HYPERICACEJE. (ST. JOHN's-WORT FAMILY.) 85 



naked ; sepals oblong ; pods ovate-conical, pointed, almost 3-celled ; seeds 6lender cy- 

 lindrical, minutely pitted. — Low grounds, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and south- 

 ward. July. 



7. H. sphseroc&rpon, Michx. Stems mostly simple, herbaceous, with 

 a somewhat woody base, angled with 4 very narrow salient lines ( 1° - 2° high) ; 

 leaves oblong-linear, greener above and narrower than in the preceding ; the 

 naked cyme similar; sepals ovate ; pods depressed-globular W ovoid-conical, strictly 

 l-celled; seeds oblong, rough-pitted. — Rocky banks of the Ohio and its tribu- 

 taries, S. W. Ohio to Illinois and southward. July -Sept. — Flowers small. 



8. H. ellipticum, Hook. Stem simple, herbaceous (1° high), obscurely v^\*J(J^vv. r^ 

 4-angled ; leaves spreading, elliptical-oblong, obtuse, thin ; cyme nearly naked, 



rather few-flowered; sejxils oblong; pods ovoid, very obtuse, purple, l-celled. — 

 Wet places, New England and Pennsylvania to Lake Superior and northward. 

 July, Aug. — Petals light yellow, 3" long. 



9. H. angul6sum, Michx. Stem slender, strict, simple, sharply 4- 

 angled, herbaceous (l°-2° high); leaves ascending, opaque, ovate or oblong- 

 lanceolate, acute (^'-1' long), closely se*9eile by a broad base; cyme com- 

 pound, naked, the scattered flowers racemose on its ascending branches ; sepals 

 herbaceous, erect, enclosing the ovoid 1 -celled pod ; styles 3, separate. — Wet pine 

 barrens of New Jersey and southward. July -Sept. — Petals copper-yellow, 

 4" -5" long, furnished with a tooth on one side. 



§ 3. Stamens very numerous, in 3 or 5 clusters : styles 3 separate and usually diverg- 

 ing : pod 3-celled: calyx erect: petals and anthers ivith black dots. 



10. H. perforatum, L. (Common St. Johx's-wort.) Stem mnch 

 branched and corymbed, somewhat 2-edged (producing runners from the 

 base) ; leaves elliptical-oblong or linear-oblong, with pellucid dots; petals (deep 

 yellow) twice the length of the lanceolate acute sepals; flowers numerous, in 

 open leafy cymes. — Fields, &c. June - Sept. — Too well known as a pernicious 



weed, which it is difficult to extirpate. Juice very acrid. (Nat. from Eu.) • 



11. H. COrymbdsum, Muhl. Conspicuously marked with both black 

 and pellucid dots : stem terete, sparingly branched ; leaves oblong, the base 

 either obtuse or somewhat clasping; flowers crowded (small) ; petals pale yellow, 

 much longer than- the oblong sepals, styles not longer than the pod. — Damp 

 places; common. July -Sept. — Leaves larger and flowers much smaller than 

 in the last : petals 2" - 3" long, marked with black lines as well as dots. — Too 

 near H. maculatum, Wcdt., of the South, which has more clasping leaves and 

 very long and slender styles. 



12. H. grav^olens, Buckley. Like the last, but with larger leaves and 

 fewer much larger bright yellow flowers, lanceolate acute sepals, and long erect 

 styles ; common in the mountains of N. Carolina, doubtless also in S. Virginia. 

 § 4. Stamens 5-12, distinct or in 3 clusters: pod [brown purple) l-cel/ed, with 3 



strictly parietal placenta : styles short, distinct ; petals oblong or linear : sepals 

 narroio, erect: slender annuals, with 4-angular branches ; flowering all summer. 



13. H. mutilum, L. Stem flaccid, widely branching (fi'-10' high) ; 

 leaves ovate or oblong, obtuse, partly clasping, 5-nerved ; cymes leafy; pods onrte- 

 conical, rather longer than the calyx. (H. parviflorum, Muhl.) — Low grounds, 

 everywhere. — Flowers 2" broad. 



