with the leaves and involucral scales narrower, nearly like one of the forms
from. Texas.
5. L. mucronala (DC.): glabrous; stem slender, very leafy ; leaves narrowly
linear, very acute, minutely punctate; the lowermost elongated, the
uppermost short,'almost setaceous or subulate; spike long and narrow,
dense; the heads (small) sessile, or on appressed pedicels shorter than the
subulate bracts, 3- 5-flowered; scales of the narrow and somewhat cylindrical
involucre few, (purplish, the margins not scarious,) appressed, shorter
than the pappus, ovate-lanceolate, mucronate, slightly ciliate; the exterior
shorter; pappus manifestly plumose.—DC. prodr. 5. p. 129.
Texas, “ in the eastern districts, Berlandier," Drummond! Western
Louisiana, Dr. Hale !— Stem 2-4 feet high, virgate; the slender spike
sometimes 2 feet long. Lower leaves about 2 lines wide;_ the upper crowded,
2-3 inches, and gradually diminishing to less than an inch in length, and
less than half a line in width, flat. Heads 4-5 lines long; the lowermost
shorter, the uppermost much longer than the bracts. Corolla bright purple.
Pappus longer than the achenium, of about 30 often purplish bristles, manifestly
plumose to the naked eye, but less so than in L. punctata. Varies
with the achenia minutely pubescent throughout, or on the ribs alone, or perfectly
glabrous ; and with the scales of the involucre either abruptly cuspi-
date-mucronate, or gradually narrowed into a subulate-mucronate point; the
latter being more common in the specimens we have examined, I he plant
of De Candolle (which we have not compared with our own) is said to have
pubescent achenia, and the obtuse scales abruptly mucronate : it may be
different from the plant we have described, and possibly what we consider a
narrow-leaved variety of L. punctata; but that species would not be compared
with L. tenuifolia, and besides is well characterized by De Candolle,
under the name of L. resinosa.
6. L . Boykinii: nearly glabrous; stem slender, erect; leaves linear,
punctate ; the lower elongated, the upper short and setaceous; spike virgate;
the heads rather crowded, subsessile, or on appressed pedicels much shorter
than the subulate bracts, 3- 4-flowered; scales of the involucre (about 8) glabrous,
scarcely punctate ; the outer ones short, lanceolate-subulate ; the interior
lanceolate or linear, with scarious margins and acuminate spreading
summits, equalling or exceeding the pappus ; achenia villous ; pappus manlfeNeyarPCdumbus,
Georgia, Dr. Boykin ! Au g .-S ep t-S tem 1-2 feet high.
Leaves rather scattered. Spike 6-10 inches long. Heads half an inch m
length, exceeding the bracts, on very short pedicels if any. Inner scales of
the involucre membranaceous, with scarious and slightly colored margins and
tips. Flowers apparently pale purple. Pappus plumose to the same
degree as the preceding, more so than any of the following species. Heads
larger than L. mucronata, or especially L. tenuifolia, rather smaller than
those of L. secunda.
7. L . tenuifolia (Nutt.): glabrous; stem very slender; radical and lower
leaves crowded, very narrowly linear or almost filiform, elongated, often
hairy towards the base, punctate; the upper ones very short, setaceous,
scattered ; raceme virgate; heads (small) 5-flowered, crowded | the pedicels
mostly bracteolate and longer than the setaceous bracts, sometimes branching
; scales of the involucre (about 10) erect, glabrous, not punctate, usually
mucronulate; the outermost ovate-lanceolate, very short; the inner oblong,
obtuse, with membranaceous (purplish) margins, rather shorter than the pappus
; achenia villous; pappus barbellate-plumose.—Nutt.. gen. 2■ p. 131,
Ell. ! sk. 2. v. 275 ; DC. prodr. 5. p. 128.
j}. radical leaves broader, coriaceous.—L. laevigata, Nutt, m trans. Amer.
phil. soc. (n. ser.) 7. p. 285.
Dry pine barrens, N. Carolina to Georgia! and Florida! Aug.-Oct.—
Stem 2—4 feet high. Radical leaves resembling those ol Pinus palustris. as
remarked by Nutfall (a few of the exterior sometimes 2 lines broad), rigid,
forming a close tuft in the manner of Xerophyllum. Raceme elongated;
the pedicels 8—12 lines long. Flowers purple. Achenia turbinate. Pappus
scarcely plumose to the naked eye ; the bristles 20—25.—Like most species
of this section, the pedicels are sometimes elongated and branched, forming a
paniculate inflorescence. Heads usually quite small.
t t Pappus densely barbellate: heads 3-40-flowered.
8. L . secundafEM.) : minutely pubescent or glabrous; stem slender, de-
curved; leaves linear, short, rather obtuse, the upper ones bract-like ; raceme
virgate; the heads all turned to one side, on short mostly recurved and bracteolate
pedicels, 4-5-flowered; involucre cylindrical; scales 12-14, with
slightly scarious margins, often resinous-punctate ; the exterior oval and very
snort; the interior as long as the pappus, oblong-lanceolate, mucroiiale-acu»
minate ; achenia villous ; pappus minutely and densely plumose-barbellate.
—Ell. ! sk. 2.p . 278; D C .! prodr. 5. p. 131.
Dry sandy soil, S. Carolina! to Florida! Aug.-Sept.—Stem 1-3 feet
high. Raceme 6—12 inches long, curved, rarely slightly compound, beautifully
unilateral. Heads 6-8 lines long; the scales appressed, mostly 1-
nerved. Bracts and bracteoles subulate, very short. Flowers light purple.
9. L. gracilis (Pursh) : somewhat cinereous-pubescent or nearly glabrous;
stem slender, simple, bearing numerous heads in a long virgate raceme,
sometimes compound or paniculate ; leaves linear or lanceolate-linear,
short, 1-nerved, often sparsely pilose-ciliafe towards the base ; the lower ones
lanceolate, obtuse; heads (small) on divaricate pedicels, few-flowered;
scales of the somewhat cylindraceous involucre few, oblong or elliptical, obtuse,
resinous-punctate, appressed, shorter than the barbellate pappus; achenia
turbinate, villous.
a. nearly glabrous ; raceme elongated, simple, or slightly compound at the
base ; heads (5-7-flowered) on elongated divaricate, or even reflexed, simple
pedicels.—L. gracilis, Pursh, fl. 2. p. 508.
0. heads 3-5-flowered, in a slender virgate raceme, on filiform more or
less elongated divaricate (or somewhat reflexed) pedicels; of which the
lower are furnished with scattered bracteoles similar to the exterior scales of
the involucre, and rarely bearing one or two subsessile lateral heads ; scales
of the cylindraceous involucre pubescent and ciliate; the outermost very
,often s'ightly acute.—L. pauciflosculosa, N u tt.! in jour. acad.
Philad. 7. p. 71.
y. raceme virgate, simple, or frequently branched or paniculate below;
heads (3-5-flowered) on short divaricate pedicels, or sometimes almost sessile
; otherwise as in fi.
<5. inflorescence entirely paniculate; the branches simple, ascending- a
few of the uppermost only bearing single heads, short; the lower successively
elongated, slender, bearing few or several racemose (3- 5-flowered) heads
on short pedicels, or sometimes almost sessile; otherwise, as in 0. and y
Riue barrens, Georgia ! Alabama ! and Florida I y. Alabama, Mr Buck-
ley! Aug.-Oct.—Stem 1-3 feet high, usually clothed with a minute somewhat
cinereous pubescence. Leaves rather thick, spreading, minutely
punctate, often obtuse, tapering to the base; the upper 1- 2, the lower 3-5
inches m length, sometimes hairy. Raceme, when simple, 4-15 inches
long ; with the pedicels 1 J to 2 inches long in Pursh’s plant (herb. Banks )
nearly an inch long (about the length of the bracteal leaves) in our var 0
shorter, but very variable in the other forms. Heads smaller than in any
other species of this section, except L. tenuifolia ; the scales of the involucre
y’ mostly pubescent and ciliate. Flowers bright purple.—The plants