289 



CLASS VIII. OCTAtfimiA. 



Order 1. ittonosrvnia. 



«l. Ovary inferior. 



193. EPILOBIUM. L. Mat. Gen. 363. 

 [Greek, Epi f upon, and Lobos, a pod / the flower being at the apex of a long pod.] 



Calyx 4-scpalletl ; sepals united into a long 4-sided tube adnate to thr 

 ovary ; limb 4-parted, caducous. Petals 4. Anthers subovate, erect ; 

 pollen not viscid. Capsule linear, obtusely 4-angled, 4-valved, many- 

 seeded. Seeds crowned with a pappus. 



Herbaceous : leaves opposite, or sometimes alternate / flowers axillary and aoli - 

 tary, or in terminal bracteate spikes. Nat. Ord. 47. Lindl. OnagrarijE. 



1. E. color atum, JtfuhL Stem terete, more or less pubescent ; leave* 

 mostly opposite, lanceolate, acute, serrulate, sub-petiolate, smoothish, 

 with colored veins. Meek, Sot. p. 11G. 



E. tetragonum 1 Bart. Phil. 1. p. 183. Not of L. and others. 



Also, E. palustre. FloruL Cestr. p. 46. Not? of Pursh. Nutt. Hook. 



Am. and Beck. 



Colored Epilobiux. Vulgo — Herb Willow. 



Root perennial. Sternal to 3 feet high, much branched above, more or less pu ♦ 

 be scent, sometimes nearly smooth, the upper part and branches often marked 

 with pubescent linos decurrent from the base of the petioles. Leaves 2 to 5 or 6 

 inches long, and 1 fourth of an inch to near an inch wide, mostly obtuse at base, 

 on very short petioles, mostly opposite, the upper ones, and those on the branches, 

 generally alternate. Flowers numerous, small, axillary, on peduncles 1 third t»> 

 half an inch long. Calyx pubescent ; limb 4 parted ; segments lanceolate, acute, 

 shorter than the petals. Petals purple, sometimes nearly white, with purple spots, 

 ovate-oblong, bifid, or emarginate. Stamens unequal, shorter than the petals ; 

 mnthcrs oval,*minutely mucronate. Ovary long, linear, adnate to the tul>e of the 

 calyx; style rather longer than the stamens; stigma thick, clavate, entire. Cap- 

 *ule 2 to near 3 inches long, very slender, pubescent; valves linear, keeled, open, 

 ing at summit, and expanding. Seeds oblong, or oblanceolate, acute at base, mi- 

 nutely scabrous, arranged in series, end to end,— the base of the superior one aj» 

 parently resting in the bosom of the pappus of the one next below. Pappus simple, 

 light brown, 4 or 5 times as long as the seed. 



Hab. Swampy thickets, and moist grounds : frequent. FL July, Aug. Fr. Sept. Oct. 



Obs. This plant varies considerably in size and appearance ; and, on a revision 

 of myspecimens, I apprehend the E. palustre, of my Catalogue, is not distinct front 

 it. 



2. E. sar amatuw, Nutt. Stem terete, puberulent ; leaves lance-linear, 

 very entire, revolute on the margin, roughish-pubescent, subsesaile. 

 Becky Bot.p. 116. 



E. oliganthum ? Mx. Am. 1. p. 223. Also ? DC. Prodr. 3. p. 43. 

 E. lineare. Muhl. Cataf. p. 39. Bart. Phil. I. p. 183. Bigel. Bost. 

 p. 147. Eat. Man. p. 133. 



E. rosmarinifolium. Pursh, Am. 1. p. 259. Torr. FL I. p. 392. EJusd. 

 Comp.p. 168. Not of DC. &c. 



S<U7AX0SB EriLOBIUX. 



