Order Cxxi
PLUMBAGINEÆ.
These are properly placed at the limit between Monochlamydeæ and Dichlamydeæ, to either of which they are referable in the minds of some botanists, although it appears, upon the whole, to be most convenient to station them where they are now arranged. They are low shrubs or herbaceous plants, with shewy red or blue flowers of an arid texture, inhabiting salt marshes and subalpine tracts, in the temperate latitudes of both the northern and southern hemispheres. All the Státices and Armérias are fine plants worth cultivating. The root of Státice Limónium is astringent and tonic; of the Plumbagos, the root and whole plant are acrid and caustic, and employed as vesicatories. 324 Plumbago W. 705 Arméria W. en. 706 Státice W. en.
SUBDIVISION II. MONOCHLAMYDEÆ.
Perianthium simple.
The absence of corolla characterizes this subdivision of dicotyledonous vegetation; but as the term corolla is subject to frequent misunderstanding, it should be borne in mind, that whenever there is only one floral envelope, that envelope is to be considered calyx, whether green, as in most cases, or colored, as in the Marvel of Peru.