AMARANTHACE^ 113 



Order LXIX.— AMARANTHACEiE. 



Flowers small, unisexual or bisexual, surrounded by 

 dry scarious bracts which are often coloured, and col- 

 lected into dense spikes ; stamens 3-5, hypogynous ; 

 leaves alternate; ovary superior, i -celled. A small order; 

 not alpine. 



1. Amaranthus, L. 



Flowers in clusters, subtended by three bracts, uni- 

 sexual, green ; sepals distinct ; seed-vessel containing a 

 single seed. 



A. Blitum, L. {Euxolus viridis, Moc, Albesia Blitum, 

 Kunth); seed-vessel indehiscent, stem glabrous, leaves 

 ovoid-rhomboidal, glabrous, toothed near the tip, often 

 spotted ; road-sides, common. A. deflexus, L. {Albersia 

 deflexa, Gren.) ; seed-vessel indehiscent, stem hairy above, 

 leaves of three linear-lanceolate lobes; on walls. A. 

 viridis, L. (sylvestris, Desf.) ; seed-vessel dehiscing hori- 

 zontally, sepals and stamens three each, leaves lanceolate- 

 rhomboidal, stem glabrous; road-sides. A. retroflexus, 

 L. ; sepals and stamens five each, stem hairy ; road- 

 sides. 



2. POLYCNEMUM, L. 



Flowers subtended by two bracts, bisexual ; sepals 5 ; 

 stamens usually 3, filaments somewhat united. 



P. arvense, L. ; bracts shorter than sepals, seed-vessel 



very minute; cultivated land, rare. P- majus, A. Br.; 



bracts longer than sepals, seed-vessel larger, plant more 



robust; fields, rare. 

 VOL. II. H 



