Chapter CIV: JACK-IN-THE-PULPIT, Arisæma triphyllum, 281 (2)

_Stem._—Four to eight inches high. _Leaves._—Three in a whorl, divided
into from three to five leaflets. _Flowers._—White, in an umbel.
_Fruit._—Yellowish, berry-like. _Root._—A globular tuber.

The tiny white flowers of the dwarf ginseng are so closely clustered as to make “one feathery ball of bloom,” to quote Mr. Hamilton Gibson. This little plant resembles its larger relative, the true ginseng. It blossoms in our rich open woods early in spring, and hides its small round tuber so deep in the earth that it requires no little care to uproot it without breaking the slender stem. This tuber is edible and pungent-tasting, giving the plant its name of ground-nut.

GINSENG.
_Aralia quinquefolia._ Ginseng Family.

_Root._—Large and spindle-shaped, often forked. _Stem._—About one foot
high. _Leaves._—Three in a whorl, divided into leaflets.
_Flowers._—Greenish-white, in a simple umbel. _Fruit._—Bright red,
berry-like.

This plant is well known by name, but is yearly becoming more scarce. The aromatic root is so greatly valued in China for its supposed power of combating fatigue and old age that it can only be gathered by order of the emperor. The forked specimens are believed to be the most powerful, and their fancied likeness to the human form has obtained for the plant the Chinese title of _Jin-chen_ (from which ginseng is a corruption), and the Indian one of _Garan-toguen_, both of which, strangely enough, are said to signify, _like a man_. The Canadian Jesuits first began to ship the roots of the American species to China, where they sold at about five dollars a pound. At present they are said to command about one-fifth of that price in the home market.

PLATE VIII

PAINTED TRILLIUM.—_T. erythrocarpum._
]

WILD SARSAPARILLA.
_Aralia nudicaulis._ Ginseng Family.

_Stem._—Bearing a single large, long-stalked, much-divided leaf, and a
shorter naked scape which bears the rounded flower-clusters.
_Flowers._—Greenish-white, in umbels. _Calyx._—With short or obsolete
teeth. _Corolla._—Of five petals. _Stamens._—Five. _Fruit._—Black or
dark purple, berry-like.

In the June woods the much-divided leaf and rounded flower-clusters of the wild sarsaparilla are frequently noticed, as well as the dark berries of the later year. The long aromatic roots of this plant are sold as a substitute for the genuine sarsaparilla. The rice-paper plant of China is a member of this genus.

SPIKENARD.
_Aralia racemosa._ Ginseng Family.

_Root._—Large and aromatic. _Stem._—Often tall and widely
branched, leafy. _Leaves._—Divided into many leaflets.
_Flowers._—Greenish-white, in clusters which are racemed.
_Fruit._—Dark purple, berry-like.

CANADA VIOLET.
_Viola Canadensis._ Violet Family.

_Stem._—Leafy, upright, one to two feet high. _Leaves._—Heart-shaped,
pointed, toothed. _Flowers._—White, veined with purple, violet
beneath, otherwise greatly resembling the common blue violet.

We associate the violet with the early year, but I have found the delicate fragrant flowers of this species blossoming high up on the Catskill Mountains late into September; and have known them to continue to appear in a New York city-garden into November. They are among the loveliest of the family, having a certain sprightly self-assertion which is peculiarly charming, perhaps because so unexpected.

The tiny sweet white violet, _V. blanda_, with brown or purple veins, which is found in nearly all low, wet, woody places in spring, is perhaps the only uniformly fragrant member of the family, and its scent, though sweet, is faint and elusive.

PLATE IX

WILD SARSAPARILLA.—_A. nudicaulis._
]

The lance-leaved violet, _V. lanceolata_, is another white species which is easily distinguished by its smooth lance-shaped leaves, quite unlike those of the common violet. It is found in damp soil, especially eastward.

SOLOMON’S SEAL.
_Polygonatum biflorum._ Lily Family.

_Stem._—Slender, curving, one to three feet long. _Leaves._—Alternate,
oval, set close to the stem. _Flowers._—Greenish-white or
straw-colored, bell-shaped, nodding from the axils of the leaves.
_Perianth._—Six-lobed at the summit. _Stamens._—Six. _Pistil._—One.
_Fruit._—A dark blue berry.

The graceful leafy stems of the Solomon’s seal are among the most decorative features of our spring woods. The small blossoms which appear in May grow either singly or in clusters on a flower-stalk which is so fastened into the axil of each leaf that they droop beneath, forming a curve of singular grace which is sustained in later summer by the dark blue berries.

The larger species, _P. giganteum_, grows to a height of from two to seven feet, blossoming in the meadows and along the streams in June.

The common name was suggested by the rootstocks, which are marked with large round scars left by the death and separation of the base of the stout stalks of the previous years. These scars somewhat resemble the impression of a seal upon wax.

The generic name is from two Greek words signifying _many_, and _knee_, alluding to the numerous joints of the rootstock.

CHOKE-BERRY.
_Pyrus arbutifolia._ Rose Family.

A shrub from one to three feet high. _Leaves._—Oblong or somewhat
lance-shaped, finely toothed, downy beneath. _Flowers._—White or
reddish, small, clustered. _Calyx._—Five-cleft. _Corolla._—Of five
petals. _Stamens._—Numerous. _Pistil._—One, with two to five styles.
_Fruit._—Small, pear-shaped or globular, berry-like, dark red or
blackish.

This low shrub is common in swamps and moist thickets all along the Atlantic coast, as well as farther inland. Its flowers appear in May or June; its fruit in late summer or autumn.

PLATE X

SOLOMON’S SEAL.—_P. biflorum._
]

CREEPING SNOWBERRY.
_Chiogenes serpyllifolia._ Heath Family.

_Stem._—Slender, trailing and creeping. _Leaves._—Evergreen, small,
ovate, pointed. _Flowers._—Small, white, solitary from the axils of
the leaves. _Calyx._—Four-parted, with four large bracelets beneath.
_Corolla._—Deeply four-parted. _Stamens._—Eight. _Pistil._—One.
_Fruit._—A pure white berry.

This pretty little creeper is found blossoming in May in the peat-bogs and mossy woods of the North. It is only conspicuous when hung with its snow-white berries in late summer. It has the aromatic flavor of the wintergreen.

BEARBERRY.
_Arctostaphylos Uva-ursi._ Heath Family.

A trailing shrub. _Leaves._—Thick and evergreen, smooth, somewhat
wedge-shaped. _Flowers._—Whitish, clustered. _Calyx._—Small.
_Corolla._—Urn-shaped, five-toothed. _Stamens._—Ten. _Pistil._—One.
_Fruit._—Red, berry-like.

This plant blossoms in May, and is found on rocky hill-sides. Its name refers to the relish with which bears are supposed to devour its fruit.

FALSE SOLOMON’S SEAL.
_Smilacina racemosa._ Lily Family.

_Stem._—Usually curving, one to three feet long. _Leaves._—Oblong,
veiny. _Flowers._—Greenish-white, small, in a terminal raceme.
_Perianth._—Six-parted. _Stamens._—Six. _Pistil._—One. _Fruit._—A pale
red berry speckled with purple.

A singular lack of imagination is betrayed in the common name of this plant. Despite a general resemblance to the true Solomon’s seal, and the close proximity in which the two are constantly found, _S. racemosa_, has enough originality to deserve an individual title. The position of the much smaller flowers is markedly different. Instead of drooping beneath the stem they terminate it, having frequently a pleasant fragrance, while the berries of late summer are pale red, flecked with purple. It puzzles one to understand why these two plants should so constantly be found growing side by side—so close at times that they almost appear to spring from one point. The generic name is from _smilax_, on account of a supposed resemblance between the leaves of this plant and those which belong to that genus.

PLATE XI

FALSE SOLOMON’S SEAL.—_S. racemosa._
]

MAPLE-LEAVED VIBURNUM. DOCKMACKIE. ARROW-WOOD.
_Viburnum acerifolium._ Honeysuckle Family.

A shrub from three to six feet high. _Leaves._—Somewhat three-lobed,
resembling those of the maple, downy underneath. _Flowers._—White,
small, in flat-topped clusters. _Calyx._—Five-toothed.
_Corolla._—Spreading, five-lobed. _Stamens._—Five. _Pistil._—One.
_Fruit._—Berry-like, crimson, turning purple.

Perhaps our flowering shrubs contribute even more to the beauty of the early summer woods and fields than the smaller plants. Along many of the lanes which intersect the woodlands the viburnums are conspicuous in June. When the blossoms of the dockmackie have passed away we need not be surprised if we are informed that this shrub is a young maple. There is certainly a resemblance between its leaves and those of the maple, as the specific name indicates. To be sure, the first red, then purple berries, can scarcely be accounted for, but such a trifling incongruity would fail to daunt the would-be wiseacre of field and forest. With Napoleonic audacity he will give you the name of almost any shrub or flower about which you may inquire. Seizing upon some feature he has observed in another plant, he will immediately christen the one in question with the same title—somewhat modified, perhaps—and in all probability his authority will remain unquestioned. There is a marvellous amount of inaccuracy afloat in regard to the names of even the commonest plants, owing to this wide-spread habit of guessing at the truth and stating a conjecture as a fact.

HOBBLE-BUSH. AMERICAN WAYFARING-TREE.
_Viburnum lantanoides._ Honeysuckle Family.

_Leaves._—Rounded, pointed, closely toothed, heart-shaped at the base,
the veins beneath as well as the stalks and small branches being
covered with a rusty scurf. _Fruit._—Coral-red, berry-like.

The marginal flowers of the flat-topped clusters of the hobble-bush, like those of the hydrangea, are much larger than the inner ones, and are without either stamens or pistils; their only part in the economy of the shrub being to form an attractive setting for the cluster, and thus to allure the insect-visitors that are usually so necessary to the future well-being of the species. The shrub is a common one in our northern woods and mountains. Its straggling growth, and its reclining branches, which often take root in the ground, have suggested the popular names of hobble-bush, and wayfaring-tree.

ROUND-LEAVED DOGWOOD.
_Cornus circinata._ Dogwood Family.

A shrub six to ten feet high. _Leaves._—Rounded, abruptly pointed.
_Flowers._—Small, white, in flat, spreading clusters.
_Calyx._—Minutely four-toothed. _Corolla._—Of four white, oblong,
spreading petals. _Stamens._—Four. _Pistil._—One. _Fruit._—Light blue,
berry-like.

The different members of the Dogwood family are important factors in the lovely pageant which delights our eyes along the country lanes every spring. Oddly enough, only the smallest and largest representative of the tribe (the little bunch-berry, and the flowering-dogwood, which is sometimes a tree of goodly dimensions), have in common the showy involucre which is usually taken for the blossom itself; but which instead only surrounds the close cluster of inconspicuous greenish flowers.

The other members of the genus are all comprised in the shrubby dogwoods; many of these are very similar in appearance, bearing their white flowers in flat, spreading clusters, and differing chiefly in their leaves and fruit.

The branches of the round-leaved dogwood are greenish and warty-dotted. Its fruit is light blue, and berry-like.

The panicled dogwood, _C. paniculata_, may be distinguished by its white fruit and smooth, gray branches.

The red-osier dogwood, _C. stolonifera_, is common in wet places. Its young shoots and branches are a bright purplish-red. Its flower-clusters are small; its fruit, white or lead-color.

The bark of this genus has been considered a powerful tonic, and an extract entitled “cornine,” is said to possess the properties of quinine less strongly marked. The Chinese peel its twigs, and use them for whitening their teeth. It is said that the Creoles also owe the dazzling beauty of their teeth to this same practice.

BELLWORT.
_Oakesia sessilifolia._ Lily Family.

_Stem._—Acutely angled, rather low. _Leaves._—Set close to or clasping
the stem, pale, lance-oblong. _Flower._—Yellowish-white or
straw-color. _Perianth._—Narrowly bell-shaped, divided into six
distinct sepals. _Stamens._—Six. _Pistil._—One, with a deeply
three-cleft style.

In spring this little plant is very abundant in the woods. It bears one or two small lily-like blossoms which droop modestly beneath the curving stems.

With the same common name and near of kin is _Uvularia perfoliata_, with leaves which seem pierced by the stem, but otherwise of a strikingly similar aspect.

HAWTHORN. WHITE-THORN.
_Cratægus coccinea._ Rose Family.

A shrub or small tree, with spreading branches, and stout thorns or
spines. _Leaves._—On slender leaf-stalks, thin, rounded, toothed,
sometimes lobed. _Flowers._—White or sometimes reddish, rather large,
clustered, with a somewhat disagreeable odor. _Calyx._—Urn-shaped,
five-cleft. _Corolla._—Of five broad, rounded petals. _Stamens._—Five
to ten, or many. _Pistil._—One, with one to five styles.
_Fruit._—Coral-red, berry-like.

The flowers of the white-thorn appear in spring, at the same time with those of the dogwoods. Its scarlet fruit gleams from the thicket in September.

WHITE BANEBERRY.
_Actæa alba._ Crowfoot Family.

_Stem._—About two feet high. _Leaves._—Twice or thrice-compound,
leaflets incised and sharply toothed. _Flowers._—Small, white, in a
thick, oblong, terminal raceme. _Calyx._—Of four to five tiny sepals
which fall as the flower expands. _Corolla._—Of four to ten small flat
petals with slender claws. _Stamens._—Numerous, with slender white
filaments. _Pistil._—One, with a depressed, two-lobed stigma.
_Fruit._—An oval white berry, with a dark spot, on a _thick red
stalk_.

PLATE XII

BELLWORT.
]

The feathery clusters of the white baneberry may be gathered when we go to the woods for the columbine, the wild ginger, the Jack-in-the-pulpit, and Solomon’s seal. These flowers are very nearly contemporaneous and seek the same cool shaded nooks, all often being found within a few feet of one another.

The red baneberry, _A. rubra_, is a somewhat more Northern plant and usually blossoms a week or two earlier. Its cherry-red (occasionally white) berries on their _slender stalks_ are easily distinguished from the white ones of _A. alba_, which look strikingly like the china eyes that small children occasionally manage to gouge from their dolls’ heads.

MOUNTAIN HOLLY.
_Nemopanthes fascicularis._ Holly Family.

A much branched shrub, with ash-gray bark. _Leaves._—Alternate,
oblong, smooth, on slender leaf-stalks. _Flowers._—White, some
perfect, others unisexual; solitary or clustered in the axils of the
leaves on long, slender flower-stalks. _Calyx._—Minute or obsolete.
_Corolla._—Of four or five spreading petals. _Stamens._—Four or five.
_Pistil._—One. _Fruit._—Coral-red, berry-like.

The flowers of this shrub appear in the damp woods of May. Its light red berries on their slender stalks are noticed in late summer when its near relation, the black alder or winterberry is also conspicuous. Its generic name signifies _flower with a thread-like stalk_.

WINTERBERRY. BLACK ALDER.
_Ilex verticillata._ Holly Family.

A shrub, common in low grounds. _Leaves._—Oval or lance-shaped,
pointed at apex and base, toothed. _Flowers._—White; some perfect,
others unisexual; clustered on very short flower-stalks in the axils
of the leaves; appearing in May or June. _Calyx._—Minute.
_Corolla._—Of four to six petals. _Stamens._—Four to six.
_Pistil._—One. _Fruit._—Coral-red, berry-like.

The year may draw nearly to its close without our attention being arrested by this shrub. But in September it is well nigh impossible to stroll through the country lanes without pausing to admire the bright red berries clustered so thickly among the leaves of the black alder. The American holly, _I. opaca_, is closely related to this shrub, whose generic name is the ancient Latin title for the holly-oak.

PLATE XIII

WHITE BANEBERRY.—_A. alba._
]

RED-BERRIED ELDER.
_Sambucus racemosa._ Honeysuckle Family.

_Stems._—Woody, two to twelve feet high. _Leaves._—Divided into
leaflets. _Flowers._—White, resembling those of the Common Elder (p.
78), but borne in pyramidal instead of in flat-topped clusters.
_Fruit._—Bright red, berry-like.

The white clusters of the red-berried elder are found in the rocky woods of May; its scarlet fruit, like that of the shad-bush, appearing in June.

BUNCH-BERRY. DWARF CORNEL.
_Cornus Canadensis._ Dogwood Family.

_Stem._—Five to seven inches high. _Leaves._—Ovate, pointed, the upper
crowded into an apparent whorl of four to six. _Flowers._—Greenish,
small, in a cluster which is surrounded by a large and showy
four-leaved, petal-like, white or pinkish involucre. _Calyx._—Minutely
four-toothed. _Corolla._—Of four spreading petals. _Stamens._—Four.
_Pistil._—One. _Fruit._—Bright red, berry-like.

When one’s eye first falls upon the pretty flowers of the bunch-berry in the June woods, the impression is received that each low stem bears upon its summit a single large white blossom. A more searching look discovers that what appeared like rounded petals are really the showy white leaves of the involucre which surround the small, closely clustered, greenish flowers.

The bright red berries which appear in late summer make brilliant patches in the woods and swamps. Both in flower and fruit this is one of the prettiest of our smaller plants. It is closely allied to the well-known flowering-dogwood, which is so ornamental a tree in early spring.

In the Scotch Highlands it is called the “plant of gluttony,” on account of its supposed power of increasing the appetite. It is said to form part of the winter food of the Esquimaux.

PLATE XIV

Fruit.

BUNCH-BERRY.—_C. Canadensis._
]

SWEET BAY. LAUREL MAGNOLIA.
_Magnolia glauca._ Magnolia Family.

A shrub from four to twenty feet high. _Leaves._—Oval to broadly
lance-shaped, from three to six inches long. _Flowers._—White, two
inches long, growing singly at the ends of the branches. _Calyx._—Of
three sepals. _Corolla._—Globular, with from six to nine broad petals.
_Stamens._—Numerous, with short filaments and long anthers.
_Pistils._—Many, packed so as to make a sort of cone in fruit.
_Fruit._—Cone-like, red, fleshy when ripe; the pistils opening at
maturity and releasing the scarlet seeds which hang by delicate
threads.

The beautiful fragrant blossoms of the sweet bay may be found from June till August, in swamps along the coast from Cape Ann southward.

LIZARD’S TAIL.
_Saururus cernuus._ Pepper Family.

_Stem._—Jointed, often tall. _Leaves._—Alternate, heart-shaped.
_Flowers._—White, without calyx or corolla, crowded into a slender,
wand-like terminal spike which nods at the end. _Stamens._—Usually six
or seven. _Pistils._—Three or four, united at their base.

The nodding, fragrant spikes of the lizard’s tail abound in certain swamps from June till August. While the plant is not a common one, it is occasionally found in great profusion, and is sure to arrest attention by its odd appearance.

MOONSEED.
_Menispermum Canadense._ Moonseed Family.

_Stem._—Woody, climbing. _Leaves._—Three to seven-angled or lobed,
their stalks fastened near the edge of the lower surface.
_Flowers._—White or yellowish, in small loose clusters, unisexual.
_Calyx._—Of four to eight sepals. _Corolla._—Of six to eight short
petals. _Stamens and Pistils._—Occurring on different plants.
_Fruit._—Berry-like, black, with a bloom.

Clambering over the thickets which line the streams, we notice in September the lobed or angled leaves and black berries of the moonseed, the small white or yellowish flowers of which were, perhaps, overlooked in June.

MOUNTAIN LAUREL. SPOONWOOD. CALICO-BUSH.
_Kalmia latifolia._ Heath Family.

An evergreen shrub. _Leaves._—Oblong, pointed, shining, of a leathery
texture. _Flowers._—White or pink, in terminal clusters.
_Calyx._—Five-parted. _Corolla._—Marked with red, wheel-shaped,
five-lobed, with ten depressions. _Stamens._—Ten, each anther lodged
in one of the depressions of the corolla. _Pistil._—One.

The shining green leaves which surround the white or rose-colored flowers of the mountain laurel are familiar to all who have skirted the west shore of the Hudson River, wandered across the hills that lie in its vicinity, or clambered across the mountains of Pennsylvania, where the shrub sometimes grows to a height of thirty feet. Not that these localities limit its range: for it abounds more or less from Canada to Florida, and far inland, especially along the mountains, whose sides are often clothed with an apparent mantle of pink snow during the month of June, and whose waste places are, in very truth, made to blossom like the rose at this season.

The shrub is highly prized and carefully cultivated in England. Barewood Gardens, the beautiful home of the editor of the London _Times_, is celebrated for its fine specimens of mountain laurel and American rhododendron. The English papers advertise the approach of the flowering season, the estate is thrown open to the public, and the people for miles around flock to see the radiant strangers from across the water. The shrub is not known there as the laurel, but by its generic title, _Kalmia_. The head gardener of the place received with some incredulity my statement that in parts of America the waste hill-sides were brilliant with its beauty every June.

The ingenious contrivance of these flowers to secure cross-fertilization is most interesting. The long filaments of the stamens are arched by each anther being caught in a little pouch of the corolla; the disturbance caused by the sudden alighting of an insect on the blossom, or the quick brush of a bee’s wing, dislodges the anthers from their niches, and the stamens spring upward with such violence that the pollen is jerked from its hiding-place in the pore of the anther-cell on to the body of the insect-visitor, who straightway carries it off to another flower upon whose protruding stigma it is sure to be inadvertently deposited. In order to see the working of this for one’s self, it is only necessary to pick a fresh blossom and either brush the corolla quickly with one’s finger, or touch the stamens suddenly with a pin, when the anthers will be dislodged and the pollen will be seen to fly.

This is not the laurel of the ancients—the symbol of victory and fame—notwithstanding some resemblance in the form of the leaves. The classic shrub is supposed to be identical with the _Laurus nobilis_ which was carried to our country by the early colonists, but which did not thrive in its new environment.

The leaves of our species are supposed to possess poisonous qualities, and are said to have been used by the Indians for suicidal purposes. There is also a popular belief that the flesh of a partridge which has fed upon its fruit becomes poisonous. The clammy exudation about the flower-stalks and blossoms may serve the purpose of excluding from the flower such small insects as would otherwise crawl up to it, dislodge the stamens, scatter the pollen, and yet be unable to carry it to its proper destination on the pistil of another flower.

The _Kalmia_ was named by Linnæus after Peter Kalm, one of his pupils who travelled in this country, who was, perhaps, the first to make known the shrub to his great master.

The popular name spoonwood grew from its use by the Indians for making eating-utensils. The wood is of fine grain and takes a good polish.

The title calico-bush probably arose from the marking of the corolla, which, to an imaginative mind, might suggest the cheap cotton-prints sold in the shops.

WHITE SWAMP HONEYSUCKLE. CLAMMY AZALEA.
_Rhododendron viscosum._ Heath Family.

A shrub from three to ten feet high. _Leaves._—Oblong.
_Flowers._—White, clustered, appearing after the leaves.
_Calyx-lobes._—Minute. _Corolla._—White, five-lobed, the clammy tube
much longer than the lobes. _Stamens._—Usually five, protruding.
_Pistil._—One, protruding.

PLATE XV

MOUNTAIN LAUREL.—_K. latifolia._
]

The fragrant white flowers of this beautiful shrub appear in early summer along the swamps which skirt the coast, and occasionally farther inland. The close family resemblance to the pink azalea (Pl. LXV.) will be at once detected. On the branches of both species will be found those abnormal, fleshy growths, called variously “swamp apples” and “May apples,” which are so relished by the children. Formerly these growths were attributed to the sting of an insect, as in the “oak apple;” now they are generally believed to be modified buds.

AMERICAN RHODODENDRON. GREAT LAUREL.
_Rhododendron maximum._ Heath Family.

A shrub from six to thirty-five feet high. _Leaves._—Thick and
leathery, oblong, entire. _Flowers._—White or pink, clustered.
_Calyx._—Minute, five-toothed. _Corolla._—Somewhat bell-shaped,
five-parted, greenish in the throat, with red, yellow, or green spots.
_Stamens._—Usually ten. _Pistil._—One.

This beautiful native shrub is one of the glories of our country when in the perfection of its loveliness. The woods which nearly cover many of the mountains of our Eastern States hide from all but the bold explorer a radiant display during the early part of July. Then the lovely waxy flower-clusters of the American rhododendron are in their fulness of beauty. As in the laurel, the clammy flower-stalks seem fitted to protect the blossom from the depredations of small and useless insects, while the markings on the corolla attract the attention of the desirable bee.

In those parts of the country where it flourishes most luxuriantly, veritable rhododendron jungles termed “hells” by the mountaineers are formed. The branches reach out and interlace in such a fashion as to be almost impassable.

The nectar secreted by the blossoms is popularly supposed to be poisonous. We read in Xenophon that during the retreat of the Ten Thousand, the soldiers found a quantity of honey of which they freely partook, with results that proved almost fatal. This honey is said to have been made from a rhododendron which is still common in Asia Minor and which is believed to possess intoxicating and poisonous properties.

PLATE XVI

AMERICAN RHODODENDRON.—_R. maximum._
]

Comparatively little attention had been paid to this superb flower until the Centennial Celebration at Philadelphia, when some fine exhibits attracted the admiration of thousands. The shrub has been carefully cultivated in England, having been brought to great perfection on some of the English estates. It is yearly winning more notice in this country.

The generic name is from the Greek for _rose-tree_.

WOOD SORREL.
_Oxalis Acetosella._ Geranium Family.

_Scape._—One-flowered, two to five inches high. _Leaves._—Divided into
three clover-like leaflets. _Flower._—White veined with red, solitary.
_Calyx._—Of five sepals. _Corolla._—Of five petals. _Stamens._—Ten.
_Pistil._—One with five styles.

Surely nowhere can be found a daintier carpeting than that made by the clover-like foliage of the wood sorrel when studded with its rose-veined blossoms in the northern woods of June. At the very name comes a vision of mossy nooks where the sunlight only comes on sufferance, piercing its difficult path through the tent-like foliage of the forest, resting only long enough to become a golden memory.

The early Italian painters availed themselves of its chaste beauty. Mr. Ruskin says: “Fra Angelico’s use of the _Oxalis Acetosella_ is as faithful in representation as touching in feeling. The triple leaf of the plant and white flower stained purple probably gave it strange typical interest among the Christian painters.”

Throughout Europe it bears the odd name of “Hallelujah” on account of its flowering between Easter and Whitsuntide, the season when the Psalms sung in the churches resound with that word. There has been an unfounded theory that this title sprang from St. Patrick’s endeavor to prove to his rude audience the possibility of a Trinity in Unity from the three-divided leaves. By many this ternate leaf has been considered the shamrock of the ancient Irish.

The English title, “cuckoo-bread,” refers to the appearance of the blossoms at the season when the cry of the cuckoo is first heard.

PLATE XVII

WOOD SORREL.—_O. Acetosella._
]

Our name sorrel is from the Greek for _sour_ and has reference to the acrid juice of the plant. The delicate leaflets “sleep” at night; that is, they droop and close one against another.

POISON SUMACH.
_Rhus venenata._ Cashew Family.

A shrub from six to eighteen feet high. _Leaves._—Divided into seven
to thirteen oblong entire leaflets. _Flowers._—Greenish or
yellowish-white, in loose axillary clusters; some perfect, others
unisexual. _Fruit._—Whitish or dun-colored, small, globular.

The poison sumach infests swampy places and flowers in June. In early summer it can be distinguished from the harmless members of the family by the slender flower-clusters which grow from the axils of the leaves, those of the innocent sumachs being borne in pyramidal, terminal clusters. In the later year the fruits of the respective shrubs are, of course, similarly situated, but, to accentuate the distinction, they differ in color; that of the poison sumach being whitish or dun-colored, while that of the other is crimson.

STAGHORN SUMACH.
_Rhus typhina._ Cashew Family.

A shrub or tree from ten to thirty feet high. _Leaves._—Divided into
eleven to thirty-one somewhat lance-shaped, toothed leaflets.
_Flowers._—Greenish or yellowish-white, in upright terminal clusters,
some perfect, others unisexual, appearing in June. _Fruit._—Crimson,
small, globular, hairy.

This is the common sumach which illuminates our hill-sides every autumn with masses of flame-like color. Many of us would like to decorate our homes with its brilliant sprays, but are deterred from handling them by the fear of being poisoned, not knowing that one glance at the crimson fruit-plumes should reassure us, as the poisonous sumachs are white-fruited. These tossing pyramidal fruit-clusters at first appear to explain the common title of staghorn sumach. It is not till the foliage has disappeared, and the forked branches are displayed in all their nakedness, that we feel that these must be the feature in which the common name originated.

POISON IVY.
_Rhus Toxicodendron._ Cashew Family.

A shrub which usually climbs by means of rootlets over rocks, walls,
and trees; sometimes low and erect. _Leaves._—Divided into three
somewhat four-sided pointed leaflets. _Flowers._—Greenish or
yellowish-white, small, some perfect, others unisexual; in loose
clusters in the axils of the leaves in June. _Fruit._—Small, globular,
somewhat berry-like, dun-colored, clustered.

This much-dreaded plant is often confused with the beautiful Virginia creeper, occasionally to the ruthless destruction of the latter. Generally the two can be distinguished by the three-divided leaves of the poison ivy, the leaves of the Virginia creeper usually being five-divided. In the late year the whitish fruit of the ivy easily identifies it, the berries of the creeper being blackish. The poison ivy is reputed to be especially harmful during the night, or at any time in early summer when the sun is not shining upon it.

VIRGINIA CREEPER. AMERICAN IVY.
_Ampelopsis quinquefolia._ Vine Family.

A woody vine climbing by means of disk-bearing tendrils, and also by
rootlets. _Leaves._—Usually divided into five leaflets.
_Flowers._—Greenish, small, clustered, appearing in July. _Fruit._—A
small, blackish berry in October.

Surely in autumn, if not always, this is the most beautiful of our native climbers. At that season its blood-like sprays are outlined against the dark evergreens about which they delight to twine, showing that marvellous discrimination in background which so constantly excites our admiration in nature. The Virginia creeper is extensively cultivated in Europe. Even in Venice, that sea-city where one so little anticipates any reminders of home woods and meadows, many a dim canal mirrors in October some crumbling wall or graceful trellis aglow with its vivid beauty.

SHIN-LEAF.
_Pyrola elliptica._ Heath Family.

_Scape._—Upright, scaly, terminating in a many-flowered raceme.
_Leaves._—From the root, thin and dull, somewhat oval.
_Flowers._—White, nodding. _Calyx._—Five-parted. _Corolla._—Of five
rounded, concave petals. _Stamens._—Ten. _Pistil._—One, with a long
curved style.

In the distance these pretty flowers suggest the lilies-of-the-valley. They are found in the woods of June and July, often in close company with the pipsissewa. The ugly common name of shin-leaf arose from an early custom of applying the leaves of this genus to bruises or sores; the English peasantry being in the habit of calling any kind of plaster a “shin-plaster” without regard to the part of the body to which it might be applied. The old herbalist, Salmon, says that the name _Pyrola_ was given to the genus by the Romans on account of the fancied resemblance of its leaves and flowers to those of a pear-tree. The English also call the plant “wintergreen,” which name we usually reserve for _Gaultheria procumbens_.

_P. rotundifolia_ is a species with thick, shining, rounded leaves.

COMMON BLACK HUCKLEBERRY.
_Gaylussacia resinosa._ Heath Family.

One to three feet high. _Stems._—Shrubby, branching. _Leaves._—Oval
or oblong, sprinkled more or less with waxy, resinous atoms.
_Flowers._—White, reddish, or purplish, bell-shaped, growing in
short, one-sided clusters. _Calyx._—With five short teeth.
_Corolla._—Bell-shaped, with a five-cleft border. _Stamens._—Ten.
_Pistil._—One. _Fruit._—A black, bloomless, edible berry.

The flowers of the common huckleberry appear in May or June; the berries in late summer. The shrub abounds in rocky woods and swamps.

COMMON BLUEBERRY.
_Vaccinium corymbosun._ Heath Family.

Five to ten feet high.

The blueberry has a bloom which is lacking in the huckleberry. It is found in swamps or low thickets in late summer.

PLATE XVIII

SHIN-LEAF.—_P. elliptica._
]

SQUAW HUCKLEBERRY.
_Vaccinium stamineum._ Heath Family.

Two or three feet high. _Stems._—Diffusely branched.

This large greenish or yellowish berry is hardly edible. The flowers appear in June, and are easily recognized by their protruding stamens. The leaves are pale green above and whitish underneath.

PIPSISSEWA. PRINCE’S PINE.
_Chimaphila umbellata._ Heath Family.

_Stem._—Four to ten inches high, leafy. _Leaves._—Somewhat whorled or
scattered, evergreen, lance-shaped, with sharply toothed edges.
_Flowers._—White or purplish, fragrant, in a loose terminal cluster.
_Calyx._—Five-lobed. _Corolla._—With five rounded, widely spreading
petals. _Stamens._—Ten, with violet anthers. _Pistil._—One, with a
short top-shaped style and disk-like stigma.

When strolling through the woods in summer one is apt to chance upon great patches of these deliciously fragrant and pretty flowers. The little plant, with its shining evergreen foliage, flourishes abundantly among decaying leaves in sandy soil, and puts forth its dainty blossoms late in June. It is one of the latest of the fragile wood-flowers which are so charming in the earlier year, and which have already begun to surrender in favor of their hardier, more self-assertive brethren of the fields and roadsides. The common name, pipsissewa, is evidently of Indian origin, and perhaps refers to the strengthening properties which the red men ascribed to it.

SPOTTED PIPSISSEWA.
_Chimaphila maculata._ Heath Family.

The spotted pipsissewa blossoms a little later than its twin-sister. Its slightly toothed leaves are conspicuously marked with white.

WHITE DAISY. WHITE-WEED. OX-EYED DAISY.
_Chrysanthemum Leucanthemum._ Composite Family (p. 13).

PLATE XIX

PIPSISSEWA.—_C. umbellata._
]

The common white daisy stars the June meadows with those gold-centred blossoms which delight the eyes of the beauty-lover while they make sore the heart of the farmer, for the “whiteweed,” as he calls it, is hurtful to pasture-land and difficult to eradicate.

The true daisy is the _Bellis perennis_ of England,—the

Wee, modest crimson-tippit flower

of Burns. This was first called “day’s eye,” because it closed at night and opened at dawn,—

That well by reason men it call may,
The Daisie, or else the eye of the day,

sang Chaucer nearly four hundred years ago. In England our flower is called “ox-eye” and “moon daisy;” in Scotland, “dog-daisy.”

The plant is not native to this country, but was brought from the Old World by the early colonists.

DAISY FLEABANE. SWEET SCABIOUS.
_Erigeron annuus._ Composite Family (p. 13).

_Stem._—Stout, from three to five feet high, branched, hairy.
_Leaves._—Coarsely and sharply toothed, the lowest ovate, the upper
narrower. _Flower-heads._—Small, clustered, composed of both ray and
disk-flowers, the former white, purplish, or pinkish, the latter
yellow.

During the summer months the fields and waysides are whitened with these very common flowers which look somewhat like small white daisies or asters.

Another common species is _E. strigosus_, a smaller plant, with smaller flower-heads also, but with the white ray-flowers longer. The generic name is from two Greek words signifying _spring_ and _an old man_, in allusion to the hoariness of certain species which flower in the spring. The fleabanes were so named from the belief that when burned they were objectionable to insects. They were formerly hung in country cottages for the purpose of excluding such unpleasant intruders.

MAYWEED. CHAMOMILE.
_Anthemis Cotula._ Composite Family (p. 13).

_Stem._—Branching. _Leaves._—Finely dissected.
_Flower-heads._—Composed of white ray and yellow disk-flowers,
resembling the common white daisy.

In midsummer the pretty daisy-like blossoms of this strong-scented plant are massed along the roadsides. So nearly a counterpart of the common daisy do they appear that they are constantly mistaken for that flower. The smaller heads, with the yellow disk-flowers crowded upon a receptacle which is much more conical than that of the daisy, and the finely dissected, feathery leaves, serve to identify the Mayweed. The country-folk brew “chamomile tea” from these leaves, and through their agency raise painfully effective blisters in an emergency.

NEW JERSEY TEA. RED-ROOT.
_Ceanothus Americanus._ Buckthorn Family.

_Root._—Dark red. _Stem._—Shrubby, one to three feet high.
_Flowers._—White, small, clustered. _Calyx._—White, petal-like,
five-lobed, incurved. _Corolla._—With five long-clawed hooded petals.
_Stamens._—Five. _Pistil._—One, with three stigmas.

This shrubby plant is very common in dry woods. In July its white feathery flower-clusters brighten many a shady nook in an otherwise flowerless neighborhood. During the Revolution its leaves were used as a substitute for tea.

BASTARD TOADFLAX.
_Comandra umbellata._ Sandalwood Family.

_Stem._—Eight to ten inches high, branching, leafy.
_Leaves._—Alternate, oblong, pale. _Flowers._—Greenish-white, small,
clustered. _Calyx._—Bell or urn-shaped. _Corolla._—None.
_Stamens._—Five. _Pistil._—One.

The bastard toadflax is commonly found in dry ground, flowering in May or June. Its root forms parasitic attachments to the roots of trees.

WINTERGREEN. CHECKERBERRY. MOUNTAIN TEA.
_Gaultheria procumbens._ Heath Family.

_Stem._—Three to six inches high, slender, leafy at the summit.
_Leaves._—Oval, shining, evergreen. _Flowers._—White, growing from the
axils of the leaves. _Calyx._—Five-lobed. _Corolla._—Urn-shaped, with
five small teeth. _Stamens._—Ten. _Pistil._—One. _Fruit._—A globular
red berry.

He who seeks the cool shade of the evergreens on a hot July day is likely to discover the nodding wax-like flowers of this little plant. They are delicate and pretty, with a background of shining leaves. These leaves when young have a pleasant aromatic flavor similar to that of the sweet birch; they are sometimes used as a substitute for tea. The bright red berries are also edible and savory, and are much appreciated by the hungry birds and deer during the winter. If not thus consumed they remain upon the plant until the following spring when they either drop or rot upon the stem, thus allowing the seeds to escape.

WHITE SWEET CLOVER. WHITE MELILOT.
_Melilotus alba._ Pulse Family (p. 16).

_Stem._—Two to four feet high. _Leaves._—Divided into three-toothed
leaflets. _Flowers._—Papilionaceous, white, growing in spike-like
racemes.

Like its yellow sister, _M. officinalis_, this plant is found blossoming along the roadsides throughout the summer. The flowers are said to serve as flavoring in Gruyère cheese, snuff, and smoking-tobacco, and to act like camphor when packed with furs to preserve them from moths, besides imparting a pleasant fragrance.

WATERLEAF.
_Hydrophyllum Virginicum._ Waterleaf Family.

One to two feet high. _Leaves._—Divided into five to seven oblong,
pointed, toothed divisions. _Flowers._—White or purplish, in one-sided
raceme-like clusters which are usually coiled from the apex when
young. _Calyx._—Five-parted. _Corolla._—Five-cleft, bell-shaped.
_Stamens._—Five, protruding. _Pistil._—One.

This plant is found flowering in summer in the rich woods.

PLATE XX

WINTERGREEN.—_G. procumbens._
]

INDIAN PIPE. CORPSE-PLANT.
_Monotropa uniflora._ Heath Family.

A low fleshy herb from three to eight inches high, without green
foliage, of a wax-like appearance, with colorless bracts in the place
of leaves. _Flower._—White or pinkish, single, terminal, nodding.
_Calyx._—Of two to four bract-like scales. _Corolla._—Of four or five
wedge-shaped petals. _Stamens._—Eight or ten, with yellow anthers.
_Pistil._—One, with a disk-like, four or five-rayed stigma.

The effect of a cluster of these nodding, wax-like flowers in the deep woods of summer is singularly fairy-like. They spring from a ball of matted rootlets, and are parasitic, drawing their nourishment from decaying vegetable matter. In fruit the plant erects itself and loses its striking resemblance to a pipe. Its clammy touch, and its disposition to decompose and turn black when handled, has earned it the name of corpse-plant. It was used by the Indians as an eye-lotion, and is still believed by some to possess healing properties.

FIELD CHICKWEED.
_Cerastium arvense._ Pink Family.

Four to eight inches high. _Stems._—Slender. _Leaves._—Linear or
narrowly lance-shaped. _Flowers._—White, large, in terminal clusters.
_Calyx._—Usually of five sepals. _Corolla._—Usually of five two-lobed
petals which are more than twice the length of the calyx.
_Stamens._—Twice as many, or fewer than the petals. _Pistil._—One,
with as many styles as there are sepals.

This is one of the most noticeable of the chickweeds. Its starry flowers are found in dry or rocky places, blossoming from May till July.

The common chickweed, which besets damp places everywhere, is _Stellaria media_; this is much used as food for songbirds.

The long-leaved stitchwort, _S. longifolia_, is a species which is common in grassy places, especially northward. It has linear leaves, unlike those of _S. media_, which are ovate or oblong.

PLATE XXI

INDIAN PIPE.—_M. uniflora._
]

ENCHANTER’S NIGHTSHADE.
_Circæa Lutetiana._ Evening Primrose Family.

_Stem._—One or two feet high. _Leaves._—Opposite, thin, ovate,
slightly toothed. _Flowers._—Dull white, small, growing in a raceme.
_Calyx._—Two-lobed. _Corolla._—Of two petals. _Stamens._—Two.
_Pistil._—One.

This insignificant and ordinarily uninteresting plant arrests attention by the frequency with which it is found flowering in the summer woods and along shady roadsides.

_C. Alpina_ is a smaller, less common species, which is found along the mountains and in deep woods. Both species are burdened with the singularly inappropriate name of enchanter’s nightshade. There is nothing in their appearance to suggest an enchanter or any of the nightshades. It seems, however, that the name of a plant called after the enchantress Circe, and described by Dioscorides nearly two thousand years ago, was accidentally transferred to this unpretentious genus.

THIMBLE-WEED.
_Anemone Virginiana._ Crowfoot Family.

_Stem._—Two or three feet high. _Leaves._—Twice or thrice cleft, the
divisions again toothed or cleft. _Flowers._—Greenish or sometimes
white, borne on long, upright flower-stalks. _Calyx._—Of five sepals.
_Corolla._—None. _Stamens and Pistils._—Indefinite in number.

These greenish flowers, which may be found in the woods and meadows throughout the summer, are only striking by reason of their long, erect flower-stalks. The oblong, thimble-like fruit-head, which is rather noticeable in the later year, gives to the plant its common name.

CLEAVERS. GOOSE-GRASS. BEDSTRAW.
_Galium Aparine._ Madder Family.

_Stem._—Weak and reclining, bristly. _Leaves._—Lance-shaped, about
eight in a whorl. _Flowers._—White, small, growing from the axils of
the leaves. _Calyx-teeth._—Obsolete. _Corolla._—Usually four-parted,
wheel-shaped. _Stamens._—Usually four. _Pistil._—One with two styles.
_Fruit._—Globular, bristly, with hooked prickles.

This plant may be found in wooded or shady places throughout the continent. Its flowers, which appear in summer, are rather inconspicuous, one’s attention being chiefly attracted by its many whorls of slender leaves.

BITTER-SWEET. WAX-WORK.
_Celastrus scandens._ Staff-tree Family.

_Stem._—Woody, twining. _Leaves._—Alternate, oblong, finely toothed,
pointed. _Flowers._—Small, greenish, or cream-color, in raceme-like
clusters, appearing in June. _Pod._—Orange-colored, globular, and
berry-like, curling back in three divisions when ripe so as to display
the scarlet covering of the seeds within.

The small flowers of the bitter-sweet, which appear in June, rarely attract attention. But in October no lover of color can fail to admire the deep orange pods which at last curl back so as advantageously to display the brilliant scarlet covering of the seeds. Perhaps we have no fruit which illuminates more vividly the roadside thicket of late autumn; or touches with greater warmth those tumbled, overgrown walls which are so picturesque a feature in parts of the country, and do in a small way for our quiet landscapes what vine-covered ruins accomplish for the scenery of the Old World.

CULVER’S ROOT.
_Veronica Virginica._ Figwort Family.

_Stem._—Straight and tall, from two to six feet high.
_Leaves._—Whorled, lance-shaped, finely toothed. _Flowers._—White,
small, growing in slender clustered spikes. _Calyx._—Irregularly four
or five-toothed. _Corolla._—Four or five-lobed. _Stamens._—Two,
protruding. _Pistil._—One.

The tall straight stems of the culver’s root lift their slender spikes in midsummer to a height that seems strangely at variance with the habit of this genus. The small flowers, however, at once betray their kinship with the speedwells. Although it is, perhaps, a little late to look for the white wands of the black cohosh the two plants might easily be confused in the distance, as they have much the same aspect and seek alike the cool recesses of the woods. This same species grows in Japan and was introduced into English gardens nearly two hundred years ago. It is one of the many Indian remedies which were adopted by our forefathers.

BLACK COHOSH. BUGBANE. BLACK SNAKEROOT.
_Cimicifuga racemosa._ Crowfoot Family.

_Stem._—Three to eight feet high. _Leaves._—Divided, the leaflets
toothed or incised. _Flowers._—White, growing in elongated wand-like
racemes. _Calyx._—Of four or five white petal-like sepals, falling
early. _Corolla._—Of from one to eight white petals or transformed
stamens. _Stamens._—Numerous, with slender white filaments.
_Pistils._—One to three.

The tall white wands of the black cohosh shoot up in the shadowy woods of midsummer like so many ghosts. A curious-looking plant it is, bearing aloft the feathery flowers which have such an unpleasant odor that even the insects are supposed to avoid them. Fortunately they are sufficiently conspicuous to be admired at a distance, many a newly cleared hill-side and wood-border being lightened by their slender, torch-like racemes which flash upon us as we travel through the country. The plant was one of the many which the Indians believed to be efficacious for snake-bites. The generic name is from _cimex_—a bug, and _fugare_—to drive away.

COMMON ELDER.
_Sambucus Canadensis._ Honeysuckle Family.

_Stems._—Scarcely woody, five to ten feet high. _Leaves._—Divided into
toothed leaflets. _Flowers._—White, small, in flat-topped clusters.
_Calyx._—Lobes minute or none. _Corolla._—With five spreading lobes.
_Stamens._—Five. _Pistil._—One, with three stigmas. _Fruit._—Dark
purple, berry-like.

The common elder borders the lanes and streams with its spreading flower-clusters in early summer, and in the later year is noticeable for the dark berries from which “elderberry wine” is brewed by the country people. The fine white wood is easily cut and is used for skewers and pegs. A decoction of the leaves serves the gardener a good purpose in protecting delicate plants from caterpillars. Evelyn wrote of it: “If the medicinal properties of the leaves, berries, bark, etc., were thoroughly known, I cannot tell what our countrymen could ail for which he might not fetch from every hedge, whether from sickness or wound.”

The white pith can easily be removed from the stems, hence the old English name of bore-wood.

PLATE XXII

BLACK COHOSH.—_C. racemosa._
]

The name elder is probably derived from the Anglo-Saxon _aeld_—a fire—and is thought to refer to the former use of the hollow branches in blowing up a fire.

SPURGE.
_Euphorbia corollata._ Spurge Family.

_Stem._—Two or three feet high. _Leaves._—Ovate, lance-shaped or
linear. _Flowers._—Clustered within the usually five-lobed, cup-shaped
involucre which was formerly considered the flower itself; the male
flowers numerous and lining its base, consisting each of a single
stamen; the female flower solitary in the middle of the involucre,
consisting of a three-lobed ovary with three styles, each style being
two-cleft. _Pod._—On a slender stalk, smooth.

In this plant the showy white appendages of the cup-shaped clustered involucres are usually taken for the petals of the flower; only the botanist suspecting that the minute organs within these involucres really form a cluster of separate flowers of different sexes. While the most northerly range in the Eastern States of this spurge is usually considered to be New York, the botany states that it has been recently naturalized in Massachusetts. It blossoms from July till October.

PARTRIDGE VINE.
_Mitchella repens._ Madder Family.

_Stems._—Smooth and trailing. _Leaves._—Rounded, evergreen,
veined with white. _Flowers._—White, fragrant, in pairs.
_Calyx._—Four-toothed. _Corolla._—Funnel-form, with four
spreading lobes, bearded within. _Stamens._—Four. _Pistil._—One,
its ovary united with that of its sister flower, its four
stigmas linear.

At all times of the year this little plant faithfully fulfils its mission of adorning that small portion of the earth to which it finds itself rooted. But only the early summer finds the partridge vine exhaling its delicious fragrance from the delicate sister-blossoms which are its glory. Among the waxy flowers will be found as many of the bright red berries of the previous year as have been left unmolested by the hungry winter birds. This plant is found not only in the moist woods of North America, but also in the forests of Mexico and Japan. It is a near relative of the dainty bluets or Quaker ladies, and has the same peculiarity of dimorphous flowers (p. 232).

PLATE XXIII

PARTRIDGE VINE.—_M. repens._
]

GREEN ORCHIS.
_Habenaria virescens._

RAGGED FRINGED ORCHIS.
_Habenaria lacera._ Orchis Family (p. 17).

_Leaves._—Oblong or lance-shaped. _Flowers._—Greenish or
yellowish-white, growing in a spike.

These two orchids are found in wet boggy places during the earlier summer, the green antedating the ragged fringed orchis by a week or more. The lip of the ragged fringed is three-parted, the divisions being deeply fringed, giving what is called in Sweet’s “British Flower-Garden” an “elegantly jagged appearance.” The lip of the green orchis is furnished with a tooth on each side and a strong protuberance in the middle. So far as superficial beauty and conspicuousness are concerned these flowers do scant justice to the brilliant family to which they belong, and equally excite the scornful exclamation, “You call _that_ an orchid!” when brought home for analysis or preservation.

BUTTON-BUSH.
_Cephalanthus occidentalis._ Madder Family.

A shrub three to eight feet high. _Leaves._—Opposite or whorled in
threes, somewhat oblong and pointed. _Flowers._—Small, white, closely
crowded in round button-like heads. _Calyx._—Four-toothed.
_Corolla._—Four-toothed. _Stamens._—Four. _Pistil._—One, with a
thread-like protruding style and blunt stigma.

This pretty shrub borders the streams and swamps throughout the country. Its button-like flower-clusters appear in midsummer. It belongs to the family of which the delicate bluet and fragrant partridge vine are also members. Its flowers have a jasmine-like fragrance.

MILD WATER-PEPPER.
_Polygonum hydropiperoides._ Buckwheat Family.

_Stem._—One to three feet high, smooth, branching.
_Leaves._—Alternate, narrowly lance-shaped or oblong. _Flowers._—White
or flesh-color, small, growing in erect, slender spikes.
_Calyx._—Five-parted. _Corolla._—None. _Stamens._—Eight.
_Pistil._—One, usually with three styles.

These rather inconspicuous but very common flowers are found in moist places and shallow water.

The common knotweed, _P. aviculare_, which grows in such abundance in country dooryards and waste places, has slender, often prostrate, stems, and small greenish flowers, which are clustered in the axils of the leaves or spiked at the termination of the stems. This is perhaps the “hindering knotgrass” to which Shakespeare refers in the “Midsummer Night’s Dream,” so terming it, not on account of its knotted trailing stems, but because of the belief that it would hinder the growth of a child. In Beaumont and Fletcher’s “Coxcomb” the same superstition is indicated:

We want a boy
Kept under for a year with milk and knotgrass.

It is said that many birds are nourished by the seeds of this plant.

CLIMBING FALSE BUCKWHEAT.
_Polygonum scandens._ Buckwheat Family.

_Stem._—Smooth, twining, and climbing over bushes, eight to twelve
feet high. _Leaves._—Heart or arrow-shaped, pointed, alternate.
_Flowers._—Greenish or pinkish, in racemes. _Calyx._—Five-parted, with
colored margins. _Corolla._—None. _Stamens._—Usually eight.
_Pistil._—One, with three stigmas. _Seed-vessel._—Green, three-angled,
winged, conspicuous in autumn.

In early summer this plant, which clambers so perseveringly over the moist thickets which line our country lanes, is comparatively inconspicuous. The racemes of small greenish flowers are not calculated to attract one’s attention, and it is late summer or autumn before the thick clusters of greenish fruit composed of the winged seed-vessels arrest one’s notice. At this time the vine is very beautiful and striking, and one wonders that it could have escaped detection in the earlier year.

——— ———
_Dalibarda repens._ Rose Family.

_Scape._—Low. _Leaves._—Heart-shaped, wavy-toothed. _Flowers._—White,
one or two borne on each scape. _Calyx._—Deeply five or six-parted,
three of the divisions larger and toothed. _Corolla._—Of five petals.
_Stamens._—Many. _Pistils._—Five to ten.

The foliage of this pretty little plant suggests the violet; while its white blossom betrays its kinship with the wild strawberry. It may be found from June till August in woody places, being one of those flowers which we seek deliberately, whose charm is never decreased by its being thrust upon us inopportunely. Who can tell how much the attractiveness of the wild carrot, the dandelion, or butter-and-eggs would be enhanced were they so discreet as to withdraw from the common haunts of men into the shady exclusiveness which causes us to prize many far less beautiful flowers?

STARRY CAMPION.
_Silene stellata._ Pink Family.

_Stem._—Swollen at the joints, about three feet high.
_Leaves._—Whorled in fours, oval, taper-pointed. _Flowers._—White, in
a large pyramidal cluster. _Calyx._—Inflated, five-toothed.
_Corolla._—Of five deeply fringed petals. _Stamens._—Ten.
_Pistil._—One, with three styles.

In late July many of our wooded banks are decorated with the tall stems, whorled leaves, and prettily fringed flowers of the starry campion.

Closely allied to it is the bladder campion of the fields, _S. Cucubalus_, a much smaller plant, with opposite leaves, loosely clustered white flowers, a greatly inflated calyx, and two-cleft petals. This is an emigrant from Europe, which was first naturalized near Boston, and has now become wild in different parts of the country, quite overrunning some of the farm-lands which border the Hudson River.

PLATE XXIV

_Dalibarda repens._
]

COLIC-ROOT. STAR-GRASS.
_Aletris farinosa._ Bloodwort Family.

_Leaves._—Thin, lance-shaped, in a spreading cluster from the root.
_Scape._—Slender, two to three feet high. _Flowers._—White, small,
growing in a wand-like, spiked raceme. _Perianth._—Six-cleft at the
summit, oblong-tubular. _Stamens._—Six. _Pistil._—One, with style
three-cleft at apex.

In summer we find these flowers in the grassy woods. The generic title is the Greek word for “a female slave who grinds corn,” and refers to the mealy appearance of the blossoms.

TALL MEADOW RUE.
_Thalictrum polygamum._ Crowfoot Family.

Four to eight feet high. _Leaves._—Divided into many firm, rounded
leaflets. _Flowers._—White, in large clusters; some perfect, others
unisexual. _Calyx._—Of four or five small petal-like sepals which
usually fall off very early. _Corolla._—None. _Stamens._—Numerous.
_Pistils._—Four to fifteen.

Where a stream trails its sluggish length through the fields of midsummer, its way is oftentimes marked by the tall meadow rue, the feathery, graceful flower-clusters of which erect themselves serenely above the myriad blossoms which are making radiant the wet meadows at this season. For here, too, we may search for the purple flag and fringed orchis, the yellow meadow lily, the pink swamp milkweed, each charming in its way, but none with the cool chaste beauty of the meadow rue. The staminate flowers of this plant are especially delicate and feathery.

WHITE AVENS.
_Geum album._ Rose Family.

_Stem._—Slender, about two feet high. _Root-leaves._—Divided into from
three to five leaflets, or entire. _Stem-leaves._—Three-lobed or
divided, or only toothed. _Flowers._—White. _Calyx._—Deeply
five-cleft, usually with five small bractlets alternating with its
lobes. _Corolla._—Of five petals. _Stamens._—Numerous.
_Pistils._—Numerous, with hooked styles which become elongated in
fruit.

The white avens is one of the less noticeable plants which border the summer woods, blossoming from May till August. Later the hooked seeds which grow in round burr-like heads secure wide dispersion by attaching themselves to animals or clothing. Other species of avens have more conspicuous golden-yellow flowers.

PLATE XXV

TALL MEADOW RUE.—_T. polygamum._
]

MEADOW-SWEET.
_Spiræa salicifolia._ Rose Family.

_Stem._—Nearly smooth, two or three feet high. _Leaves._—Alternate,
somewhat lance-shaped, toothed. _Flowers._—Small, white or
flesh-color, in pyramidal clusters. _Calyx._—Five-cleft. _Corolla._—Of
five rounded petals. _Stamens._—Numerous. _Pistils._—Five to eight.

The feathery spires of the meadow-sweet soar upward from the river banks and low meadows in late July. Unlike its pink sister, the steeple-bush, its leaves and stems are fairly smooth. The lack of fragrance in the flowers is disappointing, because of the hopes raised by the plant’s common name. This is said by Dr. Prior to be a corruption of the Anglo-Saxon _mead-wort_, which signifies _honey-wine herb_, alluding to a fact which is mentioned in Hill’s “Herbal,” that “the flowers mixed with mead give it the flavor of the Greek wines.”

Although the significance of many of the plant-names seems clear enough at first sight, such an example as this serves to show how really obscure it often is.

WHITE WATER-LILY.
_Nymphæa odorata._ Water-lily Family.