HEATH FAMILY. 



213 



Peocumbext_ Gaui.theeia. Tea-berry. "W inter j^o-een. Checkerberry. 

 Boxberry. Ivory Plum. Partridge-berry. 



stem slender, creeping on or near the surface of tlie ground ; Iranches simple, 3-5 in- 

 ches high, naked below or with a few lance-ovate scales. Leaves few (4-6), an inch to 

 an inch and a half in length, rather crowded ; petiole very short. Flowers white. 1-4 in 

 the axils of the upper leaves, on recurved _pecHceZs }i - % an inch long ; fruit persistent. 



Canada to the mountains of CaroUna. Fl. July. Fr. Oct. 



Ohs. The number of popular names wbich have been given to this lit- 

 tle plant, some of which are also bestowed on quite different plants, 

 shows the necessity of a precise botanical nomenclature. The leaves are 

 agreeably aromatic, and yield on distillation a very heavy volatile oil, — 

 the Oil of Wintergreen of the shops, — which is largely used for flavoring 

 confectionery, medicated syrups, &c. The fruit, which has the aromatic 

 property in a much less degree, is pleasant and edible, and is often 

 brought to the markets of our cities. The real nature of the fruit can 

 be readily seen by dividing it lengthwise, when it will be found that the 

 edible portion is the enlarged fleshy calyx, while the proper fruit, ?'. e., 

 the ripened ovary, is enclosed within it. * 



5. ANDROM'EDA, L. Andromeda. 



[Xamed in allusion to the exposure of Andromeda ; from its place of growth.] 



Colyx 5-parted, persistent. Corolla hypogynous, tubular, companulate, 

 or globose, — the limb 5-cleft. Stamens 10 ; anthers fixed near the mid- 

 dle, the cells opeuing by a terminal pore. Capsule ovoid or subglobose, 

 5-celled, many-seeded. 



1. A. Maria'na, L. Glabrous ; leaves oval, mostly acute at each end, 

 very entire, sub-coriaceous, paler and puncticulate beneath, deciduous ; 

 flowering branches nearly leafless ; pedicels fasciculate, bracteate ; calyx 

 naked at base ; corolla ovoid-oblong ; capsule pyi-amidal. 

 Maryland Andromeda. Stagger-bush. 



stem 2-3 or 4 feet high, with erect branches. Leaves 2-3 inches long ; petioles about 

 one-fourth of an inch long. PZowct's in racemose fascicles on the old branches. Corolla 

 white, or reddish-white. CapswZe pentangular-ovoid, truncate at apex. Seeds numerous, 

 small^ clavate. 



Woodlands and sandy plains : New England to Florida. Fl. June. Fr. August- 

 September. 



Obs. This shrub is very abundant in the sandy districts of New Jer- 

 sey ; and the farmers, there, allege that it is injurious to sheep, when the 

 leaves are eaten by them, — producing a disease called the staggers. I 

 believe the evidence is not conclusive, on this point ; but it may be well 

 to know the plant, against which such a charge is made. 



6. KAL'MIA, L. American Laurel. 



[Dedicated to Peter Ealm, — a Swedish Botanist.! 



Calyx 5-parted. Corolla between wheel-shaped and bell-shaped, 5-lobed, 

 furnished with 10 depressions, in which the 10 obliquely bifid anthers are 



