Centunculus.] primulace^e. 405 



margin of a little stream descending to the shove from the cliffs, and where Mr. 

 George Kirkpatrick and myself found a variety with pure white flowers, 1839. 

 Bog at CockletoD, near Cowes. On Lake common. Damp and boggy spots on 

 Blaokpan common, in plenty, 1848. Most abundantly on a moory meadow close 

 to Stone farm, 1844. In Luccombe chine, a very little way from the path on the 

 left goinir down to the sea, in great plenty, Miss 6. KiUerbee ! Apse heath, Mr. 

 W. D. Snooke 



W. Med. — Boggy ground near the shore between Norton and the preventive- 

 station, in plenty. Heath at Colwell (where I And it), and many other places in 

 the parish of Freshwater, in plenty, Mr. W. D. Snooke. 



A delicate and elegant plant, its short but tangled stems forming, with the 

 grass amongst which it grows, a dense flowery turf, at other times creeping by 

 itself in patches on the denuded soil, the herbage quite smooth and glabrous. 

 Stem prostrate and creeping, filiform, simple or branched, bluntly quadrangular, 

 a few inches long at most, and emitting at intervals a few rooting fihres. Leaves 

 opposite or somewhat alternate, very small, not above a quarter of an iuch in 

 length, ovalo-rotundate, bright pale green, somewhat fleshy and succulent, and 

 from their vascular structure appeavinj; covered on both sides with minute de- 

 pressed dots; slightly pointed, the apex thickened, quite entire, obscurely nerved, 

 suddenly tapered into extremely short, erect or oblique, ascending petioles. 

 Flowers large for the size of the plant, about ^rd of an inch long. Peduncles 

 axillary, solitary, single-flowered, several times the length of the leaves, spreading 

 or reclining. Calyx cleft nearly to the base into 5 lanceolate, somewhat concave, 

 very acutely pointed segments, with pellucid subserrated margins, and no appa- 

 rent ribs. Corolla above twice the length of the calyx, rotato-campanulate, 

 divided almost to the bottom into 5 ovato-oblong, equal, scarcely (except in seed) 

 spreading segments, of a pale rose-red, sometimes nearly white, with darker veins, 

 their margins very entire and eglandulose. Stamens erect, inserted at the orifice 

 of the very short almost obsolete tube of the corolla, their flat pellucid filaments 

 perfectly united below into a short tube, which on its upper part and oh the lower 

 free portion of the filaments is thickly clothed externally with long, transparent, 

 moniliformly. jointed hairs ; anthers greenish yellow. Style very long, cylindri- 

 cal ; stigma a few bristle-like glands. Capsule minute, globose, obscurely 

 6-angled, the two hemispheres marked by a rather abrupt transverse Hue of 

 dehiscence, thin, netted and papery, tipped with the long persistent style ; rather 

 sparingly matured. Seeds rather few (about 8 or 9, ofteu less), deep rusty brown, 

 scabrous-punctate, similar in shape to those of the last species. 



IV. Centunculus, Linn. Chalfweed. 



" Calyx 4-partite. Corolla with a globose inflated tube ; limb 

 spreading, 4-partite. Stamens 4, short, beardless. Capsule 

 bursting all round transversely. [Leaves alternate. Flowers 

 sessile)."— Br. Fl. 



1. C. minimus, IL. Small Chaffweed. Bastard Pimpernel. 

 " Flowers sessile, corolla without glands at the base." — Br. Fl. p. 

 334. Sm. E. Fl. i. p. 217. E. B. viii. t. 531. Curt. Fl. Lond. 

 fasc. 3, t. 11. Curt. Br. Entom. xvi. t. et fol. 768. 



On moist sandy heaths and commons ; rare, but probably, by eluding observa- 

 tion from its minuteness, only apparently scarce. Fl. June, July. ©. 



E. Med.— At the foot of Bleak down, by the junction of the Chale, Niton and 

 Godshill roads. 



W. Med. — Near Heath farm, by Newport. Heath at Colwell, plentifully, Mr. 

 W. D. Snooke, Fl. Vect. !!! 



