250 DESCRIPTION OF ASTERS; CURVESCENTES 
Subdivision A. INNER BRACTS WITHOUT OBVIOUS MIDRIB, 
COLOR OR HAIR, AND VERY THIN. 
Species 40. 
40. ASTER CURVESCENS Burgess 
Deep green broad-leaved plants, with orbicular-cordate leaf- 
form, curvescent teeth, smooth narrow involucre, attenuate bracts, 
strong-linear rays; the small convex inflorescence flattening into 
a dome with divaricate branches ; the whole plant outlined in flow- 
ing curves (whence the name). 
Fic. 52, P 9, plant from Lanier Heights Brook, Washington, D. C., 
24, '88, in hb. Bu. ; and plate 10 its radicals, a single head, bracts and disk- iin 
A. curve cens Pii. ar in Br. and Br. Ill. Fl. 3: 359 (1898) with fig. 3741, 
and original description 
* Dark green, chiefly glabrous; rootstocks often 10 in. long ; 
stem pale green, striate, delicate, 1 14 to 2 ft. high. Basal leaves 
tufted, conspicuous, these and the lowest stem-leaves with a broad, 
shallow sinus tapering into a petiole 1-2 times as long as the blade, 
abruptly incurved-acuminate ; middle leaves ovate, short-petioled, 
rounded at the base, the upper lanceolate, slenderly acuminate, 
often falcate. Leaves firm, smoothish, the teeth broad, curved. 
Inflorescence small, convex, 3—5 in. broad, its short filiform naked 
branches widely ascending ; heads 4 or 5 lines high; lower bracts 
short, obtuse, the others longer, nearly uniform, scarious, shining, 
linear, often acute, usually glabrous; rays about 8, cream-white, 
about 5 lines long; disk becoming purple-brown; pappus early 
reddening ; achenes slender, glabrous. 
** — In loose, moist shaded soil, New England and New York 
to Virginia. Aug.— à 
ootstocks strong, rather slender, sometimes pulling up for 
IO to 20 in. 
Young shoots bearing two small suborbicular primordial leaves, 
J4 in. across, brownish-green, and nearly opposite (nearly ready 
to fall away, Apr. 21, at Washington, D. C.) Above these 
occurs a small deltoid-orbicular crenate leaf with truncate brace- 
base, which also soon perishes. Proper radicals follow, 2 or 
sometimes 3, nearly alike in size and shape, 4 or 5 x 4 in., some- 
times 6 x 
I:eaf-form cordate-orbicular with broad and rounded base, in- 
curved-acuminate, the brace-base sinus very broad and shallow, 
recurved conspicuously at the petiole.  Petioles very long and 
slender, the radical 6-8 in., the lower cauline 2-3 in; middle 
cauline petioles often broadly winged and tapering upward. 
