Chapter CIV: JACK-IN-THE-PULPIT, Arisæma triphyllum, 281 (3)

_Leaves._—Rounded, somewhat heart-shaped, floating on the surface of
the water. _Flowers._—Large, white, or sometimes pink, fragrant.
_Calyx._—Of four sepals which are green without. _Corolla._—Of many
petals. _Stamens._—Indefinite in number. _Pistil._—With a many-celled
ovary whose summit is tipped with a globular projection around which
are the radiating stigmas.

This exquisite flower calls for little description. Many of us are so fortunate as to hold in our memories golden mornings devoted to its quest. We can hardly take the shortest railway journey in summer without passing some shadowy pool whose greatest adornment is this spotless and queenly blossom. The breath of the lily-pond is brought even into the heart of our cities where dark-eyed little Italians peddle clusters of the long-stemmed fragrant flowers about the streets.

PLATE XXVI

MEADOW-SWEET.—_S. salicifolia._
]

In the water-lily may be seen an example of so-called _plant-metamorphosis_. The petals appear to pass gradually into stamens, it being difficult to decide where the petals end and the stamens begin. But whether stamens are transformed petals, or petals transformed stamens seems to be a mooted question. In Gray we read, “Petals numerous, in many rows, the innermost gradually passing into stamens,” while Mr. Grant Allen writes: “Petals are in all probability enlarged and flattened stamens, which have been set apart for the work of attracting insects,” and goes on to say, “Flowers can and do exist without petals, ... but no flower can possibly exist without stamens, which are one of the two essential reproductive organs in the plant.” From this he argues that it is more rational to consider a petal a transformed stamen than _vice versa._ To go further into the subject here would be impossible, but a careful study of the water-lily is likely to excite one’s curiosity in the matter.

WHITE VERVAIN.
_Verbena urticæfolia._ Verbena Family.

Three to five feet high. _Leaves._—Oval, coarsely toothed.
_Flowers._—Small, white, in slender spikes, otherwise resembling
Purple Vervain.

It almost excites one’s incredulity to be told that this uninteresting looking plant, which grows rankly along the highways, is an importation from the tropics, yet for this statement the botany is responsible.

ROUND-LEAVED SUNDEW.
_Drosera rotundifolia._ Sundew Family.

_Scape._—A few inches high. _Leaves._—Rounded, abruptly narrowed into
spreading, hairy leaf-stalks; beset with reddish, gland-bearing
bristles. _Flowers._—White, growing in a one-sided raceme, which so
nods at its apex that the fresh-blown blossom is always uppermost.
_Calyx._—Of five sepals. _Corolla._—Of five petals. _Pistil._—One,
with three or five styles, which are sometimes so deeply two-parted as
to be taken for twice as many.

What’s this I hear
About the new carnivora?
Can little plants
Eat bugs and ants
And gnats and flies?
A sort of retrograding:
Surely the fare
Of flowers is air,
Or sunshine sweet;
They shouldn’t eat,
Or do aught so degrading!

But by degrees we are learning to reconcile ourselves to the fact that the more we study the plants the less we are able to attribute to them altogether unfamiliar and ethereal habits. We find that the laws which control their being are strangely suggestive of those which regulate ours, and after the disappearance of the shock which attends the shattered illusion, their charm is only increased by the new sense of kinship.

The round-leaved sundew is found blossoming in many of our marshes in midsummer. When the sun shines upon its leaves they look as though covered with sparkling dewdrops, hence its common name. These drops are a glutinous exudation, by means of which insects visiting the plant are first captured; the reddish bristles then close tightly about them, and it is supposed that their juices are absorbed by the plant. At all events the rash visitor rarely escapes. In many localities it is easy to secure any number of these little plants and to try for one’s self the rather grewsome experiment of feeding them with small insects. Should the tender-hearted recoil from such reckless slaughter, they might confine their offerings on the altar of science to mosquitoes, small spiders, and other deservedly unpopular creatures.

_D. Americana_ is a very similar species, with longer, narrower leaves.

The thread-leaved sundew, _D. filiformis_ has fine, thread-like leaves and pink flowers, and is found in wet sand along the coast.

POKEWEED. GARGET. PIGEON-BERRY.
_Phytolacca decandra._ Pokeweed Family.

_Stems._—In length from six to ten feet high; purple-pink or bright
red, stout. _Leaves._—Large, alternate, veiny. _Flowers._—White or
pinkish, the green ovaries conspicuous, growing in racemes.
_Calyx._—Of five rounded or petal-like sepals, pinkish without.
_Corolla._—None. _Stamens._—Ten. _Pistil._—One, with ten styles.
_Fruit._—A dark purplish berry.

There is a vigor about this native plant which is very pleasing. In July it is possible that we barely notice the white flowers and large leaves; but when in September the tall purple stems rear themselves above their neighbors in the roadside thicket, the leaves look as though stained with wine, and the long clusters of rich dark berries hang heavily from the branches, we cannot but admire its independent beauty. The berries serve as food for the birds. A tincture of them at one time acquired some reputation as a remedy for rheumatism. In Pennsylvania they have been used with whiskey to make a so-called “portwine.” From their dark juice arose the name of “red-ink plant,” which is common in some places. The large roots are poisonous, but the acrid young shoots are rendered harmless by boiling, and are eaten like asparagus, being quite as good, I have been told by country people.

Despite the difference in the spelling of the names, it has been suggested that the plant was called after President Polk. This is most improbable, as it was common throughout the country long before his birth, and its twigs are said to have been plucked and worn by his followers during his campaign for the Presidency.

WHITE FRINGED ORCHIS.
_Habenaria blephariglottis._ Orchis Family (p. 17).

About one foot high. _Leaves._—Oblong or lance-shaped, the upper
passing into pointed bracts. _Flowers._—Pure white, with a slender
spur and fringed lip; growing in an oblong spike.

PLATE XXVII

POKEWEED.—_P. decandra._
]

This seems to me the most exquisite of our native orchids. The fringed lips give the snowy, delicate flowers a feathery appearance as they gleam from the shadowy woods of midsummer, or from the peat-bogs where they thrive best; or perhaps they spire upward from among the dark green rushes which border some lonely mountain lake. Like the yellow fringed orchis (Pl. LII), which they greatly resemble in general structure, they may be sought in vain for many seasons and then will be discovered one midsummer day lavishing their spotless loveliness upon some unsuspected marsh which has chanced to escape our vigilance.

RATTLESNAKE-PLANTAIN.
_Goodyera pubescens._ Orchis Family (p. 17).

_Scape._—Six to twelve inches high. _Leaves._—From the root in a sort
of flat rosette; conspicuously veined with white; thickish, evergreen.
_Flowers._—Small, greenish-white, crowded in a close spike.

The flowers of the rattlesnake-plantain appear in late summer and are less conspicuous than the prettily tufted, white-veined leaves which may be found in the rich woods throughout the year. The plant has been reputed an infallible cure for hydrophobia and snake-bites. It is said that the Indians had such faith in its remedial virtues that they would allow a snake to drive its fangs into them for a small sum, if they had these leaves on hand to apply to the wound.

COMMON YARROW. MILFOIL.
_Achillea Millefolium._ Composite Family (p. 13).

_Stem._—Simple at first, often branching near the summit.
_Leaves._—Divided into finely toothed segments. _Flower-heads._—White,
occasionally pink, clustered, small, made up of both ray and
disk-flowers.

PLATE XXVIII

WILD CARROT.—_D. carota._ YARROW.—_A. millefolium._
]

This is one of our most frequent roadside weeds, blossoming throughout the summer and late into the autumn. Tradition claims that it was used by Achilles to cure the wounds of his soldiers, and the genus is named after that mighty hero. It still forms one of the ingredients of an ointment valued by the Scotch Highlanders. The early English botanists called the plant “nosebleed,” “because the leaves being put into the nose caused it to bleed;” and Gerarde writes that “Most men say that the leaves chewed, and especially greene, are a remedie for the toothache.” These same pungent leaves also won it the name of “old man’s pepper,” while in Sweden its title signifies _field hop_, and refers to its employment in the manufacture of beer. Linnæus considered the beer thus brewed to be more intoxicating than that in which hops were utilized. The old women of the Orkney Islands hold “milfoil tea” in high repute, believing it to be gifted with the power of dispelling melancholy. In Switzerland a good vinegar is said to be made from the Alpine species. The plant is cultivated in the gardens of Madeira, where so many beautiful, and in our eyes rare, flowers grow in wild profusion.

WILD CARROT. BIRD’S NEST. QUEEN ANNE’S LACE.
_Daucus carota._ Parsley Family (p. 15).

_Stems._—Tall and slender. _Leaves._—Finely dissected.
_Flowers._—White, in a compound umbel, forming a circular flat-topped
cluster.

When the delicate flowers of the wild carrot are still unsoiled by the dust from the highway, and fresh from the early summer rains, they are very beautiful, adding much to the appearance of the roadsides and fields along which they grow so abundantly as to strike despair into the heart of the farmer, for this is, perhaps, the “peskiest” of all the weeds with which he has to contend. As time goes on the blossoms begin to have a careworn look and lose something of the cobwebby aspect which won them the title of Queen Anne’s lace. In late summer the flower-stalks erect themselves, forming a concave cluster which has the appearance of a bird’s nest. I have read that a species of bee makes use of this ready-made home, but have never seen any indications of such an occupancy.

This is believed to be the stock from which the garden carrot was raised. The vegetable was well known to the ancients, and we learn from Pliny that the finest specimens were brought to Rome from Candia. When it was first introduced into Great Britain is not known, although the supposition is that it was brought over by the Dutch during the reign of Elizabeth. In the writings of Parkinson we read that the ladies wore carrot-leaves in their hair in place of feathers. One can picture the dejected appearance of a ball-room belle at the close of an entertainment.

WATER-HEMLOCK. SPOTTED COWBANE.
_Cicuta maculata._ Parsley Family (p. 15).

_Stem._—Smooth, stout, from two to six feet high, streaked with
purple. _Leaves._—Twice or thrice-compound, leaflets coarsely toothed.
_Flowers._—White, in compound umbels, the little umbels composed of
numerous flowers.

This plant is often confused with the wild carrot, the sweet Cicely, and other white-flowered members of the Parsley family; but it can usually be identified by its purple-streaked stem. The umbels of the water-hemlock are also more loosely clustered than those of the carrot, and their stalks are much more unequal. It is commonly found in marshy ground, blossoming in midsummer. Its popular names refer to its poisonous properties, its root being said to contain the most dangerous vegetable-poison native to our country and to have been frequently confounded with that of the edible sweet Cicely with fatal results.

MOCK BISHOP-WEED.
_Discopleura capillacea._ Parsley Family (p. 15).

One or two feet high, occasionally much taller. _Stems._—Branching.
_Leaves._—Dissected into fine, thread-like divisions.
_Flowers._—White, very small, growing in compound umbels with
thread-like bracts.

This plant blossoms all summer in wet meadows, both inland and along the coast; but it is especially common in the salt marshes near New York City. It probably owes its English name to the fancied resemblance between the bracted flower-clusters and a bishop’s cap. Its effect is feathery and delicate.

SWEET CICELY.
_Osmorrhiza longistylis._ Parsley Family (p. 15).

One to three feet high. _Root._—Thick, aromatic, edible.
_Leaves._—Twice or thrice-compound. _Flowers._—White, growing in a
few-rayed compound umbel.

The roots of the sweet Cicely are prized by country children for their pleasant flavor. Great care should be taken not to confound this plant with the water-hemlock, which is very poisonous, and which it greatly resembles, although flowering earlier in the year. The generic name is from two Greek words which signify _scent_ and _root_.

WATER-PARSNIP.
_Sium cicutæfolium._ Parsley Family (p. 15).

Two to six feet high. _Stem._—Stout. _Leaves._—Divided into from three
to eight pairs of sharply toothed leaflets. _Flowers._—White, in
compound umbels.

This plant is found growing in water or wet places throughout North America.

ARROW-HEAD.
_Sagittaria variabilis._ Water-plantain Family.

_Scape._—A few inches to several feet high. _Leaves._—Arrow-shaped.
_Flowers._—White, unisexual, in whorls of three on the leafless scape.
_Calyx._—Of three sepals. _Corolla._—Of three white, rounded petals.
_Stamens and Pistils._—Indefinite in number, occurring in different
flowers, the lower whorls of flowers usually being pistillate, the
upper staminate.

Among our water-flowers none are more delicately lovely than those of the arrow-head. Fortunately the ugly and inconspicuous female flowers grow on the lower whorls, while the male ones, with their snowy petals and golden centres, are arranged about the upper part of the scape, where the eye first falls. It is a pleasure to chance upon a slow stream whose margins are bordered with these fragile blossoms and bright, arrow-shaped leaves.

WATER-PLANTAIN.
_Alisma Plantago._ Water-plantain Family.

_Scape._—One to three feet high, bearing the flowers in whorled,
panicled branches. _Leaves._—From the root, oblong, lance-shaped or
linear, mostly rounded or heart-shaped at base. _Flowers._—White or
pale pink, small, in large, loose clusters which branch from the
scape. _Calyx._—Of three sepals. _Corolla._—Of three petals.
_Stamens._—Usually six. _Pistils._—Many, on a flattened receptacle.

The water-plantain is nearly related to the arrow-head, and is often found blossoming with it in marshy places or shallow water.

PLATE XXIX

ARROW-HEAD.—_S. variabilis._
]

GROUND CHERRY.
_Physalis Virginiana._ Nightshade Family.

A strong-scented, low, much branched and spreading herb.
_Leaves._—Somewhat oblong or heart-shaped, wavy-toothed.
_Flowers._—Greenish or yellowish-white, solitary on nodding
flower-stalks. _Calyx._—Five-cleft; enlarging and much inflated in
fruit, loosely enclosing the berry. _Corolla._—Between wheel-shaped
and funnel-form. _Stamens._—Five, erect, with yellow anthers.
_Pistil._—One. _Fruit._—A green or yellow edible berry which is
loosely enveloped in the much-inflated calyx.

We find the ground cherry in light sandy soil, and are more apt to notice the loosely enveloped berry of the late year than the rather inconspicuous flowers which appear in summer.

TURTLE-HEAD.
_Chelone glabra._ Figwort Family.

One to seven feet high. _Stem._—Smooth, upright, branching.
_Leaves._—Opposite, lance-shaped, toothed. _Flowers._—White or
pinkish, growing in a spike or close cluster. _Calyx._—Of five sepals.
_Corolla._—Two-lipped, the upper lip broad and arched, notched at the
apex, lower lip three-lobed at the apex, woolly bearded in the throat.
_Stamens._—Four perfect ones, with woolly filaments and very woolly,
heart-shaped anthers, and one small sterile one. _Pistil._—One.

It seems to have been my fate to find the flowers which the botany relegates to “dry, sandy soil” flourishing luxuriantly in marshes; and to encounter the flowers which by rights belong to “wet woods” flaunting themselves in sunny meadows. This cannot be attributed to the natural depravity of inanimate objects, for what is more full of life than the flowers?—and no one would believe in their depravity except perhaps the amateur botanist who is endeavoring to master the different species of golden-rods and asters. Therefore it is pleasant to record that I do not remember ever having met a turtle-head, which is assigned by the botany to “wet places,” which had not gotten as close to a stream or a marsh or a moist ditch as it well could without actually wetting its feet. The flowers of this plant are more odd and striking than pretty. Their appearance is such that their common name seems fairly appropriate. I have heard unbotanical people call them “white closed gentians.”

PLATE XXX

TURTLE-HEAD.—_C. glabra._
]

COMMON DODDER. LOVE VINE.
_Cuscuta Gronovii._ Convolvulus Family.

_Stems._—Yellow or reddish, thread-like, twining, leafless.
_Flowers._—White, in close clusters. _Calyx._—Five-cleft.
_Corolla._—With five spreading lobes. _Stamens._—Five. _Pistil._—One,
with two styles.

Late in the summer we are perhaps tempted deep into some thicket by the jasmine-scented heads of the button-bush or the fragrant spikes of the clethra, and note for the first time the tangled golden threads and close white flower-clusters of the dodder. If we try to trace to their source these twisted stems, which the Creoles know as “angels’ hair,” we discover that they are fastened to the bark of the shrub or plant about which they are twining by means of small suckers; but nowhere can we find any connection with the earth, all their nourishment being extracted from the plant to which they are adhering. Originally this curious herb sprang from the ground which succored it until it succeeded in attaching itself to some plant; having accomplished this it severed all connection with mother-earth by the withering away or snapping off of the stem below.

The flax-dodder, _C. Epilinum_, is a very injurious plant in European flax-fields. It has been sparingly introduced into this country with flax-seed.

TRAVELLER’S JOY. VIRGIN’S BOWER.
_Clematis Virginiana._ Crowfoot Family.

_Stem._—Climbing, somewhat woody. _Leaves._—Opposite, three-divided.
_Flowers._—Whitish, in clusters, unisexual. _Calyx._—Of four
petal-like sepals. _Corolla._—None. _Stamens and Pistils._—Indefinite
in number, occurring on different plants.

In July and August this beautiful plant, covered with its white blossoms and clambering over the shrubs which border the country lanes, makes indeed a fitting bower for any maid or traveller who may chance to be seeking shelter. Later in the year the seeds with their silvery plumes give a feathery effect which is very striking.

PLATE XXXI

TRAVELLER’S JOY.—_Clematis Virginiana._
]

This graceful climber works its way by means of its bending or clasping leaf-stalks. Darwin has made interesting experiments regarding the movements of the young shoots of the _Clematis_. He discovered that, “one revolved describing a broad oval, in five hours, thirty minutes; and another in six hours, twelve minutes; they follow the course of the sun.”

SWEET PEPPERBUSH. WHITE ALDER.
_Clethra alnifolia._ Heath Family.

A shrub from three to ten feet high. _Leaves._—Alternate, ovate,
sharply toothed. _Flowers._—White, growing in clustered finger-like
racemes. _Calyx._—Of five sepals. _Corolla._—Of five oblong petals.
_Stamens._—Ten, protruding. _Pistil._—One, three-cleft at apex.

Nearly all our flowering shrubs are past their glory by midsummer, when the fragrant blossoms of the sweet pepperbush begin to exhale their perfume from the cool thickets which line the lanes along the New England coast. There is a certain luxuriance in the vegetation of this part of the country in August which is generally lacking farther inland, where the fairer flowers have passed away, and the country begins to show the effects of the long days of heat and drought. The moisture of the air, and the peculiar character of the soil near the sea, are responsible for the freshness and beauty of many of the late flowers which we find in such a locality.

_Clethra_ is the ancient Greek name for the alder, which this plant somewhat resembles in foliage.

THORN-APPLE. JAMESTOWN WEED.
_Datura Stramonium._ Nightshade Family.

_Stem._—Smooth and branching. _Leaves._—Ovate, wavy-toothed or
angled. _Flowers._—White, large and showy, on short flower-stalks
from the forks of the branching stem. _Calyx._—Five-toothed.
_Corolla._—Funnel-form, the border five-toothed. _Stamens._—Five.
_Pistil._—One. _Fruit._—Green, globular, prickly.

The showy white flowers of the thorn-apple are found in waste places during the summer and autumn, a heap of rubbish forming their usual unattractive background. The plant is a rank, ill-scented one, which was introduced into our country from Asia. It was so associated with civilization as to be called the “white man’s plant” by the Indians.

Its purple-flowered relative, _D. Tatula_, is an emigrant from the tropics. This genus possesses narcotic-poisonous properties.

WILD BALSAM-APPLE.
_Echinocystis lobata._ Gourd Family.

_Stem._—Climbing, nearly smooth, with three-forked tendrils.
_Leaves._—Deeply and sharply five-lobed. _Flowers._—Numerous, small,
greenish-white, unisexual; the staminate ones growing in long racemes,
the pistillate ones in small clusters or solitary. _Fruit._—Fleshy,
oval, green, about two inches long, clothed with weak prickles.

This is an ornamental climber which is found bearing its flowers and fruit at the same time. It grows in rich soil along rivers in parts of New England, Pennsylvania, and westward; and is often cultivated in gardens, making an effective arbor-vine. The generic name is from two Greek words which signify _hedgehog_ and _bladder_, in reference to the prickly fruit.

WHITE ASTERS.
_Aster._ Composite Family (p. 13).

_Flower-heads._—Composed of white ray-flowers with a centre of yellow
disk-flowers.

While we have far fewer species of white than of blue or purple asters, some of these few are so abundant in individuals as to hold their own fairly well against their bright-hued rivals.

The slender zigzag stems, thin, coarsely toothed, heart-shaped leaves, and white, loosely clustered flower-heads of _A. corymbosus_, are noticeable along the shaded roadsides and in the open woods of August.

Bordering the dry fields at this same season are the spreading wand-like branches, thickly covered with the tiny flower-heads as with snowflakes, of _A. ericoides_.

_A. umbellatus_ is the tall white aster of the swamps and moist thickets. It sometimes reaches a height of seven feet, and can be identified by its long tapering leaves and large, flat flower-clusters.

A beautiful and abundant seaside species is _A. multiflorus_. Its small flower-heads are closely crowded on the low, bushy, spreading branches; its leaves are narrow, rigid, crowded, and somewhat hoary. The whole effect of the plant is heath-like; it also somewhat suggests an evergreen.

BONESET. THOROUGHWORT.
_Eupatorium perfoliatum._ Composite Family (p. 13).

_Stem._—Stout and hairy, two to four feet high. _Leaves._—Opposite,
widely spreading, lance-shaped, united at the base around the stem.
_Flower-heads._—Dull white, small, composed entirely of tubular
blossoms borne in large clusters.

To one whose childhood was passed in the country some fifty years ago the name or sight of this plant is fraught with unpleasant memories. The attic or wood-shed was hung with bunches of the dried herb which served as so many grewsome warnings against wet feet, or any over-exposure which might result in cold or malaria. A certain Nemesis, in the shape of a nauseous draught which was poured down the throat under the name of “boneset tea,” attended such a catastrophe. The Indians first discovered its virtues, and named the plant ague-weed. Possibly this is one of the few herbs whose efficacy has not been over-rated. Dr. Millspaugh says: “It is prominently adapted to cure a disease peculiar to the South, known as break-bone fever (Dengue), and it is without doubt from this property that the name boneset was derived.”

WHITE SNAKEROOT.
_Eupatorium ageratoides._ Composite Family (p. 13).

About three feet high. _Stem._—Smooth and branching.
_Leaves._—Opposite, long-stalked, broadly ovate, coarsely and sharply
toothed. _Flower-heads._—White, clustered, composed of tubular
blossoms.

Although this species is less common than boneset, it is frequently found blossoming in the rich Northern woods of late summer.

PLATE XXXII

BONESET.—_E. perfoliatum._
]

CLIMBING HEMP-WEED.
_Mikania scandens._ Composite Family (p. 13).

_Stem._—Twining and climbing, nearly smooth. _Leaves._—Opposite,
somewhat triangular-heart-shaped, pointed, toothed at the base.
_Flower-heads._—Dull white or flesh-color, composed of four tubular
flowers; clustered, resembling boneset.

In late summer one often finds the thickets which line the slow streams nearly covered with the dull white flowers of the climbing hemp-weed. At first sight the likeness to the boneset is so marked that the two plants are often confused, but a second glance discovers the climbing stems and triangular leaves which clearly distinguish this genus.

LADIES’ TRESSES.
_Spiranthes cernua._ Orchis Family (p. 17).

_Stem._—Leafy below, leafy-bracted above, six to twenty inches high.
_Leaves._—Linear-lance-shaped, the lowest elongated. _Flowers._—White,
fragrant, the lips wavy or crisped; growing in slender spikes.

This pretty little orchid is found in great abundance in September and October. The botany relegates it to “wet places,” but I have seen dry upland pastures as well as low-lying swamps profusely flecked with its slender, fragrant spikes. The braided appearance of these spikes would easily account for the popular name of ladies’ tresses; but we learn that the plant’s English name was formerly “ladies’ _traces_,” from a fancied resemblance between its twisted clusters and the lacings which played so important a part in the feminine toilet. I am told that in parts of New England the country people have christened the plant “wild hyacinth.”

The flowers of _S. gracilis_ are very small, and grow in a much more slender, one-sided spike than those of _S. cernua._ They are found in the dry woods and along the sandy hill-sides from July onward.

PLATE XXXIII

LADIES’ TRESSES.—_S. cernua._
]

GREEN-FLOWERED MILKWEED.
_Asclepias verticillata._ Milkweed Family.

_Stem._—Slender, very leafy to the summit. _Leaves._—Very narrow, from
three to six in a whorl. _Flowers._—Greenish-white, in small clusters
at the summit and along the sides of the stem. _Fruit._—Two erect
pods, one often stunted.

This species is one commonly found on dry uplands, especially southward, with flowers resembling in structure those of the other milkweeds. (Pl. .)

GROUNDSEL TREE.
_Baccharis halimifolia._ Composite Family (p. 13).

A shrub from six to twelve feet high. _Leaves._—Somewhat ovate
and wedge-shaped, coarsely toothed on the upper entire.
_Flower-heads._—Whitish or yellowish, composed of unisexual
tubular flowers, the stamens and pistils occurring on different
plants.

Some October day, as we pick our way through the salt marshes which lie back of the beach, we may spy in the distance a thicket which looks as though composed of such white-flowered shrubs as belong to June. Hastening to the spot we discover that the silky-tufted seeds of the female groundsel tree are responsible for our surprise. The shrub is much more noticeable and effective at this season than when—a few weeks previous—it was covered with its small white or yellowish flower-heads.

GRASS OF PARNASSUS.
_Parnassia Caroliniana._ Saxifrage Family.

_Stem._—Scape-like, nine inches to two feet high, with usually one
small rounded leaf clasping it below; bearing at its summit a single
flower. _Leaves._—Thickish, rounded, often heart-shaped, from the
root. _Flower._—White or cream-color, veiny. _Calyx._—Of five slightly
united sepals. _Corolla._—Of five veiny petals. _True Stamens._—Five,
alternate with the petals, and with clusters of sterile gland-tipped
filaments. _Pistil._—One, with four stigmas.

PLATE XXXIV

GRASS OF PARNASSUS.—_P. Caroliniana._
]

Gerarde indignantly declares that this plant has been described by blind men, not “such as are blinde in their eyes, but in their understandings, for if this plant be a kind of grasse then may the Butter-burre or Colte’s-foote be reckoned for grasses—as also all other plants whatsoever.” But if it covered Parnassus with its delicate veiny blossoms as abundantly as it does some moist New England meadows each autumn, the ancients may have reasoned that a plant almost as common as grass must somehow partake of its nature. The slender-stemmed, creamy flowers are never seen to better advantage than when disputing with the fringed gentian the possession of some luxurious swamp.

PEARLY EVERLASTING.
_Anaphilis margaritacea._ Composite Family (p. 13).

_Stem._—Erect, one or two feet high, leafy. _Leaves._—Broadly linear
to lance-shaped. _Flower-heads._—Composed entirely of tubular flowers
with very numerous pearly white involucral scales.

This species is common throughout our Northern woods and pastures, blossoming in August. Thoreau writes of it in September: “The pearly everlasting is an interesting white at present. Though the stems and leaves are still green, it is dry and unwithering like an artificial flower; its white, flexuous stem and branches, too, like wire wound with cotton. Neither is there any scent to betray it. Its amaranthine quality is instead of high color. Its very brown centre now affects me as a fresh and original color. It monopolizes small circles in the midst of sweet fern, perchance, on a dry hill-side.”

FRAGRANT LIFE-EVERLASTING.
_Gnaphalium polycephalum._ Composite Family (p. 13).

_Stem._—Erect, one to three feet high, woolly. _Leaves._—Lance-shaped.
_Flower-heads._—Yellowish-white, clustered at the summit of the
branches, composed of many tubular flowers.

This is the “fragrant life-everlasting,” as Thoreau calls it, of late summer. It abounds in rocky pastures and throughout the somewhat open woods.

NOTE.—Flowers so faintly tinged with color as to give a white effect
in the mass or at a distance are placed in the White section:
_greenish_ or _greenish-white_ flowers are also found here. The Moth
Mullein (p. 152) and Bouncing Bet (p. 196) are found frequently
bearing white flowers: indeed, white varieties of flowers which are
usually colored, need never surprise one.

II
YELLOW

MARSH MARIGOLD.
_Caltha palustris._ Crowfoot Family.

_Stem._—Hollow, furrowed. _Leaves._—Rounded, somewhat kidney-shaped.
_Flowers._—Golden-yellow. _Calyx._—Of five to nine petal-like sepals.
_Corolla._—None. _Stamens._—Numerous. _Pistils._—Five to ten, almost
without styles.

Hark, hark! the lark at Heaven’s gate sings,
And Phœbus ’gins arise,
His steeds to water at those springs,
On chaliced flowers that lies:
And winking Mary-buds begin
To ope their golden eyes;
With everything that pretty is—
My lady sweet, arise!
Arise, arise.—_Cymbeline._

We claim—and not without authority—that these “winking Mary-buds” are identical with the gay marsh marigolds which border our springs and gladden our wet meadows every April. There are those who assert that the poet had in mind the garden marigold—_Calendula_—but surely no cultivated flower could harmonize with the spirit of the song as do these gleaming swamp blossoms. We will yield to the garden if necessary—

The marigold that goes to bed with the sun
And with him rises weeping—

of the “Winter’s Tale,” but insist on retaining for that larger, lovelier garden in which we all feel a certain sense of possession—even if we are not taxed on real estate in any part of the country—the “golden eyes” of the Mary-buds, and we feel strengthened in our position by the statement in Mr. Robinson’s “Wild Garden” that the marsh marigold is so abundant along certain English rivers as to cause the ground to look as though paved with gold at those seasons when they overflow their banks.

These flowers are peddled about our streets every spring under the name of cowslips—a title to which they have no claim, and which is the result of that reckless fashion of christening unrecognized flowers which is so prevalent, and which is responsible for so much confusion about their English names.

The derivation of marigold is somewhat obscure. In the “Grete Herball” of the sixteenth century the flower is spoken of as _Mary Gowles_, and by the early English poets as _gold_ simply. As the first part of the word might be derived from the Anglo-Saxon _mere_—a marsh, it seems possible that the entire name may signify _marsh-gold_, which would be an appropriate and poetic title for this shining flower of the marshes.

SPICE-BUSH. BENJAMIN-BUSH. FEVER-BUSH.
_Lindera Benzoin._ Laurel Family.

An aromatic shrub from six to fifteen feet high. _Leaves._—Oblong,
pale underneath. _Flowers._—Appearing before the leaves in March or
April, honey-yellow, borne in clusters which are composed of smaller
clusters, surrounded by an involucre of four early falling scales.
_Fruit._—Red, berry-like, somewhat pear-shaped.

These are among the very earliest blossoms to be found in the moist woods of spring. During the Revolution the powdered berries were used as a substitute for allspice; while at the time of the Rebellion the leaves served as a substitute for tea.

YELLOW ADDER’S TONGUE. DOG’S TOOTH VIOLET.
_Erythronium Americanum._ Lily Family.

_Scape._—Six to nine inches high, one-flowered. _Leaves._—Two,
oblong-lance-shaped, pale green mottled with purple and white.
_Flower._—Rather large, pale yellow marked with purple, nodding.
_Perianth._—Of six recurved or spreading sepals. _Stamens._—Six.
_Pistil._—One.

The white blossoms of the shad-bush gleam from the thicket, and the sheltered hill-side is already starred with the blood-root and anemone when we go to seek the yellow adder’s tongue. We direct our steps toward one of those hollows in the wood which is watered by such a clear gurgling brook as must appeal to every country-loving heart; and there where the pale April sunlight filters through the leafless branches, nod myriads of these lilies, each one guarded by a pair of mottled, erect, sentinel-like leaves.

PLATE XXXV

MARSH MARIGOLD.—_C. palustris._
]

The two English names of this plant are unsatisfactory and inappropriate. If the marking of its leaves resembles the skin of an adder why name it after its tongue? And there is equally little reason for calling a lily a violet. Mr. Burroughs has suggested two pretty and significant names. “Fawn lily,” he thinks, would be appropriate, because a fawn is also mottled, and because the two leaves stand up with the alert, startled look of a fawn’s ears. The speckled foliage and perhaps its flowering season are indicated in the title “trout-lily,” which has a spring-like flavor not without charm. It is said that the early settlers of Pennsylvania named the flower “yellow snowdrop,” in memory of their own “harbinger-of-spring.”

The white adder’s tongue, _E. albidum_, is a species which is usually found somewhat westward.

CELANDINE.
_Chelidonium majus._ Poppy Family.

_Stem._—Brittle, with saffron-colored, acrid juice. _Leaves._—Compound
or divided, toothed or cut. _Flowers._—Yellow, clustered.
_Calyx._—Of two sepals falling early. _Corolla._—Of four petals.
_Stamens._—Sixteen to twenty-four. _Pistil._—One, with a two-lobed
stigma. _Pod._—Slender, linear.

The name of celandine must always suggest the poet who never seemed to weary of writing in its honor:

Pansies, lilies, kingcups, daisies,
Let them live upon their praises;
Long as there’s a sun that sets,
Primroses will have their glory;
Long as there are violets,
They will have a place in story;
There’s a flower that shall be mine,
’Tis the little celandine.

And when certain yellow flowers which frequent the village roadside are pointed out to us as those of the celandine, we feel a sense of disappointment that the favorite theme of Wordsworth should arouse within us so little enthusiasm. So perhaps we are rather relieved than otherwise to realize that the botanical name of this plant signifies _greater_ celandine; for we remember that the poet never failed to specify the _small_ celandine as the object of his praise. The small celandine is _Ranunculus ficaria_, one of the Crowfoot family, and is only found in this country as an escape from gardens.

PLATE XXXVI

YELLOW ADDER’S TONGUE.—_E. Americanum._
]

Gray tells us that the generic name, _Chelidonium_, from the ancient Greek for swallow, was given “because its flowers appear with the swallows;” but if we turn to Gerarde we read that the title was not bestowed “because it first springeth at the coming in of the swallowes, or dieth when they go away, for as we have saide, it may be founde all the yeare; but because some holde opinion, that with this herbe the dams restore sight to their young ones, when their eies be put out.”

CELANDINE POPPY.
_Stylophorum diphyllum._ Poppy Family.

_Stem._—Low, two-leaved. _Stem-leaves._—Opposite, deeply incised.
_Root-leaves._—Incised or divided. _Flowers._—Deep yellow, large, one
or more at the summit of the stem. _Calyx._—Of two hairy sepals.
_Corolla._—Of four petals. _Stamens._—Many. _Pistil._—One, with a two
to four-lobed stigma.

In April or May, somewhat south and westward, the woods are brightened, and occasionally the hill-sides are painted yellow, by this handsome flower. In both flower and foliage the plant suggests the celandine.

DOWNY YELLOW VIOLET.
_Viola pubescens._ Violet Family.

_Stems._—Leafy above, erect. _Leaves._—Broadly heart-shaped, toothed.
_Flowers._—Yellow, veined with purple, otherwise much like those of
the common blue violet.

When beechen buds begin to swell,
And woods the blue-bird’s warble know,
The yellow violet’s modest bell
Peeps from the last year’s leaves below,

sings Bryant, in his charming, but not strictly accurate poem, for the chances are that the “beechen buds” have almost burst into foliage, and that the “bluebird’s warble” has been heard for some time when these pretty flowers begin to dot the woods.

PLATE XXXVII

DOWNY YELLOW VIOLET.—_V. pubescens._
]

The lines which run:

Yet slight thy form, and low thy seat,
And earthward bent thy gentle eye,
Unapt the passing view to meet,
When loftier flowers are flaunting nigh,

would seem to apply more correctly to the round-leaved, _V. rotundifolia_, than to the downy violet, for although its large, flat shining leaves are somewhat conspicuous, its flowers are borne singly on a low scape, which would be less apt to attract notice than the tall, leafy flowering stems of the other.

COMMON CINQUEFOIL. FIVE FINGER.
_Potentilla Canadensis._ Rose Family.

_Stem._—Slender, prostrate, or sometimes erect. _Leaves._—Divided
really into three leaflets, but apparently into five by the parting of
the lateral leaflets. _Flowers._—Yellow, growing singly from the axils
of the leaves. _Calyx._—Deeply five-cleft, with bracts between each
tooth, thus appearing ten-cleft. _Corolla._—Of five rounded petals.
_Stamens._—Many. _Pistils._—Many in a head.

From spring to nearly midsummer the roads are bordered and the fields carpeted with the bright flowers of the common cinquefoil. The passer-by unconsciously betrays his recognition of some of the prominent features of the Rose family by often assuming that the plant is a yellow-flowered wild strawberry. Both of the English names refer to the pretty foliage, cinquefoil being derived from the French _cinque feuilles_. The generic name, _Potentilla_, has reference to the powerful medicinal properties formerly attributed to the genus.

SHRUBBY CINQUEFOIL. FIVE FINGER.
_Potentilla fruticosa._ Rose Family.

_Stem._—Erect, shrubby, one to four feet high. _Leaves._—Divided into
five to seven narrow leaflets. _Flowers._—Yellow, resembling those of
the common cinquefoil.

PLATE XXXVIII

SHRUBBY CINQUEFOIL.—_P. fruticosa._
]

Of all the cinquefoils perhaps this one most truly merits the title five finger. Certainly its slender leaflets are much more finger-like than those of the common cinquefoil. It is not a common plant in most localities, but is very abundant among the Berkshire Hills.

SILVERY CINQUEFOIL.
_Potentilla argentea._ Rose Family.

_Stems._—Ascending, branched at the summit, white, woolly.
_Leaves._—Divided into five wedge-oblong, deeply incised leaflets,
which are green above, white with silvery wool, beneath.

The silvery cinquefoil has rather large yellow flowers which are found in dry fields throughout the summer as far south as New Jersey.

GOLDEN RAGWORT. SQUAW-WEED.
_Senecio aureus._ Composite Family (p. 13).

_Stem._—One to three feet high. _Root-leaves._—Rounded, the
larger ones mostly heart-shaped, toothed, and long-stalked.
_Stem-leaves._—The lower lyre-shaped, the upper lance-shaped,
incised, set close to the stem. _Flower-heads._—Yellow,
clustered, composed of both ray and disk-flowers.

A child would perhaps liken the flower of the golden ragwort to a yellow daisy. Stain yellow the white rays of the daisy, diminish the size of the whole head somewhat, and you have a pretty good likeness of the ragwort. There need be little difficulty in the identification of this plant—although there are several marked varieties—for its flowers are abundant in the early year, at which season but few members of the Composite family are abroad.

The generic name is from _senex_—an old man—alluding to the silky down of the seeds, which is supposed to suggest the silvery hairs of age.

Closely allied to the golden ragwort is the common groundsel, _S. vulgaris_, which is given as food to caged birds. The flower-heads of this species are without rays.

——— ———
_Clintonia borealis._ Lily Family.

_Scape._—Five to eight inches high, sheathed at its base by the
stalks of two to four large, oblong, conspicuous leaves.
_Flowers._—Greenish-yellow, rather large, rarely solitary.
_Perianth._—Of six sepals. _Stamens._—Six, protruding.
_Pistil._—One, protruding. _Fruit._—A blue berry.

PLATE XXXIX

_Clintonia borealis._
]

When rambling through the cool, moist woods our attention is often attracted by patches of great dark, shining, leaves; and if it be late in the year we long to know the flower of which this rich foliage is the setting. To satisfy our curiosity we must return the following May or June, when we shall probably find that a slender scape rises from its midst bearing at its summit several bell-shaped flowers, which, without either high color or fragrance, are peculiarly charming. It is hard to understand why this beautiful plant has received no English name. As to its generic title we cannot but sympathize with Thoreau. “Gray should not have named it from the Governor of New York,” he complains; “what is he to the lovers of flowers in Massachusetts? If named after a man, it must be a man of flowers.... Name your canals and railroads after Clinton, if you please, but his name is not associated with flowers.”

_C. umbellata_ is a more Southern species, with smaller white flowers, which are speckled with green or purplish dots.

YELLOW LADY’S SLIPPER. WHIP-POOR-WILL’S SHOE.
_Cypripedium pubescens._ Orchis Family (p. 17).

_Stem._—About two feet high, downy, leafy to the top, one to
three-flowered. _Leaves._—Alternate, broadly oval, many-nerved and
plaited. _Flowers._—Large, yellow. _Perianth._—Two of the three
brownish, elongated sepals united into one under the lip; the lateral
petals linear, wavy-twisted, brownish; the pale yellow lip an inflated
pouch. _Stamens._—Two, the short filaments of each bearing a
two-celled anther. _Stigma._—Broad, obscurely three-lobed, moist and
roughish.

The yellow lady’s slipper usually blossoms in May or June, a few days later than its pink sister, _C. acaule._ Regarding its favorite haunts, Mr. Baldwin[3] says: “Its preference is for maples, beeches, and particularly butternuts, and for sloping or hilly ground, and I always look with glad suspicion at a knoll covered with ferns, cohoshes, and trilliums, expecting to see a clump of this plant among them. Its sentinel-like habit of choosing ‘sightly places’ leads it to venture well up on mountain sides.”

The long, wavy, brownish petals give the flower an alert, startled look when surprised in its lonely hiding-places.

PLATE XL

SMALLER YELLOW LADY’S SLIPPER.—_C. parviflorum._
]

_C. parviflorum_, the small yellow lady’s slipper, differs from _C. pubescens_ in the superior richness of its color as well as in its size. It also has the charm of fragrance.

EARLY MEADOW PARSNIP.
_Zizia aurea._ Parsley Family (p. 15).

One to three feet high. _Leaves._—Twice or thrice-compound, leaflets
oblong to lance-shaped, toothed. _Flowers._—Yellow, small, in compound
umbels.

This is one of the earliest members of the Parsley family to appear. Its golden flower-clusters brighten the damp meadows and the borders of streams in May or June and closely resemble the meadow parsnip, _Thaspium aureum_, of which this species was formerly considered a variety, of the later year.

The tall, stout, common wild parsnip, _Pastinaca sativa_, is another yellow representative of this family in which white flowers prevail, the three plants here mentioned being the only yellow species commonly encountered. The common parsnip may be identified by its grooved stem and simply compound leaves. Its roots have been utilized for food at least since the reign of Tiberius, for Pliny tells us that that Emperor brought them to Rome from the banks of the Rhine, where they were successfully cultivated.

GOLDEN CLUB.
_Orontium aquaticum._ Arum Family.

_Scape._—Slender, elongated. _Leaves._—Long-stalked, oblong, floating.
_Flowers._—Small, yellow, crowded over the narrow spike or spadix.

When we go to the bogs in May to hunt for the purple flower of the pitcher-plant we are likely to chance upon the well-named golden club. This curious-looking club-shaped object, which is found along the borders of ponds, indicates its relationship to the jack-in-the-pulpit, and still more to the calla lily, but unlike them its tiny flowers are shielded by no protecting spathe.

Kalm tells us in his “Travels,” “that the Indians called the plant _Taw-Kee_, and used its dried seeds as food.”

SPEARWORT.
_Ranunculus ambigens._ Crowfoot Family.

_Stems._—One to two feet high. _Leaves._—Oblong or lance-shaped,
mostly toothed, contracted into a half-clasping leaf-stalk.
_Flowers._—Bright yellow, solitary or clustered. _Calyx._—Of
five sepals. _Corolla._—Of five to seven oblong petals.
_Stamens._—Indefinite in number, occasionally few. _Pistils._—Numerous
in a head.

Many weeks after the marsh marigolds have passed away, just such marshy places as they affected are brightly flecked with gold. Wondering, perhaps, if they can be flowering for the second time in the season, we wade recklessly into the bog to rescue, not the marsh marigold, but its near relation, the spearwort, which is still more closely related to the buttercup, as a little comparison of the two flowers will show. This plant is especially common at the North.

INDIAN CUCUMBER-ROOT.
_Medeola Virginica._ Lily Family.

_Root._—Tuberous, shaped somewhat like a cucumber, with a suggestion
of its flavor. _Stem._—Slender, from one to three feet high, at first
clothed with wool. _Leaves._—In two whorls on the flowering plants,
the lower of five to nine oblong, pointed leaves set close to the
stem, the upper usually of three or four much smaller ones.
_Flowers._—Greenish-yellow, small, clustered, recurved, set close to
the upper leaves. _Perianth._—Of three sepals and three petals, oblong
and alike. _Stamens._—Six, reddish-brown. _Pistil._—With three
stigmas, long, recurved, and reddish-brown. _Fruit._—A purple berry.

One is more apt to pause in September to note the brilliant foliage and purple berries of this little plant than to gather the drooping inconspicuous blossoms for his bunch of wood-flowers in June. The generic name is after the sorceress Medea, on account of its supposed medicinal virtues, of which, however, there seems to be no record.

The tuberous rootstock has the flavor, and something the shape, of the cucumber, and was probably used as food by the Indians. It would not be an uninteresting study to discover which of our common wild plants are able to afford pleasant and nutritious food; in such a pursuit many of the otherwise unattractive popular names would prove suggestive.

COMMON BLADDERWORT.
_Utricularia vulgaris._ Bladderwort Family.

_Stems._—Immersed, one to three feet long. _Leaves._—Many-parted,
hair-like, bearing numerous bladders. _Scape._—Six to twelve inches
long. _Flowers._—Yellow, five to twelve on each scape.
_Calyx._—Two-lipped. _Corolla._—Two-lipped, spurred at the base.
_Stamens._—Two. _Pistil._—One.

This curious water-plant may or may not have roots; in either case it is not fastened to the ground, but is floated by means of the many bladders which are borne on its finely dissected leaves. It is commonly found in ponds and slow streams, flowering throughout the summer. Thoreau calls it “a dirty-conditioned flower, like a sluttish woman with a gaudy yellow bonnet.”

The horned bladderwort, _U. cornuta_, roots in the peat-bogs and sandy swamps. Its large yellow helmet-shaped flowers are very fragrant, less than half a dozen being borne on each scape.

YELLOW POND-LILY. SPATTER DOCK.
_Nuphar advena._ Water-lily Family.

_Leaves._—Floating or erect, roundish to oblong, with a deep cleft at
their base. _Flowers._—Yellow, sometimes purplish, large, somewhat
globular. _Calyx._—Of five or six sepals or more, yellow or green
without. _Corolla._—Of numerous small, thick, fleshy petals which are
shorter than the stamens and resemble them. _Stamens._—Very numerous.
_Pistil._—One, with a disk-like, many-rayed stigma.

Bordering the slow streams and stagnant ponds from May till August may be seen the yellow pond-lilies. These flowers lack the delicate beauty and fragrance of the white water-lilies; having, indeed, either from their odor, or appearance, or the form of their fruit, won for themselves in England the unpoetic title of “brandy-bottle.” Owing to their love of mud they have also been called “frog-lilies.” The Indians used their roots for food.

PLATE XLI

INDIAN CUCUMBER-ROOT.—_M. Virginiana._
]

WINTER-CRESS, YELLOW ROCKET. HERB OF ST. BARBARA.
_Barbarea vulgaris._ Mustard Family (p. 17).

_Stem._—Smooth. _Leaves._—The lower lyre-shaped; the upper ovate,
toothed or deeply incised at their base. _Flowers._—Yellow, growing in
racemes. _Pod._—Linear, erect or slightly spreading.

As early as May we find the bright flowers of the winter-cress along the roadside. This is probably the first of the yellow mustards to appear.

BLACK MUSTARD.
_Brassica nigra._ Mustard Family (p. 17).

Often several feet high. _Stem._—Branching. _Leaves._—The lower with a
large terminal lobe and a few small lateral ones. _Flowers._—Yellow,
rather small, growing in a raceme. _Pods._—Smooth, erect, appressed,
about half an inch long.

Many are familiar with the appearance of this plant who are ignorant of its name. The pale yellow flowers spring from the waste places along the roadside and border the dry fields throughout the summer. The tall spreading branches recall the biblical description: “It groweth up, and becometh greater than all herbs, and shooteth out great branches; so that the fowls of the air may lodge under the shadow of it.”

This plant is extensively cultivated in Europe, its ground seeds forming the well-known condiment. The ancients used it for medicinal purposes. It has come across the water to us, and is a troublesome weed in many parts of the country.

WILD RADISH.
_Raphanus Raphanistrum._ Mustard Family (p. 17).

One to three feet high. _Leaves._—Rough, lyre-shaped.
_Flowers._—Yellow, veiny, turning white or purplish; larger than those
of the black mustard, otherwise resembling them. _Pod._—Often
necklace-form by constriction between the seeds.

This plant is a troublesome weed in many of our fields. It is the stock from which the garden radish has been raised.

PLATE XLII

WINTER-CRESS.—_B. vulgaris._
]

CYNTHIA. DWARF DANDELION.
_Krigia Virginica._ Composite Family (p. 13).

_Stems._—Several, becoming branched, leafy. _Leaves._—Earlier ones
roundish; the latter narrower and often cleft. _Flower-heads._—Yellow,
composed entirely of strap-shaped flowers.

In some parts of the country these flowers are among the earliest to appear. They are found in New England, as well as south and westward.

The flowers of _K. amplexicaulis_ appear later, and their range is a little farther south. Near Philadelphia great masses of the orange-colored blossoms and pale green stems and foliage line the railway embankments in June.

RATTLESNAKE-WEED.
_Hieracium venosum._ Composite Family (p. 13).

_Stem or Scape._—One or two feet high, naked or with a single leaf,
smooth, slender, forking above. _Leaves._—From the root, oblong, often
making a sort of flat rosette, usually conspicuously veined with
purple. _Flower-heads._—Yellow, composed entirely of strap-shaped
flowers.

The loosely clustered yellow flower-heads of the rattlesnake-weed somewhat resemble small dandelions. They abound in the pine-woods and dry, waste places of early summer. The purple-veined leaves, whose curious markings give to the plant its common name, grow close to the ground and are supposed to be efficacious in rattlesnake bites. Here again crops out the old “doctrine of signatures,” for undoubtedly this virtue has been attributed to the species solely on account of the fancied resemblance between its leaves and the markings of the rattlesnake.

_H. scabrum_ is another common species, which may be distinguished from the rattlesnake-weed by its stout, leafy stem and unveined leaves.

DANDELION.
_Taraxacum officinale._ Composite Family (p. 13).

PLATE XLIII

RATTLESNAKE-WEED.—_H. venosum._
]

If Emerson’s definition of a weed, as a plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered, be correct, we can hardly place the dandelion in that category, for its young sprouts have been valued as a pot-herb, its fresh leaves enjoyed as a salad, and its dried roots used as a substitute for coffee in various countries and ages. It is said that the Apache Indians so greatly relish it as food, that they scour the country for many days in order to procure enough to appease their appetites, and that the quantity consumed by one individual exceeds belief. The feathery-tufted seeds which form the downy balls beloved as “clocks” by country children, are delicately and beautifully adapted to dissemination by the wind, which ingenious arrangement partly accounts for the plant’s wide range. The common name is a corruption of the French _dent de lion_. There is a difference of opinion as to which part of the plant is supposed to resemble a lion’s tooth. Some fancy the jagged leaves gave rise to the name, while others claim that it refers to the yellow flowers, which they liken to the golden teeth of the heraldic lion. In nearly every European country the plant bears a name of similar signification.

POVERTY-GRASS.
_Hudsonia tomentosa._ Rock-rose Family.

“Bushy, heath-like little shrubs, seldom a foot high.” (Gray.)
_Leaves._—Small, oval or narrowly oblong, pressed close to the stem.
_Flowers._—Bright yellow, small, numerous, crowded along the upper
part of the branches. _Calyx._—Of five sepals, the two outer much
smaller. _Corolla._—Of five petals. _Stamens._—Nine to thirty.
_Pistil._—One, with a long and slender style.

In early summer many of the sand-hills along the New England coast are bright with the yellow flowers of this hoary little shrub. It is also found as far south as Maryland and near the Great Lakes. Each blossom endures for a single day only. The plant’s popular name is due to its economical habit of utilizing sandy unproductive soil where little else will flourish.

BUSH-HONEYSUCKLE.
_Diervilla trifida._ Honeysuckle Family.

An upright shrub from one to four feet high. _Leaves._—Opposite,
oblong, taper-pointed. _Flowers._—Yellow, sometimes much tinged with
red, clustered usually in threes, in the axils of the upper leaves and
at the summit of the stem. _Calyx._—With slender awl-shaped lobes.
_Corolla._—Funnel-form, five-lobed, the lower lobe larger than the
others and of a deeper yellow, with a small nectar-bearing gland at
its base. _Stamens._—Five. _Pistil._—One.

PLATE XLIV

BUSH-HONEYSUCKLE.—_D. trifida._
]

This pretty little shrub is found along our rocky hills and mountains. The blossoms appear in early summer, and form a good example of nectar-bearing flowers. The lower lobe of the corolla is crested and more deeply colored than the others, thus advising the bee of secreted treasure. The hairy filaments of the stamens are so placed as to protect the nectar from injury by rain. When the blossom has been despoiled and at the same time fertilized, for the nectar-seeking bee has probably deposited some pollen upon its pistil, the color of the corolla changes from a pale to a deep yellow, thus giving warning to the insect world that further attentions would be useless to both parties.

COW WHEAT.
_Melampyrum Americanum._ Figwort Family.

_Stem._—Low, erect, branching. _Leaves._—Opposite, lance-shaped.
_Flowers._—Small, greenish-yellow, solitary in the axils of the upper
leaves. _Calyx._—Bell-shaped, four-cleft. _Corolla._—Two-lipped, upper
lip arched, lower three-lobed and spreading at the apex.
_Stamens._—Four. _Pistil._—One.

In the open woods, from June until September, we encounter the pale yellow flowers of this rather insignificant little plant. The cow wheat was formerly cultivated by the Dutch as food for cattle. The Spanish name, _Trigo de Vaca_, would seem to indicate a similar custom in Spain. The generic name, _Melampyrum_, is from the Greek, and signifies _black wheat_, in reference to the appearance of the seeds of some species when mixed with grain. The flower would not be likely to attract one’s attention were it not exceedingly common in some parts of the country, flourishing especially in our more eastern woodlands.

MEADOW LILY. WILD YELLOW LILY.
_Lilium Canadense._ Lily Family.

_Stem._—Two to five feet high. _Leaves._—Whorled, lance-shaped.
_Flowers._—Yellow, spotted with reddish-brown, bell-shaped, two to
three inches long. _Perianth._—Of six recurved sepals, with a
nectar-bearing furrow at their base. _Stamens._—Six, with anthers
loaded with brown pollen. _Pistil._—One, with a three-lobed stigma.

What does the summer bring which is more enchanting than a sequestered wood-bordered meadow hung with a thousand of these delicate, nodding bells which look as though ready to tinkle at the least disturbance and sound an alarum among the flowers?

PLATE XLV

MEADOW LILY.—_L. Canadense._
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