 

 former sweet-scented. 



TRIBE IIl.ASTEROIDEJE, 



Leaves usually alternate. Outer or ray-florets often ligulate, 

 female ; disk-florets bisexual. Branches of the style linear, flat, 

 often downy. 



5. ASTER. 



A genus of about 200 species, chiefly from North America. 

 The majority are perennials, often tall and leafy, having the 

 flower-heads arranged in racemes or panicles. Involucral 

 bracts multiseriate. Ray-florets uniseriate, female. Pappus 

 of numerous unequal hispid bristles. Our native Michaelmas 

 Daisy, A. Tripolium, is a good example. 'Ao-rrfp is the Greek 

 for star, hence the English name Star-flower. The following is 

 a selection of some of the most desirable species. 



