LEGUMINOSa:. 101 



involucre greatly reduced, with truncate short lobes: corolla larger than 

 in the last, less inflated, red-purple: pod 1 — 2-seeded: seed little broader 

 than long, rather angular, tuberculate-rugose. — Var. stenophyllum. 

 Stems more slender and elongated: leaflets narrowly linear, th'e lowest 

 emarginate, the upper acute : corolla smaller, ochroleucous. — Mostly in 

 low places among the hills of the Coast Eange. 



32. T. laciniatum, Greene. Slender, flaccid, glabrous, ascending, 

 3 — 6 in. high: stipules ovate, acuminate, mostly entire: lower leaflets 

 narrowly cuneiform, denticulate, the upper broad, truncate and 3-dentate 

 at apex, laciniately toothed or pinnatifid: involucre obsolete: ft. 3 — 5, 

 white with purple centre, inflated in age: pod 3— 4-seeded: seed oval, 

 with the strong corrugation running into a more or less distinctly favose 

 coarse reticulation. Var. iiugtistatum. Leaves all linear, truncate, 

 entire. — Type from the vicinity of Byron Springs only; the variety there, 

 and also in Sonoma Co., Biuletti. 



11. MELILOTCS, Morison (Sweet Clover). Erect herbs with pin- 

 nately 3-foliolate leaves, the leaflets toothed, and small fragrant flowers 

 in slender axillary racemes. Petals free from the diadelphous stamens, 

 deciduous. Pod ovoid, small, scarcely dehiscent, 1 — 2-seeded. — Old 

 World plants with sweet-scented herbage and very fragrant flowers. 

 The following species are naturalized with us. 



1. M. Indioa, Allioni. Annual, glabrous, 1 — 3 ft. high, bearing many 

 racemes of minute yellow flowers. — Common in low grounds, chiefly 

 near the salt marshes or along rivers. A good fodder plant. 



2. M. alba, Lam. Stout, 3 — 6 ft, high: fl. larger, white, very fragrant. 

 — Spontaneous in northern California; perhaps not within our limits. 



12. MEDICA, Town. Herbs with pinnately 3-foliolate (rarely 5- 

 foliolate) leaves and flowers 2, 3, or many, on axillary peduncles. Petals 

 free from the diadelphous stamens, deciduous. Pod 1-several-seeded, 

 falcate-incurved or coiled into a spiral. — Valuable forage plants, natives 

 of Asia, brought to California, by way of Mexico or South America in 

 early times; some of them now widely naturalized. 



1. M. legitima, Clus. (1601). Medicago saliva, L. (Alfalfa). Per- 

 ennial, erect, glabrous, 2—4 ft. high: leaflets cuneate-oblong or oblan- 

 ceolate, toothed above: fl. oo, racemose, violet: pod spirally coiled, 

 unarmed. —Here and there spontaneous, but not very prevalent in the 

 wild state, at least in our district. 



2. M ltjpulina (L.), Lam. Annual, slender, procumbent, 1 — 2 ft. 

 long, soft-hairy: leaflets obovate, small: fl. minute, in small oblong 

 heads, yellow: pod small, reniform or curved almost into a ring, black 

 when ripe, 1-seeded. — Not rare in moist waste lands. 



