182 
CALADIUM viRGiNicuM. 
Virginian Caladium. 
MONCECIA POLYANDRIA— Nat. Ord. AROIDEJE. 
Gen. Char. — Masc, Col. 0, Car. 0. AntJi. peltatae multiloculares in spi- 
cara ad apicem spadicis compositae. Fcem. Col. 0. Cor. 0. Germina 
ad basin spadicis inserta. Stylus 0. Bacca unilocularis, polysperma.— 
Willd. 
Caladium virginicum ; acaule, foliis hastato-sagittatis, spatha elonga- 
ta sensim attenuata, curvata spadice multo longiore, basi margine 
crenato-undulata. 
Arum virginicum. Linn. Sp. PI. p. 484. — Willd. Sp. PI. v. iv. p. 484.— 
PuRSH, Fl. N. Amer. v. ii. p. 399. — Elliott, Bot. v. ii. p. 630. 
Calla virginica, Mich. Fl. Am. Bor. v. ii. p. 
Root, according to Mr Elliott, tuberous. Leaves springing from the root, 
a foot or a foot and more in length, and varying very much in shape, 
sometimes narrow and hastate, at other times broader, and almost ex- 
actly sagittate, membranaceous, acute at the extremity, and having the 
• two lobes at the base much lengthened, and more or less acute, or even 
acuminate ; the colour is dark green, veined, and if held between the 
eye and the light, the innumerable pale semipellucid veins will be 
found to have a very beautiful appearance. Petiole almost two feet long, 
cyHndrical, striated, and spotted. 
Scape one or two feet long, the lower part inclosed by the long sheathing, 
bicarinated bractea, and the equally long sheathing bases of the leaves, 
erect, cylindrical, striated, and spotted. 
Spadix 6 inches long, subterete at the base, thence tapering gradually to a 
point and recurved, the margins involute, white below, and waved and 
notched, the rest dark green, obscurely striated ; spadix about one-third 
of the length of the spatha, exserted, in consequence perhaps of the re- 
curvation of the spatha, erect, cylindrical ; below clothed with many 
spherical, yellowish-green pistils, having a nearly sessile, glandular 
stigma ; about the middle with many densely-placed, wrinkled, peltate, 
abortive stamens ; and above them, to the extremity in my specimens 
(the summit naked in one I have received from Dr Torrey) with nu- 
merous, crowded, subhexagonal, peltate, at their summit depressed, yel- 
lowish stamens. Anthers several, just beneath the margin of the pel- 
tee, furrowed down the centre, opening with a pore at the extremity. 
VOL. III. 
