278 DECANDRIA PEXTAGYNIA 



Plant pale green, very hairy, somewhat viscid when young. Pool annual. Slem9 

 5 to 8 or 10 inches high, terete, cespitose, mostly dichotomous at summit, rather 

 erect, the lateral ones often spreading or decumbent. Leaves half an inch to 8 

 quarters in length, and 1 third to half an inch wide, varying from broad-ovate to 

 elliptic and obovate, mostly obtuse and rounded at apex, sessile and subconnat*-, 

 the lower ones narrowed at base, or somewhat spatulate. FUncers in dense termi- 

 nal clusters, with a single flower in the fork of the stem ; pedicels shorter than the 

 flowers, bracteate at base; bracts and outer sepals rarely scarious on the margin. 

 Petals white, cuneate-oblong, or oblanceolate, bifid at apex, mostly a little longer 

 than the sepals. Stamens about half as long as the sepals. Cajtsule nearly 

 cylindrical, a little curved, about twice as long as the calyx, opening at apex with 

 10 lanceolate acute erect teeth, which are revolute on the margin. Seeds com- 

 pressed, cuneate-obovate, striately rubricate, pale brown. 



Hub. Pastures, and roadsides: frequent. FL May— Aug. Fr. June—Sept. 



Obs. Through the kindness of Mr. Vaughan, and my friend Dr. Pickerino, I 

 have had frequent opportunities to consult the Muhlenbergian Herbarium', and, 

 with the aid of the latter gentleman, I have satisfied myself that this is Muhlen- 

 berg's C. hirsutum. At the same time, I must confess that 1 can see nothing in 

 its character which does not agree well with the description of the Linnaan C. 

 rulgatum, as determined by Smith. It has every appearance of being an intro- 

 duced planu 



2, C. viscosux, L. Leaves lance-oblong, rather acute ; bracts and 

 sepals white and scarious on the margins, and at apex ; flowers subpan- 

 iculatc ; calyces mostly shorter than the pedicels. Beck, Bat. /;. S3. 

 Not of Flovul. Cestr. 



C. vulgatum. Muhl. Catal.p.46. Florul. Ce$tr. p. 54. Also? Peru. 

 Syn. I. p. 620. 

 Viscid Cerastium:. 



riant deeper green than the preceding, hairy, and somewhat viscid. Root 

 perennial 1 (annual, DC). Stems 6 to 12 or 13 inches high, cespitose, spreading, 

 dichotomously paniculate at summit, often purplish. Leaves half an inch to an 

 inch long, and 1 eighth to near half an inch wide, varying from ovate-oblong to 

 linear-oblanceolate, mostly acute, sessile, the lower ours narrow. Flowers dicho- 

 tomal and axillary; pedicels generally longer than the flowers, bracteate ; bracts 

 and sepals with a white scarious apex, and margins. Petals white, obovaU* oblong, 

 bifid at apex, scarcely as long as the sepals. Cu^ule cylindric.a little curved, 

 rarely twice as long as the calyx, and often uot more than one half longer. Seeds 

 as in the preceding species. 



Hob. Pastures, and open woodlands, &c. frequent. Fl. May, Aug. /V.June, Sept 

 06s. This is also an introduced plant ; and has much resemblance to the pre- 

 ceding. Indeed they seem to have been often confounded, or mistaken for each 

 other, until Sir J. E. Smith set the matter right, by the Linnaan Herbarium. I 

 have received specimens from France, labelled "C. vulgatum^ which evidently 

 belong to this species. The name, viscosum, is calculated to mislead youn«* 

 American Botanists,— as ourC. nutans is much more viscid. 



* * Petals much longer than the cahjx. 



3. C. TENUiPOLum, Pursh. Leaves lance-linear, acute, often longer 

 than the intcrnodes, more or less pubescent ; panicle dichotomous, on a 

 long terminal peduncle ; flowers mostly in threes at summit ; petals 

 nearly 3 times as long as the calyx. Beck, Bot. p. 54. 





