462 OuoEB to.— COMPOSITiE. 



81. XERAK'THEMUM, "(Gr. ^ijpog, dry, dvdng ; on accouBt of its dry, 

 imperishable flowers.) Heads disooid ; involucre hemispherical, with 

 racliant, colored, opaque, scarious scales ; receptacle paleaceous ; pappus 

 paleo-setaceous. — <T) Native of S. Europe. 



X. annuum "Willd. Eternal Floweb. St. erect, branched ; Iva. oblong- 

 lanceolate, obtusish, alternate, entire; hds. large, terminal, solitary; scales of 

 the involucre obtuse, scarious, inner ones of the ray spreading, lanceolate, obtuse. 

 — A singular plant, half hardy, of easy culture. Stem 2 — 3f high. The radi- 

 ant involucre scales are of a rich purple, but there are varieties vrith red, 

 white, blue and yellow scales. The flowers retain their beauty for years. 



82. HELICHRY'SUM. (Gr. golden sun) is another genus of fadeless 

 flowers, of which several species are occasionally cultivated. The 

 spreading scales are of various colors. H. bracteosum is the finest 

 species, having yellow scales, heads on long stalks and lanceolate 

 leaves. 



83. ERECH'TITES, Eaf. Fire-weed. (Gr. ipix^o), to trouble ; the 

 species are troublesome weeds.) Flowers all tubular, those of the mar- 

 gin pistillate, of the disk perfect; involucre cylindrical, simple, slightly 

 calyculato; receptacle naked; pappus of numerous, fine, capillary 

 bristles. — (!) Lvs. simple, alternate. Fls. corymbous, whitish. 



B. hieraoifolius Eaf. St. paniculate, virgate; lvs. oblong, amplexicaul, acute, 

 unequally and deeply toothed with acute indentures ; invol. smooth ; ach. hairy. 

 — A ranlc weed, growing in fields (Can. and U. S.), particularly in such as have 

 been newly cleared and burnt over. St. thick and fleshy, branching, 3f high, 

 roughish. Lvs. of a light green, large, irregularly out into many deep and acute 

 teeth. Fls. terminal, crowded, destitute of rays, white. Invol largo and tumid 

 at base. Aug., Sept. (Senicio hieraoifolius L.) 



84. CACA^LIA, L. Wild Caraway. Tassel Flower. (An an- 

 cient Gr. name of an uncertain plant.) Flowers all tubular, i^ ; in- 

 volucre cylindric, oblong, often calyculate with small scales at the base; 

 receptacle not chafi'y ; pappus capillary, scabrous. — Mostly 7i. Smooth. 

 Lvs. alternate. Hds. of fls. oorymbed, mostly cyanic. 



§ Scales of tlio involucre united, about 12. Flowers CO to 80, scarlet No. 8 



§ Scales of tho involucre distinct,— about 12. Flowers 20 to 80, wbite No. 1 



— 5 only. Flowers 5. — Leaves cordate or lobed. . .Nos. 2 — 4 

 ■ — Leaves never cordate Nos. 5 — 7 



X C suavSolens L. Glabrous; st. striate-angular ; lvs. petiolate, hastate-sagit- 

 tate, serrate, smooth, green on both sides ; lis. oorymbed, erect ; invol. many- 

 flowered. — y "Western N. T. to Conn. (Robbina), to Ga. and 111. Stems 4 — 5f 

 high, striate, leafy. Eadical leaves on long stalks, pointed ; cauline ones on 

 winged stalks. Flowers whitish, in u terminal, compound corymb. Scales and 

 peduncles smooth, with setaceous bracts beneath the involucre, and beneath the 

 divisions of the peduncles. Aug. 



2 C reniformis Muhl. St. sulcate-angled ; lvs. palmately veined, nearly smooth, 

 green both sides, petiolate, lower ones reniform, upper flabelliform ; corymb com- 

 pound, fastigiate ; hds. 5-flowered. — Woods, Ind., 111., Penn., S. to Car. St 3 to 

 6f high, nearly simple, glabrous. Lvs. 3 to 12' by 5 to 18', repand-dentate, lower 

 petioles very long. Scales of involucre 5, obtuse, whitish. Jl. 



3 C. atriplicifolia L. St. terete; lvs. petiolate, smooth, glaucous beneath, palno- 

 ate-veined, angularly lobed and dentate, the lower subcordate; fls. corymbed, 

 wect; invol. 5-flowered. — N. T. to Ga. and lU. St. 3 to 5f high, leafy. Lvs. 

 alternate, the lower ones as large as the hand, with large, unequal teeth or lobes. 

 Hds. small, ovoid-cylindric, whitisli, loosely corymbous at the top of the branchea 

 JL— Sept. 



