POLYGONACE. 71 
much branched. Leaves shortly stalked, the upper ones subsessile, 
narrowly lanceolate or elliptical-lanceolate. Ochree subventricose, 
ciliated with long and short weak bristles, and floral ones usually not 
ciliated. Racemes spike-like, solitary at the extremity of the stem 
and branches, racemosely or subpaniculately arranged, long, slender, 
lax, interrupted, leafy only at the base, flexuous, at length generally 
with the apex pendulous. Pedicels about as long as the nut, articulated 
immediately below the perianth, without glands. Perianth subher- 
baceous, studded all over with conspicuous glands, without prominent 
nerves. Stamens 6, rarely 8. Styles 2 or 3, free nearly to the base. 
Nut of the 2-styled flowers ovate plano-convex, shagreened, with raised 
points, dim black, those of the 3-styled flowers bluntly trigonous. 
Leaves beneath and ochree dotted with minute glands. Plant acrid. 
In wet places, particularly by ditches and in hollows filled with water 
in winter. Common, and generally distributed in England and the 
south of Scotland, but becoming much scarcer in the north of Scotland, 
where it is absent from many of the counties. Common throughout 
Treland. 
England, Scotland, Ireland. Annual. Late Summer, Autumn. 
Stem 9 inches to 3 feet high, branched principally at the lower 
nodes, from which branches nearly equalling the main stem are com- 
monly produced; the lower part of the stem geniculate when growing 
in wet places, and producing tufts of root-fibres from the lower nodes. 
Leaves (inclusive of the short petioles) 2 to 4 inches long, slightly 
undulated; the petioles dilated at the base; the margins serrulate, 
with short bristles pointing towards the apex. Ochree rather large, 
wide, brown, truncate, and fringed with a few bristles, those from 
which flowers are produced usually destitute of bristles. Spikes 3 to 
9 inches long, very lax, shorter and rather flexuous when the plant is 
growing in dry ground, very long, arched, and hanging over in 
luxuriant specimens growing in wet places; fascicles of which the 
spike is composed 2- or 3-flowered, the lower ones remote, and with 
leaves at the base of their ochrew, the upper ones surrounded by 
ochrex, but without leaves. Perianth } inch long, green, tinged with 
pale rose, dotted with large glands, which are at first impressed and 
green, but afterwards prominent and reddish-brown. Nut + inch long, 
black, the greater number of them much compressed, the rest tri- 
gonous. Plant pale green, the stems and lower leaves often tinged 
with lurid purple late in the season. 
Water Pepper. 
French, Renouée poivre Veaw. German, Wasserpfeffer. 
This plant possesses very acrid qualities, and is hot and biting to a degree, so that 
No animal will eat it, even insects avoid it; and it is said that when dried and laid 
