HTPERICACEvE. (ST. JOHN S WORT FAMILY.) 85 



naked ; sepals oblong ; pods ovate-conical, pointed, almost 3-celled ; seeds slender cy- 

 lindrical, minutely pitted. — Low grounds, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and south- 

 ward. July. 



7. H. spliserocarpon, Michx. Stems mostly simple, herbaceous, with 

 a somewhat woody base, angled with 4 very narrow salient lines (1° - 2° high) ; 

 leaves oblong -linear, greener above and narrower than in the preceding; the 

 naked cyme similar; sepals ovate ; pods depressed-globular or ovoid-conical, strictly 

 l-ce/led; seeds oblong, rough-pitted. — Rocky banks of the Ohio and its tribu- 

 taries, S. W. Ohio to Illinois and southward. July -Sept. — Flowers small. 



8. H. ellipticum, Hook. Stem simple, herbaceous (1° high), obscurely 

 4-angled ; leaves spreading, elliptical-oblong, obtuse, thin ; cyme nearly naked, 

 rather few -flowered ; sepals oblong; pods ovoid, very obtuse, purple, 1 -celled. — 

 Wet places, New England and Pennsylvania to Lake Superior and northward. 

 July, Aug. — Petals light yellow, 3" long 



9. H. anguldsum, Michx. Stem slender, strict, simple, sharply 4- 

 angled, herbaceous (l°-2° high); leaves ascending, opaque, ovate or oblong- 

 lanceolate, acute (^'-1' long), closely sessile by a broad base; cyme com- 

 pound, naked, the scattered flowers racemose on its ascending branches ; sepals 

 herbaceous, erect, enclosing the ovoid 1 -celled pod ; styUs 3, separate. — Wet pine 

 barrens of New Jersey and southward. July -Sept. — Petals copper-yellow, 

 4" - 5" long, furnished with a tooth on one side. 



§ 3. Stamens very numerous, in 3 or 5 clusters : styles 3 separate and usually diverg- 

 ing : pod 3-celled: calyx erect: petals and anthers with black dots: vfrcnm'ah. 



10. H. perforatum, L. (Common St. John's-wort. ) Stem much 

 branched and corymbed, somewhat 2 -edged (producing runners from the 

 base) ; leaves elliptical-oblong or linear-oblong, with pellucid dots ; petals (deep 

 yellow) twice the length of the lanceolate acute sepals; flowers numerous, in 

 open leafy cymes. — Fields, &c. June - Sept. — Too well known as a pernicious 

 weed, which it is difficult to extirpate. Juice very acrid. (Nat. from Eu.) 



11. H. COrymbbsum, Muhl. Conspicuously marked with both black 

 and pellucid dots: stem terete, sparingly branched ; leaves oblong, the base 

 either obtuse or somewhat clasping ; flowers crowded (small) ; petals pate yellow, 

 much longer than the oblong sepals, styles not longer than the pod. — Damp 

 places; common. July- Sept. — Leaves larger and flowers much smaller than 

 in the last : petals 2" -3" long, marked with black lines as well as dots. — Too 

 near H. maculatum, Walt., of the South, which has more clasping leaves and 

 very long and slender styles. 



12. H. gravdolens, Buckley. Like the last, but with larger leaves and 

 fewer much larger bright yellow flowers, lanceolate acute sepals, and long erect 

 styles ; common in the mountains of N. Carolina, doubtless also in S. Virginia. 

 § 4. Stamens 5-12, distinct or in 3 clusters: pod {brown purple) l-ce/fed, with 3 



strictly parietal placentas : styles short, distinct ; petals oblong or linear : sepals 

 narrow, erect: slender annuals, with 4 angular branches ; flowering all summer. 



13. H. mtltilum, L. Stem flaccid, widely branching (6 r -20' high) ; 

 leaves ovate or oblong, obtuse, partly clasping, 5-nerved ; cymes leafy , pods oratr- 

 conical, rather longer than the calyx. (H. parviflorum, Muhl.) — Low grounds, 

 everywhere. — Flowers 2" bi-oad. 



