GENTIAiS^ACEiE. 367 



Stem clwarf, seldom above 3 or finches. Corolla an inch long or less, 



ivith smaU lobes between the larger ones. 

 Tufted perennial, with 1-flowered stems and a broad limb to the 



corolla 2. /S; ring O. 



Branched annual, with several flowers and a small limb to the corolla 3. Small G. 



The Gentianella of our gardens is tlie Gentiana acaulis, a motintain spe- 

 cies, very common in central Europe, but not a native of Britain. 



1. Marsh Gentian. Gentiana Fneumonanthe, Linn. 

 (Eng. Bol. t. 20.) 



Rootstock perennial. Stems simple, erect, 6 inches to a foot or more liigh. 

 Lower leaves oblong-lanceolate, the upper ones nearly linear, all obtuse 

 and rather thick. Flowers nearly sessile, in opposite pairs in the axils of 

 the upper leaves, with a terminal one close between the last pair. Lobes of 

 the calyx narrow. Corolla an inch and a half or more long, of a deep blue 

 vi'ithin, with 5 greenislt, broad lines outside ; the tube without hairs at the 

 throat ; the lobes rather short, broad and spreading. 



In moist lieaths and pastures, cliiefly in hilly districts, throughout Europe 

 and Russian Asia, except the extreme north. In Britain, more frequent in 

 northern than in central or southern England, but not a native of Scotland 

 nor recorded from Ireland. Fl. autumn. 



2. Spring Gentian. Gentiana verna, Linn. 



(Eng. Bot. t. 493.) 



Stock perennial and leafy, densely tufted, often spreading to 4 or 5 inches 

 in diameter, with ovate or oblong leaves. Flower-stems simple and numer- 

 ous, sometimes so short that the flowers appear sessile on the tufts of leaves, 

 eometimes 1 or 2 inches long, bearing 1 or 2 pairs of small leaves, and a beau- 

 tiful bright-blue terminal flower. Calyx very angular, with lanceolate teeth 

 or lobes. Corolla-tube cylindrical, nearly an inch long ; the lunb broad and 

 spreading, with 5 ovate lobes, and smaller 2-cleft ones between them. 



One of the most common species, in mountain pastures, in central and 

 southern Europe to the Caucasus and the Altai, but scarcely extending into 

 northern Germany. Rare in Britain, apparently confined to a few locaUties 

 in northern England and western Ireland. Fl. spring or early summer. 



3. Small Gentian. Gentiana nivalis, Linn. 



(Eng. Bot. t. 896.) 



A slender, erect, leafy annual, sometimes single-flowered and only an inch 

 high, but more frequently 2 to 4 inches high and more or less branched ; 

 each branch bearing a single blue flower much like that of the spring G., 

 but considerably smaller. The tube of the corolla is but little more than 6 

 lines long, and the lobes of the limb not 2 lines, broadly ovate and pointed, 

 with very small 2-cleft ones between them. 



A high alpine plant, not uncommon m the higher mountain-ranges of 

 central Europe as well as in the extreme north, but not recorded with any 

 certainty as extending into central Asia. Rare in Britain, and only on a 

 few of the higher Scotch mountains. Fl. summer. 



4. Autumn Gentian. Gentiana Amarella, Linn. 

 (Eng. Bot. t. 236.) 



An erect, much-branched annual, 3 or 4 inches to near a foot high, often 

 assuming a livid-green or purplish tinge. Leaves ovate or lanceolate ; the 



