6T [ 733 ]
E R IO C A U L O N feptangulare.
Jointed Pijiewort.
M 0 N 0 E C IA 'Triandria.
Gen. Char. Common Calyx of many leaves, many-
flowered : 'partial of a or 3 leaves. Cor. in a or
3 fegments.
Male fl. in the middle o f the ditk. Female in the
border. Stigmas a or 3. Capf. 1 - or 3-lobed.
Seeds folitary.
S p e c . C h a r . Stem with 7 angles. Leaves pointed,
formed o f a network o f cells. Male florets of 1
petal with 4 ftamina.
S y n . Eriocaulon feptangulare. Sm. Fl. Brit. i o i q .
With. 184. Sym. Syn• 41.
E. decangulare. Hull. 29. Lightf. 569.
Nafrnythia articulata. Hudf. 415.
A LESS general inhabitant of alpine lakes than even the
Subularia, t. 73a; for we know not that it has been found in
any other part of the world than the ifle of Skye, from whence
we received it by favour of J. Brodie, Efq. and Mr. J. Mackay,
and where, as Lightfoot mentions, it abounds in feveral frefh-
water lakes, flowering in September. The Rt. Hon. Sir Jofeph
Banks has lately been fo fortunate as to receive plenty of the
roots, which are perennial, in a growing ftate.
The whole herb feems compofed of tubes intercepted by
numerous tranfverfe partitions. Stem naked, Ample, folitary,
twifted, having 7 angles, fcarcely ever more or lefs, and bearing
a denfe head of many male flowers furrounded by female ones.
Leaves all radical, fwordfhaped, pointed. The blackith calyx
and white corolla are clothed with filky clofe-prefled hairs, and
tufted with fnow-whrte club-lhaped pubefcence. Stamina m
this fpecies 4, in moft others 3. The male flowers have abortive
blunt black ftigmas; the females differ in having acute
ones, no ftamina, and the corolla divided to the bafe.