236 ORDER XVII. DROSERACE^ 



covered with glandular hairs, rufous. Scape 5 — 10 flowered, with the 

 calyx and scape of nearly the same color as the leaves. — -White. 0. 

 April. Common in shaded spots. 4 — 10 inches. Sundew. 



2. D. longifo'lia, (L.) Stem terete, ascending or decumbent, spatu- 

 late, oblong, erect, attenuate into a long naked petiole. Scape declined 

 at the base. Petals short. Style very short. — White. If.. June — Aug. 

 Swamps of the middle and low country of Ga. 3 — 8 inches. 



3. D. brevifo'lia, (Pursh.) Leaves forming a dense tuft, not more 

 than an inch in diameter, broadly cuneiform, obtuse. Petals obovate 

 more than twice the length of the calyx, 2 — 8 flowers in a scape. Scap% 

 filiform. Styles deeply 2-parted. — Rose-color. %. June. Florida, 

 3 — 8 inches. 



4. D. filipor'mis, (Raf.) Leaves long, 6 — 10 inches, filiform, nearly 

 erect, glandular, hairy , petiole naked. Scape sub-ramose, terete, gla- 

 brous, 8 — 20-flowered. Petals obovate, erosely denticulate, much lon- 

 ger than the calyx. Styles 2-parted to the base. — Nearly white. 21. 

 Aug. — Sept. Florida. 12 — 15 inches. 



Genus IL— DIOK&'A. Ellis. 10—1. 

 (One of the names of Venus.) 



Semens 10 — 15. Stigma fimbriate. Capsule 2-celled, 

 many-seeded, gibbous. 



1. D. muscip'ula, (Ellis.) Without stem. Leaves spreading. Pet- 

 iole winged, foliaceous ; lamina articulated to the petiole, circular, arm- 

 ed with stiff, spine-like cilia?, very sensitive; when touched, it closes 

 up with considerable force. Scape about 10 flowered. — White. If.. 

 April — May. North and South Carolina, on the Cape Fear and Santee 

 rivers; in turfy sandy bogs. 6 — 12 inches. Venus' Fly-Trap. 



This is a mo«t interesting plant. The "sensitiveness of its lamina" is said to reside, 

 by the Rev. M. A. Curtis, " in only three or four hair-like processes of its upper sur- 

 face, so placed that an insect can hardly traverse it without interfering with one oi 

 them, when the two sides suddenly collapse and inclose the prey, the fringe or hairs 

 of the opposite sides of the leaf interlacing like the fingers of two hands clasped to- 

 gether.'' The circumscribed geographical section in which the p'ant has been found 

 is remarkable. This plant is found only in the section above indicated, nor has this 

 or any other species of the genus been found in any other quarter of the globe. 



Genus III.— PARNAS'SIA. Tourn. 5—4. 

 (Named from Mt. Parnassus.) 



Sepals 5, mere or less united, aestivation imbricate, united to 

 the ovary at the base. Petals 5, nearly perigynous, persistent. 

 Stamens 5, perigynous, alternate with the petals, with an indefi- 

 nite number of ovate sterile stamens united into 5 phalanges 

 opposite the petals ; these probably consist of two series, ac- 

 counting for their being opposite the petals. Perennial herbs, 

 growing in wet places. Capsule 4-valved. 



1. P. Carolinia'na, (Mich.) Leaves orbicular-ovate, or broad cordate, 

 entire, glabrous, 5 — 7-nerved on long petioles, 2 — 8 inches, rather cori- 

 aceous. Cauline leaves low down, clasping. Stem 1 -flowered. Sepals 

 small, united at the base, oval, 3 ribbed, with a membranaceous margin. 



