136 THI5 riAX FilfTlT. 



with the upper leaves small and distant, the lower leaves rather large, 

 ovate, and stem-clasping, quite glabrous, without pellucid dots, hut with 

 a row of black ones round the margin underneath. Flowers in a close, 

 compact cyme, often reduced to a head ; the sepals lanceolate, fringed with 

 black, glandular teeth ; the petals twice as long, narrow, and paler than in 

 the common S. 



In woods, in central and southern Europe to the Caucasus, and north- 

 wards into southern Sweden. Not so frequent in England as the other 

 species, and probably not extending into Scotland or Ireland. Fl. summer. 



11. Marsh Hypericum. Hypericum Elodes, Linn. 

 (Eng. Bot. t. 09.) 



Stems diiRise, often rooting at the base, and attaining 6 to 8 inches, or, 

 when very luxuriant, a foot in length, covered with loose, woolly, whitish 

 hairs. Leaves orbicular, stem-clasping, woolly on both sides. Elowers 

 pale yellow, few together in a leafless cyme, at first terminal, but after- 

 wards becoming lateral. Sepals small, ovate, copiously fringed with glan-' 

 dular teeth. Petals three times as long, \^T.th a small fringed appendage at 

 their base. Stamens united to above the middle in 3 bundles. 



In spongy and watei-y bogs, in western Europe, from Spain and Por- 

 tugal to north-western Germany. Extends over the whole of the west of 

 England, Wales, and Ireland, but rare in Scotland. Fl. summer. 



XV. THE FLAX FAMILY. LINAGES. 



Herbs or underslirubs, with entire leaves, no stipules, and 

 regular flowers. Sepals 5, rarely fewer, overlapping each other 

 in the bud, rarely partially united. Petals as many, twisted in 

 the bud. Stamens as many, free, or the filaments very shortly 

 united at the base, with small teeth between each (or, in exotic 

 genera, 10 stamens). Styles 5, rarely fewer, often slightly con- 

 nected at the base, with capitate stigmas. Ovary, with as many 

 cells as styles, or incompletely divided into twice as many. Cap- 

 sule separating into as many carpels as cells, without any central 

 column ; each carpel opening inwards by longitudinal slits, and 

 containing 2 seeds, often separated by an incomplete partition. 

 No albumen. 



A small Order, widely spread over the globe, differing from the Geranium 

 family chiefly in the foliage and the absence of any persistent axis to the 

 fruit, from the Pinlc family by the capitate stigmas and the structure of 

 the fruit. 



Parts of the flower in fives ■..'.. 1. Flax. 



Parts of the flower in fours .......'. 2. Allseed. 



I. FXiAX. LINUM. 



Sepals, petals, and stamens 5. Cells of the capsule apparently 10 but 

 really 5, each divided into two by a nearly complete partition. 



A rather numerous genus, spread over nearly the whole of the temperate 



