40 PLANTS WRIGHTIAN^. V. 



gine revolutis breviter petiolatis molliter pubescentibus ; racemis brevibus laxifloris ; 

 carina nuda ampla dilatata Integra alls oblongis pubescentibus multo majore petalis 

 lateralibus spathulato-cuneiformibus duplo longiore ; capsula fere orbiculari emargi- 

 nata tenui ^dlloso-ciliata facie glabra. — Hills of the Eio Grande and Eio Frio, Tex- 

 as, westward to the San Felipe. (Also Monterey, Edwards Sf Eaton.) — Stems 3 to 

 9 inches long, leafy to the raceme. Leaves 5 to 10 lines long, thickish, very obtuse, 

 or the upper acutish ; the petioles half a line long. Flowers greenish-yellow, about 

 as large as those of P. grandiflora, Walt. The wings are small, and the lateral pet- 

 als unusually short, compared with the carina, which forms the most conspicuous 

 part of the flower. This is very broad and rounded above, not at all lobed or pli- 

 cate at the sides, scarcely unguiculate, entirely naked. The whole calyx and corolla 

 are deciduous, leaving the capsule naked, as in the allied P. Americana, Mill., P. 

 Caracasana and rivinsefolia, H.B.K., P. ovalifolia, DC, &c., and the stamens, stig- 

 ma, and seeds are the same as in those species and the succeeding one : the caruncle 

 short and bonnet-shaped. Capsules drooping, membranaceous, flat, 5 lines long, 

 and nearly as broad, the sides perfectly glabrous, but the margins conspicuously 

 ciliate. — I had (in PL Lindh. 2. p. 151) taken this plant for P. ovalifolia, DC, 

 which, judging from a recent inspection of the incomplete original specimen in the 

 Delessertian herbarium, is the same as No. 732 of Coulter's Mexican collection. It 

 has more oblong leaves, the upper ones acute, larger and broader wings, and espe- 

 cially a smaller and much narrower carina, which the linear lateral petals almost 

 equal in length, and the whole surface of the deeply emarginate pod is pubescent, 

 as stated by De Candolle. Still the two plants look very much alike. — P. buxifo- 

 lia, H. B. K., is allied to this and to P. Lindheimeri. 



104. P. PUBERULA (sp. nov.): pube brevissima subcinerea ; caulibus eradice suffru- 

 tescente erectis ; foliis linearibus lanceolatisve (imis nunc oblongis j mucronatis bre- 

 vissime petiolatis ; racemis laxis elongatis ; floribus pendulis ; carina omnino nuda 

 Integra alis late obovatis ciliolatis sequilongi petala lateralia ovali-oblonga paulo su- 

 perante ; capsula ovali emarginata glabra marginibus tenuiter ciliata. — P. pubes- 

 cens, Schleckt. in Linncea, 14. p. 160. — Valley of the Limpia ; Aug.: also in the 

 collection of 1851. — This species so much resembles P. grandiflora, Walt., in its 

 foliage, pubescence, and whole habit, that it might readily be confounded with it, 

 were it not for the deciduous floral envelopes, and the much larger and flat, naked 

 pods. These are a quarter of an inch in length, when young sometimes minutely 

 pubescent on the face, but when mature quite glabrous, except the thickish margin, 

 which is much less ciliate than in the preceding species. The " purple " flowers are 

 rather smaller than in P. grandiflora, and larger than in P. obscura, Benth. ; the 

 carina deep violet-purple. From P. obscura (also gathered at Misteca Alta by 

 Galeotti, No. 883) our plant is abundantly distinguished by its more simple herba- 

 ceous stems, longer and narrower leaves, entirely crestless carina, and elongated 

 fruiting racemes, the pods and the fertilized flowers all drooping. The floral enve- 

 lopes fall almost as soon as the pod begins to grow. The seed, as in most species 

 of this group, is retrorsely hairy, and capped at the summit with a short, bonnet- 

 shaped, somewhat lacerate or lobed, scarious caruncle. The two lobes of the stigma 



