124 
ONAGBACEiE. 
[ Jussicea . 
Petals 4-5, obovate-unguiculate, perigynous. Stamens twice as many 
as the petals, included ; filaments filiform : anthers oblong. Ovary 
inferior, 4-5-celled ; placentation axile ; ovules many ; style short, 
filiform ; stigma capitate, 4-5-lobed. Capsule cylindrical, at last 
splitting between the ribs. Seeds many, minute. — Herbs, with alternate 
entire leaves and solitary yellow flowers in the axils of the leaves. 
Distkib. Everywhere in the tropics. Species 30. 
Stems trailing naked ; flowers pentamerous 1 . J. repens. 
Stems erect pilose ; flowers mostly tetramerous .... 2. J. suffruticosa. 
1. J. repens, Linn. ; DC. Prod . iii. 58. A perennial, with trailing 
glabrous stems, rooting copiously from the lower nodes. Leaves 
petioled, obovate-oblong, obtuse, cuneate at base, 1-2 in. long, mem- 
branous, glabrous. Pedicels 1-2 in. long, with a pair of minute brac- 
teoles at tip. Sepals 5, linear, i in. long. Petals bright yellow, twice 
as long as the sepals. Fruit cylindrical, 10-ribbed. 1-1J in. long, mostly 
glabrous. J. stolonifera, G. and P. J. Swartziana, DC. 
Mauritius, in brooks near Port Louis, etc. J. diffusa , Forsk., is a form with 
oblanceolate acute leaves. Round the world in tropical and subtropical regions. 
2. J. suffruticosa, Linn.; DC. Prod. iii. 58. An almost shrubby 
perennial, with pilose stems, 2-4 feet high, tetragonal upwards. Leaves 
subsessile, oblanceolate-oblong, acute, membranous, pilose, distinctly 
penninerved, 2^ in. long. Elowers sessile or subsessile. Calyx-lobes 
4, ovate-lanceolate, \ in. long, rather shorter than the petals. Capsule 
cylindrical, 1J-2 in. long, 8-ribbed. J. villosa, Lam. J. scabra, Willd. 
J. fruticosa, DC. 
Mauritius and Seychelles, common in swamps. Round the world in the 
tropics. 
2. LUDWIGrIA, Linn. 
Calyx-tube adnate, prismatico- cylindrical ; teeth 4, lanceolate, per- 
sistent. Petals 4, roundish, epigynous. Stamens 4 ; filaments short, 
filiform ; anthers oblong. Ovary inferior, 4-celled ; placentation axile ; 
ovules many; style short, simple; stigma capitate. Fruit a long 
membranous capsule splitting between the ribs ; seeds very many, 
minute. — Herbs with the habit of Jussicea. Distbib. Wide-spread, 
mostly North American. Species 20. 
1. L. jussiseoides, Linn. ; DC. Prod. iii. 58. An erect much- 
branched half-shrubby perennial, 3-4 feet high, glabrous throughout. 
Leaves short-petioled, alternate, lanceolate, membranous, 2-3 iu. long, 
narrowed to both ends. Flowers copious, short-petioled, solitary. 
Sepals lanceolate, erect, in. long, rather shorter than the fugacious 
yellow petals. Capsule membranous, naked, cylindrical, 1-1\ in. long 
DC. Mem. Onagr. t. 3. 
Seychelles and Mauritius, frequent in damp places. Also Natal and Zanzi- 
bar. 
