12 HANUNCUI,A(TC.E. [CnltltCt. 



1. M. minimus, L. Comvion Mouse-tail. Ovaries extremely 

 numerous on the conical iinally linear-elongate receptacle, car- 

 pels closely imbricate, stjdes very short persistent erect. Br. 

 Fl. p. 6. E. B. vii. t. -135. 



In cultivated ground, cornfields, pastures and waste places, on a sandy, gra- 

 velly or chalky soil ; not uncommon. F/. April, May. T^r. June. 0. 



E. Med.—jn several places about Hyde, as on the Dover occasionally. Corn- 

 fields about Si. John's, and especially abundant in one immedialely at the back 

 of (he fruit-garden, and near Preslou farm between Ryde and the Priory, Plen- 

 tiful in a field by the footroad up the hill above E. Cowes, between the new 

 church and Osborne park. About Shanklin in several places, particularly in a field 

 above the Chine, at its upper or inland end. Cornfields about Week and Nettle- 

 combe ftu-ras, very frequent. About Godshill, Bridges, &c. Abundant at Bank 

 End near St. Lawrence, in a cornfield between the farm and the preventive-sta- 

 tion, Dr. Blarlin. 



W. 71/<"fZ.— Sandy fields about Shorwell and Brixton occasionally. Atherfield, 

 Dr. Martin. 



A humble annual, 2—4 inches high, closely allied to Ranunculus. Root small, 

 fibrous, emitting numerous simple, single-flowered scapes, mostly taller than the 

 leaves and thickened upwards. Stemxioue. Xraws numerous, nearly erect, 1 — 3 

 inches long, linear-spathulate, flat above with sheathing bases, entire, fleshy. 

 Fimvers small, solitary, erect, greenish yellow. Sepals deciduous, linear, obtuse, 

 deflexed or spreading, with an acute whitish spur at the base of each beneath its 

 point of insertion. Petals ligulate, with very long tubular claws. Stamens 

 5 — 10; anthers erect, oblong, bursting at their outer edges. Sti/tes obsolete. 

 Germens exceedingly numerous (several hundreds), imbricated, on a very conical 

 receptacle, which elongates as the seed ripens to 2 inches or more, and then bears 

 a striking resemblance to a mouse's tail. Carpels closely imbricated, each with a 

 thick, pointed, dorsal keel. Seed solitary, ovate or elliptical, compressed, quite 

 smooth and greenish. 



This curious little plant is extremely rare in Scotland, and has not been as yet 

 detected in Ireland. In the S. and S.E. of England it is by no means of uncom- 

 mon occurrence. It is a partial native also of America, where a second species 

 (M. aristatus, Benth.) has been detected. 



It is a singular feature in the geographical distribution of the Mouse-tail, that 

 though spread o\ex the greater portion of Europe, part of Asia and Africa, it 

 reappears in the heart of the western continent only, many hundred miles from 

 the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, but where it is perfectly indigenous. 



Tribe IV. HellehorecB .* 



^Estivation imbricate. Fruit several (rarely but 1), dehiscent, 

 mostly many-seeded follicles. Sepals [mostly] 5, petaloid. Pe- 

 tala\ 0, or 5 — 20, bilabiate, tubular, irregular, nectariferous. 



VII. Caltha, Linn. Marsh Marigold. 



Sepals 5 — 9, petaloid. Petals 0. Follicles 5 — 10 or more, 

 many-seeded. 



Glabrous, succulent, perennial herbs, with bright yellow, sometimes white 

 flowers, growing in wet places in the colder parts of Europe, Asia and America, 

 and in southern Patagonia. 



* This tribe includes the most active plants of the order ; some genera, as Aco- 

 nitum, are virnlent poisons, the rest dangerous or at best suspicious. 

 t Nectaries of the earlier botanists. 



