2. FLCERKEA. Willd. act. not. cur. Berol. 3. (1801); Nutt. gen. 1.
p. 228; Lindl. in Hook. jour. bot. 1. p. 1. t. 113.
Sepals 3 (rarely 4). Petals 3, shorter than the calyx. Stamens 6. Ovaries
2-3, tuberculate.—Leaves pinnately divided or parted; the divisions
mostly entire.
F. proserpinacoides (Willd. 1. c.)—Lindl. 1. c.—F. uliginosa, Muhl. cat.
p. 36; Torr.l Jl. 1. p. 339; Darlingt.fi. Cest. ed. 2. p. 213. F. lacustris,
ITo sy^h V‘ 393. F. palustris, Nutt. 1. c. Nectris pinnata, Pursh, fl. 1.
p. 239. Cochlearia foliis pinnatifidis, &c. Gron. ! Virg. (excl. syn.)
On the banks of rivers and in marshes, Northern States! (lat 41°) to
Pennsylvania! west to Missouri! April-May.—Slightly succulent, pale
green. Stem decumbent, 3—10 or 12 inches long, slender. Leaves on slender
petioles: divisions about 5, lanceolate or oval, obscurely veined; the
lowermost often 3-lobed or toothed. Flowers small. Petals oblong, white,
about half the length of the calyx. Achenia large, commonly 2, rarely by
abortion solitary.
Or d e r X X X I. OXALIDACEjE. DC.
Sepals 5, equal, distinct or slightly cohering a t the base, persistent
: aestivation imbricated. Petals 5, hypogynous, equal, unguicu-
late, deciduous: aestivation spirally twisted. Stamend 10, hypogynous,
more or less monadelphous: filaments subulate, those opposite
the petals longer than the others : anthers short, fixed by the middle,
introrse, often reflexed and appearing extrorse. Ovary of 5 united
carpels, situated -opposite the petals : styles filiform, d istin c t: stigmas
capitate or penicillate, sometimes 2-lobed. Capsule usually membranaceous,
5-lobed, 5.celled ; the carpels at length mostly separable to the
axis, opening by the dorsal suture, 1-12-seeded. Seeds anatropous,
with a loose fleshy testa (aril of authors) which bursts elastically when
the seeds are ripe : albumen between cartilaginous and fleshy. Em bryo
straight, as long as the albumen, with a rather long radicle :
cotyledons broad and foliaceous.—Stems with an acid juice. Leaves
mostly alternate, compound : petioles articulated at the base.
1. OXALIS. L in n .; Gairrtn.fr. 1.113.
Sepals distinct, or united at the very base. Capsule oblong or subglobose,
membranaceous. Seeds one or commonly several in each carpel: tegmen
5-10 ribbed, transversely rugose.—Perennial (rarely annual) herbs; caulescent
or acaulescent. Leaves in North American species 3-foliolate (in others
rarely pinnate or reduced to a single leaflet), circinate in vernation : leaflets
distinctly articulated with the petiole, lobed or entire. Stipules coherent
with the base of the petiole, after the manner of Trifolium, or none.— Wood-
Sorrel.
1. O. Acetosella (Linn.): rhizoma creeping, scaly; leaflets obcordate,
puberulent; scapes at length longer than the leaves, 1-flowered, - rac eo
fate above the middle ; petals oblong-obovate (white with red veins, yellowish
at the base), often slightly emarginate; styles and longer stamens ol
equal length, longer than the sepals.—Eng. bot. t 7 62; Michx.! fl. 2.p. 38 ,
DC. prodr. 1. p. 700; Hook.fi. Bor.-Am. 1. p. 118 (partly). O. Americana,
Bigel. in DC. 1. c. .
In woods from lat 41°! to the northern part of Canada. June.— 4 Kni-
zoma clothed with the imbricated and fleshy persistent bases of the leaves.
Peduncles 2-3 inches long; the portion above the bracts pubescent. Btower
large. Stigmas 2-lobed. Cells of the capsule about 2-seeded.— Wood-Sorrel.
2. O. Oregana(Nutt.! mss.): “ rhizoma creeping, thick and scaly ; leaflets
(larve) very broadly obcordate, ciliate; scapes 1-flowered, shorter than,
the leaves, 2-bracteolate above the middle; petals oblong-obovate, emarginate
(white with purple veins, yellow at the base) ; stamens and styles alt
shorter than, or scarcely exceeding, the sepals.” O. Acetosella, Hook. i. c.
^ Shady woods of the Oregon in moist places, Nuttall l Dr. Scouler !— U
Flowers, and especially the leaves, larger than in O. Acetosella: leaflets
about an inch long and an inch and a half wide. Scapes always manifestly
3. O. trilliifolia (Hook.)': acaulescent; peduncles umbelliferous, equalling
the petioles; leaflets obcordate; glabrous; styles the length of the longer stamens.
Hook. fl. Bor.-Am. 1. p. 118.—O. macrophylla, Dough mss. ex Hook.
“ N. W. Coast, near the Grand Rapids of the Oregon, and in valleys of the
Rocky Mountains,” Douglas; also N u tta ll!— 4 “ Petioles 6-12 inches
hi o'It. Leaves very large, and when the plant is out of flower might be mistaken
for those of Trillium grandiflorum.” Dougl. in Hook. 1. c.—‘'Root
creeping. Leaflets about 2 inches broad. Pedicels shorter than the pods.
Flowers about the size of those of O, Acetosella, white.” Nutt.
4. O. violacea (Linn.) : bulb scaly; leaflets obcordate with a very shallow
sinus, broader than long, nearly glabrous; scapes longer than the leaves,
3- 9-flowered; pedicels umbellate; with minute bracts at the base; sepals
with a thickened orange-colored tip ; petals obovate (violet) ; filaments hairy,
at length equalling or longer than the styles.—Jacq. Oxal. p. 35. t. 80. jig. 2.
fide Willd. sp. 2. p. 786 ; Michx. 1. c. ; Ell. sk. 2.p. 525 ; DC. 1. c. p. 695.
In rocky woods, &c., Canada (Linn.) and New-England States! to Georgia,
west to Arkansas, Dr. Pitcher! and Texas, Drummond! April-May,
and sometimes again in, August.—Bulb clothed with membranaceous scales.
Scapes 6-9 inches high, generally slightly bifid at the summit. Leaves with
transparent dots. Flowers large. Capsule oblong, few-seeded. Styles
hairy, at first longer than the stamens : stigmas 2-lobed.
5. O. corniculata (Linn.): [root perennial;] stems decumbent, branched,
radicatins, leafy; stipules united to the base of the petiole; leaflets obcordate,
pubescent; peduncles 2-5- but mostly 2-flowered; sepals pubescent;
petals (yellow) emarginate; styles as .long as the longer stamens; capsule
many-seeded, densely pubescent. Am.—.DC. prodr. 1. p. 692 ; Michx. fi.
2. to. 39; Hook. fl. Bor.-Am. 1. p. 117. O. pusilla, Salisb. in Linn, trans.2.
p. 242, t. 23. O. furcata, Ell. sk. l.p . 527 ? O. Lyoni, Pursh, fl. 1. p 322 7
In cultivated grounds, Canada to Carolina, Michaux $ Pursh. Louisiana!
west to California, Hook. % A m — The only specimens we have seen
with manifest stipules are from New Orleans. Not being able to satisfy ourselves
of the real distinctions, if there be any, between this and the succeeding
species we copy the characters of authors, and refer all the perennial
forms to O.’corniculata, and the annual ones to O. stricta. Two unpublished,