SOLIDAGO. 



here, till the Linnaean herbarium came among them. How 

 far it may be Ipecifically dilUnft, we cannot be certain. We 

 have fpecimens of both from the late Rev. Dr. Muhlenberg, 

 whofe leaves differ greatly. Thofe of latifoHii are two inches 

 broad, with very copious, deep, acute lerratures, and con- 

 traft at the bafe, more or lefs fuddeiily, into a winged_/oo/- 

 Jialk, near an inch long. Their rib, and under f:de, are 

 fometimes hairy. Nothing like this is feen mJlcxicatiUs. We 

 fufpeft Plukeiiet's t. 235. f. 4, as well as f. 3, may belong 

 to this lall ; fee the following. Hermann's plate is cer- 

 tainly lattfolia. Mr. Purfli fpeaks of thefc fpecies collec- 

 tively, as the moll common Solidago in North Ame- 

 rica. We know not to which of the two this is mod 

 applicable. 



^o.S. ambigua. Angular-ftalked Golden-rod. Ait. ed. I. 

 V. 3. ZI7. ed. 2. n. 2J. Willd. n. 33. (Virga aurea latiffimo 

 folio, canadenfis, glabra ; Pluk. Phyt. t. 235. f. 4 ?)— Stem 

 (lightly zig-zag, fmooth, angular, branched. Leaves ovato- 

 lanceolate, pointed, denfely ferrated, rather hairy beneath ; 

 tapering into a winged footftalk ; upper ones entire. Cluf- 

 ters axillary, ere<ft ; the upper ones much longer than the 

 leaves. — Cultivated by Miller, and communicated from Kew 

 garden to the younger JLinnoeus. It is faid to flower in 

 July and Auguit, but its native country is unknown, nor 

 has Mr. Purlh met with this plant in America. It may be 

 a variety of lalifoUa, from v/hich it differs in having fome- 

 what narrower leaves, and in the much greater length of 

 the upper cluiters oi Jloiuers, which combine to form a 

 clofe panicle. Plukenet's figure, cited here with doubt, 

 does not quite enough exprefs this, nor are fo many of the 

 leaves entire, though feveral of the upper ones are fo in our 

 fpecimen. 



51. S. alpejlris. Alpine Golden-rod. « Waldlt. and 

 Kitaib. Hung." Willd. n. 34. — " Stem ereft, fmooth. 

 Leaves elliptic-lanceolate ; the lower ones ferrated. Clufters 

 ereft, clofe, (hortcr than the leaves. Rays elongated." — 

 Native of the Carpathian, Aullrian, and Bohemian alps. 

 Very like the following, but the Jlem-leaves are elliptic- 

 lanceolate, nearly entire, and thejlem is fmooth. It varies 

 greatly by culture, becoming two feet, inftcad of one, in 

 height, and branched, inftcad of quite fimple. The leaves 

 of the wild plant meafnre from half an inch to an inch and 

 a half, (we prefume in length) ; thofe of the garden one from 

 one and a half to three inches. The upper clujlers of the 

 former are crowded into a fort of fpike ; thofe of the latter 

 are axillary, and compofed of {ewjloivers. IVilhlenow. 



52. S. Virgaiirea. Common Golden-rod. Linn. Sp. 

 PI. 1235. Willd. n. 35. Ait. n. 26. Purlh n. 46. Fl. 

 Brit. n. I. Engl. Bot. t. 301. Fl. Dan. t. 663. (S. 

 n. 69 ; Hall. Hill. v. i. 29. Virga aurea; Ger. Em. 

 430. Camcr. Epit. 748, 749. Matth. Valgr. v. 2. 354.) 



/3. Virga aurea, longo, niolli, et lanceolato folio, alpina ; 

 Bocc. Muf. 34. t. 30. 



y. Virga aurea montana minor; Bocc. Muf. 169. t. 118. 

 Barrel. let. 783. 



I. Solidago cambrica ; Hudf. 367. Ait. n. 27. Willd. 

 n. 36. (Virga aurea cambrica, lloribus conglobatis ; Dill. 

 Ekh. 413. t.306. f. 393.) 



t. S. minuta ; Linn. Sp. PI. 1235. Willd. n. 38. Ait. 

 n. 29. (Virga aurea omnium minima, floribus maximis ; 

 Hcrm. Parad. 245. t. 245. V. aurea montana biuncialis 

 pumila, foliis acuminatis ; Pluk. Phyt. t. 235. f. 7 ; and 

 foliorum apicibus obtufis ; f. 8.) 



Stem fomewhat zig-zag, angular, hairy. Leaves more or 

 lefs ferrated, roughifh ; tapering at the bafe. Cluilcrs 

 panicled, erect, clofe. Rays twice the length of the calyx. 

 — Native of bulhy, heathy, mountainous, and alpine fitu- 



ations throughout Europe, as well as at Labrador, and even 

 China, flowering in the latter part of fummer. The root 

 is perennial, confifting of long fimple fibres. Stem very 

 variable in height and luxuriance, molUy from one to three 

 feet high, and branched in a panicled manner, more or lefs 

 zig-zag, never quite ftraight, leafy, angular, covered more or 

 lefs with ftiort hairs, efpecially the upper part ; rounder, and 

 frequently purplifh, at the bafe. Leaves elliptic-lanceolate, 

 or nearly ovate, roughifh, firm and rather rigid ; the lower 

 ones Italked ; the relt varioufly elongated at the bafe ; all 

 extremely variable in fizc, and efpecially in tlieir ferratures, 

 which, though commonly clofe and fliallow, are fometimes 

 very coarfe and tooth-like, fometimes nearly wanting ; the 

 margin is always rough with minute briilly hairs ; the furface 

 fmooth or rough ; the under fide rather paler ; fometimes 

 the upper leaves are recurved, or drooping, and the upper- 

 mod ot all gradually diminifli into hraSeas. Panicle ter- 

 minal, many. flowered, attended by fmall leaves ; its lower 

 branches often axillary ; all downy, racemofe, or corym- 

 bofe ; now and then fimple and fingle-flowered. Scales of 

 the calyx at length fpreading, but all fliraight, imbricated, 

 lanceolate, fringed, membranous at the edges ; fometimes 

 rough at the back. Florets of the radius from five to nine 

 or ten, of a golden yellow, fpreading, elliptic-oblong, 



toothed at the end, their limb the length of the calyx. 



We fcarcely know a plant more difficult to define or to 

 underftand than this, nor can we limit even the varieties fo 

 as to make them intelligible ; much lefs elevate them to the 

 rank of fpecies. /9, fent from Italy by Arduino to Linnaeus, 

 is more downy, with more pliant leaves, than our common 

 kind, with numerous axillary clujlers, and a more leafy pa- 

 nicle. TheJIoiuers are confiderably larger than ufual. 



7 has equally large Jloivers, but much fewer, fo that the 

 pancicle is nearly fimply racemofe, and the leaves are coarfely 

 ferrated. We have Swifs fpecimens of Haller's n. 69, which 

 combine thefe two varieties, and whofe herbage connedls thera 

 with the common flate of the fpecies. 



I is equally fimple in its panicle, and its growth is more 

 humble, but the moll authentic fpecimens prove it a mere 

 variety. It is impoflible to fay what Willdenow had for 

 5. cambrica, which he afl'erts to remain unchanged by cul- 

 ture ; but his authority falls to the ground, fince he per- 

 filts in quoting Petiver's t. 16. f. 11, which we have pointed 

 out in Fl. Brit, as a copy of Camerarius, t. 748, done forthe 

 common Virgaurea! 



I is the moil puy.zling of all. Thejloiuers in Hermann's 

 plate nearly equal thofe of our /3 ; while in the Linna;an 

 fpecimen, evidently, as Linnxus judged it, a variety of Vir^ 

 gaurea, they are but half as large, and panicled. This fpe- 

 cimen was fent by Arduino for Boccone's t. i iS, (fee va- 

 riety ■),) which it very little refembles. Plukenet's figures 

 have the chiefly axillary inflorcfcence of our /9, only each 

 ftalk is fimple, not racemofe. — If any of thefe varieties are 

 to be eitablidied as fpecies, it muft be from far better ma- 

 terials than have fallen in our way, ai.d by widely different 

 charadters than have as yet been given. We mull obferve 

 that Grew's t. 59, cited by Haller, is evidently one of the 

 garden American fpecies, totally unlike Virgaurea. 



53. S. multiradiala. Labrador Golden-rod. Ait. ed. I. 

 v. 3. 218. ed. 2. n. 28. Willd. n. 37. Pnrfhn.47. — "Stem 

 rather villous. Leaves leflile, lanceolate, fmooth, fringed ; 

 the lower ones ferrated at the end. Clullcr terminal, ereft. 

 Rays numerous, elongated." — Found .it Labrador and 

 Hudfon's Bay, flowering from Augull to OAober. — Purfb, 

 — Stem a fpan high, downy, ereCt, quite limple. Leaves 

 narrow, nearly eiiiirc. Cltjler dciife. Radius narrow, co- 

 pious. IVilldcnow. 



54. S. 



