480 



NATURAL HISTORY OF PLANTS. 



Myriophyllon verticillafum. 



only by a vertical filament. But the organs of vegetation in these 

 evergreen plants differ from those of Haloragis. The leaves ' are 

 alternate, linear, entire, rather fleshy ; and the flowers, arranged in 

 terminal corymbs of cymes, are yellow and rather large compared 

 with those of Haloragis. Three species have been distinguished.^ 

 Myriophyllon^ (fig. 465) has also nearly the organization o{ Halo- 

 ragis; but the flowers are moncecious, or 

 rather, on the same inflorescence, there are 

 female flowers at the base and male flowers 

 at the summit ; but not unfrequently her- 

 maphrodite flowers are intermixed with both. 

 They are dimerous or oftener tetramerous. 

 The petals are imbricate or contorted. The 

 stamens number from two to eight, in con- 

 struction like those of Haloragis^ In the 

 male flowers the gyn^cium is rudimentary 

 or nil, whilst in the female, the petals of 

 which are often smaller (or even nil), the stamens (when present) are 

 sterile, and the gynseeium attains a full development. The ovarian ' 

 cells are four in number, superposed to the petals, surmounted by as 

 many obtuse or plumose stylary branches, often recurved. Each cell 

 contains one or two ovules,^ in direction like those of Haloragis, and 

 the fruit, dry or drapaceous, separates into two or four monospermous 

 cocci. Some fifteen species ^ of this genus ''' are distinguished ; they 



Fig. 465. Long. sect, of 

 flower. 



' WMot beoome green or tlaok in drying. 



^ Benth. Fl. Austral, ii. 471.— Walp. Ann. 

 i. 293 ; iv. 821 ; vii. 938. 



' Vaill. Act. Acad. Par. (1719) t. 2, fig. 3.— 

 Adans. Fam. des PI. ii. 471. — Myriophyttmn L. 

 Gen. n. 1066.— J. Gen. 18 ; Ann. Mm. iii. 321.— 

 Scu^vKU, Sandb. t. 296. — G-Ektn. Fruct.i. 331, 

 t. 68.— Lamk. Diet. iv. 189.— TuRp. Diet. Sc. Nat. 

 Ati. t. 217.— DO. Prodr. iii. 68.— Spach, Suit. cL 

 Buffon, iv. 446.— Nees, Gen. fasc. 8, t. 13.— 

 Endl. Gen. ju. 6135.— B.H. Gen. 676, n. 8.— H. 

 Bn. Payer Fam. Nat. 377 ; Adansonia, xii. 35. — 

 Pentapterophyllum Dill. Nov. Gen. 7. — Pentap- 

 teris Hail. Selv. i. 454. — Enydria Velloz. FL 

 Flum. i. t. 150. — ? Mylas Bigel. (ex Endl. he. 

 cit.). — Purshia Eafin. N.-Tork Med. Repos. ii. 

 361 (not DC. nor Dennst. nor Spbeng.). — Bw- 

 shia Auott. (erron.) . — Pehnastes Hook. p. Zand. 

 Journ. Pot. vi. 474. — Mullofallon Dioso. — Beli- 

 oukandos Celt, (ex Adans.). 



■* The pollen is spherical ; on the equator, 

 four small pores surrounded by a halo : M. ver- 

 ticillatwn (H. Mohl. Ann. Sc. Nat. Ber. 2, iii. 

 331). 



* The funicle may sometimes thicken above 

 the micropyle to a short obturator. 



« Labill. N.SoU. ii. t. 220. — Fr. et Sav. 

 Fnum. PI. Jap. 164. — Brew, et Wats. Geol. 

 Surv. Calif. Bot. i. 215.— Wight, III. t. 102.— 

 ToER. et Gr. Fl. N.-Amer. i. (1840) 528.— C. 

 Gay, Fl. Chil. ii. 356.— Harv. and Sond. Fl. 

 Gap. ii. 572.— Hook. Icon. t. 289.— Hook. p. Fl. 

 Tasm. i. t. 23 ; Man. N.-Zeal. Fl. 66.— Benth. 

 Fl. Austral, ii. 486. — Mia. Fl. Ind.-Bat. i. p. i. 

 634.— Thw.^««(«. pi. Zeyl. 123.— Boiss. J??. Or. 

 n. 754.— A. S.-H. Fl. Bras. Mer. ii. 251.— Gr. 

 et GoDR. Fl. de Fr. i. 687.— Walp. Rep. ii. 98 ; 

 Ann. i. 292 ; ii. 537 ; vii. 943. 



' Divided by Torrey and A. Gray [op. cit.) 

 into 3 sections : 1. Sphondylophyllam (Torr. et 



