308 PENTANDRIA— MONOGYNIA. Verbascum. 



serted into its base. Anth. compressed, erect, more .or 

 less kidney-shaped, bursting along the upper edge, im- 

 perfectly 2-celled. Germe?i superior, roundish. Stj/le 

 thread-shaped, slightly swelling upwards, declining, rather 

 longer than the stamens. Siigmd obtuse. Caps, ovate, 

 slightly compressed, or (in Blattaria of Tournefort) nearly 

 globular, of 2 cells and 2 valves, . opening at the upper 

 part, the valves sometimes splitting half way down ; par- 

 tition double, from the inflexed parallel margins of the 

 valves, but often incomplete. Recept. ovate or globular,- 

 central, connected at each side, in an early state, with 

 the valves. Seeds numerous, minute, angular, dotted, 

 covering tlie receptacle. 



Herbaceous, usually biennial, more or less woolly, or mealy, 

 mucilaginous, narcotic. Ston mostly solitary. Leaves 

 simple ; either undivided, or pinnatifid ; all radical the 

 first year ; subsequently all cauline, alternate, sometimes 

 decurrent, simply or doubly crenate, or toothed, rarely 

 entire. Fl. very numerous, panicled or spiked, aggregate, 

 yellow; rarely white, brownish, or purple. Bracteas o\ ate j 

 or lanceolate, pointed, of 2 orders, external and internal. 

 Whole genus peihaps Europaean. Species extremely va- 

 riable, subject to cross impregnation. 



The Blattaria of Tournefort is smooth, except fine glandu- 

 lar hairs on the stalks. 



1. V. Thapsus. Great Mullein. High Taper. 



Leaves decurrent, crenate, woolly on both sides. Stem 

 simple. Cluster dense. Flowers almost sessile. 



V. Thapsus. Linn. Sp. PL 252. Willd. v.]. 1001. Fl. Br. 249. 

 Engl. Bot. V. 8. t. 549. Woodv. Med. Bot. 1. 125. Hoolc.Scot.78. 

 Schrad. Ferbasc.i?. Fl. Dan. t.63\. 



V. n. 581. Hall.Hist. r;. 1.256. 



V. mas latifolium luteum. Rail Syn. 287. Moris, v. 2. 485. n. 1. 

 ssct.5. t. 9./. 1. 



V. aut Phlomos vulgaris mas. Lob. Ic. 56\.f. 



V. candidum mas. Fuchs. Hist. 845. t. 846. 



V. primum. Matth. Valgr. v. 2. 487./. Dalech.Hist. 1298./. Ga- 

 iner. Epit. 878./. 



V. latius. Dod. Pempt. 143. f. 



Tapsus barbatus. Ger. Em,773.f. 



(S. Var. 2. Thapso-nigrum. With. 248. 



On banks, and waste ground, on a chalky or gravelly soil. 



Biennial. July, August. 



Root spindle-shaped. Stem erect, straight, 3 or 4 feet high, very 



