130 



LEaUMINOS.E. 



LECUMINOS/E. 



Cliaracter of the Order. — Herbs, shruhs, or trees, with alternate, stipu- 

 late, generally compound leaves. Flowers pai)ilionaeeoU8, sometimes regu- 

 lar ; calyx G-parted, the odd segment inferior ; petals 5, the odd one supe- 

 rior ; stamens 10, rarely 5 or indciinite, monadelplious or diadclphous, 

 sometimes distinct, commonly perigyntjus ; ovary simpl(>, 1-cellcd, 1- to 

 mauy-ovuled. Fruit a 1- to many-seeded legume. 



A very large order of plants, occurring in all parts of the globe, but most 

 abundantly in the tropics. It has been divided ir^to three sub-orders, 

 namely, I'lipUionaceie, Ca'Holpiiiiea', and Jlimosca:. To the iirst-named sub- 

 order belong nearly all important leguminous plants of temperate regions, 

 and, with the single exception of Castiia — belonging to the sub-order 

 CtMnutpiniac — all North American species of mediciuid importance. 



PAPILIONACE^. 



Character of the Sub-Order. — Flowers i)apilionaccous ; sepals 5, more or 

 less Tinited, often unequally so ; petals 5, irregular, imbricate, the upper 

 one larger than the others and u"ually enclosing them in the bud ; stamens 



10, rarely 5, inserted with the petals, mona- 

 delphous, diadclphous, or sometimes dis- 

 tinct ; when diadelphous, usually Avith nine 

 in one set and one in the other. Ovary nor- 

 mally 1-celled, sometimes becoming 2-celled, 

 or transversely many-celled by development 

 of partitions after tiowering. Flowers per- 

 fect, solitary and axillary, or in spikes, ra- 

 cemes, or panicles. 



MELILCTUS. — Melilot. 



Character of the Genii!^. — Calyx 5-toothed. 

 Corolla : petals free from the stamen- tube, 

 deciduous, the keel blunt. Stamens dia- 

 delphous, the ui)per one free. Pods short, 

 straight, thick. 1- or few seeded, indehiscent. 

 Annual or biennial herbs, with trifoliate 

 leaves, and flowers in spiked racemes. 



Melilotus officinalis Willdenow, — 

 Yelloiv Melilot. 



Descriptiou.^-'Flov.orfi numerous, 2 to 3 

 lines long, bright yellow, in long axillary ra- 

 cemes. Pod oval, 2 lines long, obtuse or pointed. 



An erect annual or biennial, 2 to -i feet high, branched, glabrous. Leaves 



Fro. 150.— Jlclilotns offlclnalis. 



