Chapter CIV: JACK-IN-THE-PULPIT, Arisæma triphyllum, 281 (6)

VIOLET WOOD SORREL.
_Oxalis violacea._ Geranium Family.

_Scape._—Five to nine inches high, several-flowered. _Leaves._—Divided
into three clover-like leaflets. _Flowers._—Violet-colored, clustered
on the scape. _Calyx._—Of five sepals. _Corolla._—Of five petals.
_Stamens._—Ten. _Pistil._—One, with five styles.

This little plant is found in somewhat open or rocky woods, its lovely delicate flower-clusters appearing in May or June. This species is more common southward, while the pink-veined wood sorrel (Pl. XVII.) abounds in the cool woods of the North.

PITCHER-PLANT. SIDE-SADDLE FLOWER. HUNTSMAN’S CUP.
_Sarracenia purpurea._ Pitcher-plant Family.

_Scape._—Naked, one-flowered, about one foot high.
_Leaves._—Pitcher-shaped, broadly winged, hooded.
_Flower._—Red-purple, large, nodding. _Calyx._—Of five colored sepals,
with three bractlets at the base. _Corolla._—Of five fiddle-shaped
petals which are arched over the greenish-yellow style.
_Stamens._—Numerous. _Pistil._—One, with a short style which expands
at the summit into a petal-like umbrella-shaped body, with five small
hooked stigmas.

PLATE LXXXVI

ROBIN’S PLANTAIN.—_E. bellidifolius._
]

The large nodding flower of the pitcher-plant may be found during June in the peat-bogs of New England as well as farther south and west. It is less familiar to most people than the curious pitcher-like leaves, which are usually partially filled with water and drowned insects; part of their inner surface being covered with a sugary exudation, below which, for a space, they are highly polished, while on the lower portion grow the stiff bristles which point downward. Insects attracted by the sugary secretion find themselves prisoners, as they can seldom fight their way through the opposing bristles, neither can they usually escape by such a perpendicular flight as would be necessary from the form of the cavity. The decomposed bodies of these unfortunates are supposed to contribute to the nourishment of the plant, as it is hardly probable that this elaborate contrivance answers no special purpose.

WILD GERANIUM. WILD CRANESBILL.
_Geranium maculatum._ Geranium Family.

_Stem._—Erect, hairy. _Leaves._—About five-parted, the divisions lobed
and cut. _Flowers._—Pale pink-purple, rather large. _Calyx._—Of five
sepals. _Corolla._—Of five petals. _Stamens._—Ten. _Pistil._—With five
styles, which split apart at maturity so elastically as to discharge
the seeds to some distance.

In spring and early summer the open woods and shaded roadsides are abundantly brightened with these graceful flowers. They are of peculiar interest because of their close kinship with the species, _G. pratense_, which first attracted the attention of the German scholar, Sprengel, to the close relations existing between flowers and insects. The beak-like appearance of its fruit give the plant both its popular and scientific names, for _geranium_ is from the Greek for crane. The specific title, _maculatum_, refers to the somewhat blotched appearance of the older leaves.

GILL-OVER-THE-GROUND. GROUND IVY.
_Nepeta Glechoma._ Mint Family (p. 16).

_Stems._—Creeping and trailing. _Leaves._—Small and kidney-shaped.
_Flowers._—Bluish-purple, loosely clustered in the axils of the
leaves. _Calyx._—Five-toothed. _Corolla._—Two-lipped, the upper lip
erect and two-cleft, the lower spreading and three-cleft.
_Stamens._—Four. _Pistil._—One, two-lobed at the apex.

PLATE LXXXVII

WILD GERANIUM.—_G. maculatum._
]

As the pleasant aroma of its leaves suggest, this little plant is closely allied to the catnip. Its common title of Gill-over-the-ground, appeals to one who is sufficiently without interest in pasture-land (for it is obnoxious to cattle) to appreciate the pleasant fashion in which this little immigrant from Europe has made itself at home here, brightening the earth with such a generous profusion of blossoms every May. But it is somewhat of a disappointment to learn that this name is derived from the French _guiller_, and refers to its former use in the fermentation of beer. Oddly enough the name of alehoof, which the plant has borne in England and which naturally has been supposed to refer to this same custom, is said by a competent authority (Professor Earle, of Oxford) to have no connection with it, but to signify _another sort of hofe_, _hofe_ being the early English name for the violet, which resembles these flowers in color.

The plant was highly prized formerly as a domestic medicine. Gerarde claims that “boiled in mutton-broth it helpeth weake and akeing backs.”

LARKSPUR.
_Delphinium._ Crowfoot Family.

Six inches to five feet high. _Leaves._—Divided or cut.
_Flowers._—Blue or purplish, growing in terminal racemes. _Calyx._—Of
five irregular petal-like sepals, the upper one prolonged into a spur.
_Corolla._—Of four irregular petals, the upper pair continued backward
in long spurs which are enclosed in the spur of the calyx, the lower
pair with short claws. _Stamens._—Indefinite in number. _Pistils._—One
to five, forming pods in fruit.

In April and May the bright blue clusters of the dwarf larkspur, _D. tricorne_, are noticeable in parts of the country. Unfortunately they are not found east of Western Pennsylvania.

The tall wand-like purplish racemes of the tall larkspur, _D. exaltatum_, are found in July in the rich soil of Pennsylvania, and much farther south and west as well.

WILD LUPINE.
_Lupinus perennis._ Pulse Family (p. 16).

_Stem._—Erect, one to two feet high. _Leaves._—Divided into seven to
eleven leaflets. _Flowers._—Blue, papilionaceous, showy, in a long
raceme. _Pod._—Broad, hairy.

In June and July the long bright clusters of the wild lupine are very noticeable in many of our sandy fields. Its pea-like blossoms serve to easily identify it. Under date of June 8th, Thoreau writes: “The lupine is now in its glory.... It paints a whole hill-side with its blue, making such a field (if not meadow) as Proserpine might have wandered in. Its leaf was made to be covered with dewdrops. I am quite excited by this prospect of blue flowers in clumps, with narrow intervals, such a profusion of the heavenly, the Elysian color, as if these were the Elysian fields.... That is the value of the lupine. The earth is blued with it.”

HAREBELL.
_Campanula rotundifolia._ Campanula Family.

_Stem._—Slender, branching, from five to twelve inches high.
_Root-leaves._—Heart-shaped or ovate, early withering.
_Stem-leaves._—Numerous, long and narrow. _Flowers._—Bright blue,
nodding from hair-like stalks. _Calyx._—Five-cleft, the lobes
awl-shaped. _Corolla._—Bell-shaped, five-lobed. _Stamens._—Five.
_Pistil._—One, with three stigmas.

This slender, pretty plant, hung with its tremulous flowers, springs from the rocky cliffs which buttress the river as well as from those which crown the mountain. I have seen the west shore of the Hudson bright with its delicate bloom in June, and the summits of the Catskills tinged with its azure in September. The drooping posture of these flowers protect their pollen from rain or dew. They have come to us from Europe, and are identical, I believe, with the celebrated Scotch bluebells.

BLUE-EYED GRASS.
_Sisyrinchium angustifolium._ Iris Family.

Four to twelve inches high. _Leaves._—Narrow and grass-like.
_Flowers._—Blue or purple, with a yellow centre.
_Perianth._—Six-parted, the divisions bristle-pointed.
_Stamens._—Three, united. _Pistil._—One, with three thread-like
stigmas.

For the sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat,
But it withereth the grass,
And the flower thereof falleth,
And the grace of the fashion of it perisheth.

So reads the passage in the Epistle of James, which seems so graphically to describe the brief life of this little flower, that we might almost believe the Apostle had had it in mind, were it to be found in the East.

The blue-eyed grass belongs to the same family as the showy fleur-de-lis and blossoms during the summer, being especially plentiful in moist meadows. It is sometimes called “eye-bright,” which name belongs by rights to _Euphrasia officinalis._

VENUS’S LOOKING-GLASS.
_Specularia perfoliata._ Campanula Family.

_Stem._—Somewhat hairy, three to twenty inches high.
_Leaves._—Toothed, rounded, clasping by the heart-shaped base.
_Flowers._—Blue. _Calyx._—Three, four, or five-lobed.
_Corolla._—Wheel-shaped, five-lobed. _Stamens._—Five. _Pistil._—One,
with three stigmas.

We borrow from Mr. Burroughs’s “Bunch of Herbs” a description of this little plant, which blossoms from May till August. “A pretty and curious little weed, sometimes found growing in the edge of the garden, is the clasping specularia, a relative of the harebell and of the European Venus’s looking-glass. Its leaves are shell-shaped, and clasp the stalk so as to form little shallow cups. In the bottom of each cup three buds appear that never expand into flowers, but when the top of the stalk is reached, one and sometimes two buds open a large, delicate purple-blue corolla. All the first-born of this plant are still-born as it were; only the latest, which spring from its summit, attain to perfect bloom.”

SKULL-CAP.
_Scutellaria._ Mint Family (p. 16).

_Stem._—Square, usually one or two feet high. _Leaves._—Opposite,
oblong, lance-shaped or linear. _Flowers._—Blue. _Calyx._—Two-lipped,
the upper lip with a small, helmet-like appendage which at once
identifies this genus. _Corolla._—Two-lipped, the upper lip arched,
the lateral lobes mostly connected with the upper lip, the lower lip
spreading and notched at the apex. _Stamens._—Four, in pairs.
_Pistil._—One, with a two-lobed style.

The prettiest and most striking of this genus is the larger skull-cap, _S. integrifolia_, whose bright blue flowers are about one inch long, growing in terminal racemes. In June and July they may be found among the long grass of the roadsides and meadows. They are easily identified by the curious little appendage on the upper part of the calyx, which gives to this genus its common name.

PLATE LXXXVIII

BLUE-EYED GRASS.—_S. angustifolium._
]

Perhaps the best-known member of the group is the mad-dog skull-cap, _S. lateriflora_, which delights in wet places, bearing small, inconspicuous flowers in one-sided racemes. This plant is quite smooth, while that of _S. integrifolia_ is rather downy. It was formerly believed to be a sure cure for hydrophobia.

_S. galericulata_ is usually found somewhat northward. Its flowers are much larger than those of _S. lateriflora_, but smaller than those of _S. integrifolia._ They grow singly from the axils of the upper leaves.

FLEUR-DE-LIS. LARGER BLUE FLAG.
_Iris versicolor._ Iris Family.

_Stem._—Stout, angled on one side, leafy, one to three feet high.
_Leaves._—Flat and sword-shaped, with their inner surfaces coherent
for about half of their length. _Flowers._—Large and showy,
violet-blue, variegated with green, yellow, or white; purple-veined.
_Perianth._—Six-cleft, the three outer divisions recurved, the three
inner smaller and erect. _Stamens._—Three, covered by the three
overarching, petal-like divisions of the style. _Pistil._—One, with
its style cleft into three petal-like divisions, each of which bears
its stigma on its inner surface.

Born in the purple, born to joy and pleasance,
Thou dost not toil nor spin,
But makest glad and radiant with thy presence
The meadow and the lin.[11]

In both form and color this is one of the most regal of our wild flowers, and it is easy to understand why the fleur-de-lis was chosen as the emblem of a royal house, although the especial flower which Louis VII. of France selected as his badge was probably white.

It will surprise most of us to learn that the common name which we have borrowed from the French does not signify “flower-of-the-lily,” as it would if literally translated, but “flower of Louis,” _lis_ being a corruption of the name of the king who first adopted it as his badge.

PLATE LXXXIX

FLEUR-DE-LIS.—_I. versicolor._
]

For the botanist the blue-flag possesses special interest. It is a conspicuous example of a flower which has guarded itself against self-fertilization, and which is beautifully calculated to secure the opposite result. The position of the stamens is such that their pollen could not easily reach the stigmas of the same flower, for these are borne on the inner surface of the petal-like, overarching styles. There is no prospect here of any seed being set unless the pollen of another flower is secured. Now what are the chances in favor of this? They are many: In the first place the blossom is unusually large and showy, from its size and shape alone almost certain to arrest the attention of the passing bee; next, the color is not only conspicuous, but it is also one which has been found to be especially attractive to bees; blue and purple flowers being particularly sought by these insects. When the bee reaches the flower he alights on the only convenient landing-place, one of the recurved sepals; following the deep purple veins which experience has taught him lead to the hidden nectar, he thrusts his head below the anther, brushing off its pollen, which he carries to another flower.

The rootstocks of the Florentine species of iris yield the familiar “orris-root.”

The family name is from the Greek for _rainbow_, on account of the rich and varied hues of its different members.

The plant abounds in wet meadows, the blossoms appearing in June.

AMERICAN BROOKLIME.
_Veronica Americana._ Figwort Family.

_Stem._—Smooth, reclining at base, then erect, eight to fifteen inches
high. _Leaves._—Mostly opposite, oblong, toothed. _Flowers._—Blue,
clustered in the axils of the leaves. _Calyx._—Four-parted.
_Corolla._—Wheel-shaped, four-parted. _Stamens._—Two. _Pistil._—One.

Perhaps the prettiest of the blue _Veronicas_ is the American brooklime. Its clustered flowers make bright patches in moist ground which might, at a little distance, be mistaken for beds of forget-me-nots. It blossoms from June till August, and is almost as common in wet ditches and meadows as its sister, the common speedwell, is in dry and open places. Some of the members of this genus were once believed to possess great medicinal virtues, and won for themselves in Europe the laudatory names of Honor and Praise.

PLATE XC

AMERICAN BROOKLIME.—_V. Americana._
]

COMMON SPEEDWELL.
_Veronica officinalis._ Figwort Family.

The little speedwell’s darling blue

is noticeable during June and July, when clusters of these tiny flowers brighten many a waste spot along the sunny roadsides. This is a hairy little plant, with a stem which lies upon the ground and takes root, thus spreading itself quickly over the country.

ARETHUSA.
_Arethusa bulbosa._ Orchis Family (p. 17).

_Scape._—Sheathed, from a globular bulb, usually one-flowered.
_Leaf._—“Solitary, linear, nerved, hidden in the sheaths of the scape,
protruding after flowering.” (Gray.) _Flower._—Rose-purple, large,
with a bearded lip.

In some localities this beautiful flower is very plentiful. Every June will find certain New England marshes tinged with its rose-purple blossoms, while in other near and promising bogs it may be sought vainly for years. At least it may be hoped for in wet places as far south as North Carolina, its most favorite haunt being perhaps a cranberry-swamp. Concerning it, Mr. Burroughs writes: “Arethusa was one of the nymphs who attended Diana, and was by that goddess turned into a fountain, that she might escape the god of the river Alpheus, who became desperately in love with her on seeing her at her bath. Our Arethusa is one of the prettiest of the orchids, and has been pursued through many a marsh and quaking-bog by her lovers. She is a bright pink-purple flower an inch or more long, with the odor of sweet violets. The sepals and petals rise up and arch over the column, which we may call the heart of the flower, as if shielding it. In Plymouth County, Mass., where the Arethusa seems common, I have heard it called Indian pink.”

PURPLE FRINGED ORCHISES.
Orchis Family (p. 17).

_Habenaria fimbriata._

_Leaves._—Oval or oblong; the upper, few, passing into lance-shaped
bracts. _Flowers._—Purple, rather large; with a fan-shaped,
three-parted lip, its divisions fringed; with a long curving spur;
growing in a spike.

_Habenaria psycodes._

_Leaves._—Oblong or lance-shaped, the upper passing into linear
bracts. _Flowers._—Purple, fragrant, resembling those of _H.
fimbriata_, but much smaller, with a less fringed lip; growing in a
spike.

We should search the wet meadows in early June if we wish to be surely in time for the larger of the purple fringed orchises, for _H. fimbriata_ somewhat antedates _H. psycodes_, which is the commoner species of the two and appears in July. Under date of June 9th, Thoreau writes: “Find the great fringed orchis out apparently two or three days, two are almost fully out, two or three only budded; a large spike of peculiarly delicate, pale purple flowers growing in the luxuriant and shady swamp, amid hellebores, ferns, golden senecio, etc.... The village belle never sees this more delicate belle of the swamp.... A beauty reared in the shade of a convent, who has never strayed beyond the convent-bell. Only the skunk or owl, or other inhabitant of the swamp, beholds it.”

AMERICAN PENNYROYAL.
_Hedeoma pulegioides._ Mint Family (p. 16).

_Stem._—Square, low, erect, branching _Leaves._—Opposite, aromatic,
small. _Flowers._—Purplish, small, whorled in the axils of the leaves.
_Calyx._—Two-lipped, upper lip three-toothed, the lower two-cleft.
_Corolla._—Two-lipped, upper erect, notched at apex, the lower
spreading and three-cleft. _Fertile stamens._—Two. _Pistil._—One, with
a two-lobed style.

This well-known, strong-scented little plant is found throughout the greater part of the country, blossoming in midsummer. Its taste and odor nearly resemble that of the true pennyroyal, _Mentha pulegium_, of Europe.

MONKEY-FLOWER.
_Mimulus ringens._ Figwort Family.

_Stem._—Square, one to two feet high. _Leaves._—Opposite, oblong or
lance-shaped. _Flowers._—Pale violet-purple, rarely white, growing
singly from the axils of the leaves. _Calyx._—Five-angled,
five-toothed, the upper tooth largest. _Corolla._—Tubular, two-lipped,
the upper lip erect or spreading, two-lobed, the lower spreading and
three-lobed, the throat closed. _Stamens._—Four. _Pistil._—One, with a
two-lobed stigma.

From late July onward the monkey-flowers tinge the wet fields and border the streams and ponds; not growing in the water like the pickerel-weed, but seeking a hummock in the swamp, or a safe foothold on the brook’s edge, where they can absorb the moisture requisite to their vigorous growth.

The name is a diminutive of _mimus_—a buffoon, and refers to the somewhat grinning blossom. The plant is a common one throughout the eastern part of the country.

COMMON MOTHERWORT.
_Leonurus cardiaca._ Mint Family (p. 16).

_Stem._—Tall and upright. _Leaves._—Opposite, the lower rounded and
lobed, the floral wedge-shaped at base and three-cleft.
_Flowers._—Pale purple, in close whorls in the axils of the leaves.
_Calyx._—“With five nearly equal teeth, which are awl-shaped, and
when old rather spiny, pointed, and spreading.” (Gray.)
_Corolla._—Two-lipped, the upper lip somewhat arched and bearded,
the lower three-lobed and spreading. _Stamens._—Four, in pairs.
_Pistil._—One, with a two-lobed style.

The tall erect stems, opposite leaves, and regular whorls of closely clustered pale purple flowers help us to easily identify the motherwort, if identification be needed, for it seems as though such old-fashioned, time-honored plants as catnip, tansy, and motherwort, which cling so persistently to the skirts of the old homestead in whose domestic economy they once played so important a part, should be familiar to us all.

PLATE XCI

MONKEY-FLOWER.—_M. ringens._
]

CORN COCKLE.
_Lychnis Githago._ Pink Family.

About two feet high. _Leaves._—Opposite, long and narrow, pale green,
with silky hairs. _Flowers._—Rose-purple, large, long-stalked.
_Calyx-lobes._—Five, long and slender, exceeding the petals.
_Corolla._—Of five broad petals. _Stamens._—Ten. _Pistil._—One, with
five styles.

In many countries some of the most beautiful and noticeable flowers are commonly found in grain-fields. England’s scarlet poppies flood her farm-lands with glorious color in early summer; while the bluets lighten the corn-fields of France. Our grain-fields seem to have no native flower peculiar to them; but often we find a trespasser of foreign descent hiding among the wheat or straying to the roadsides in early summer, whose deep-tinted blossoms secure an instant welcome from the flower-lover if not from the farmer. “What hurte it doeth among corne! the spoyle unto bread, as well in colour, taste, and unwholesomeness, is better known than desired,” wrote Gerarde. The large dark seeds fill the ground wheat with black specks, and might be injurious if existing in any great quantity. Its former generic name was _Agrostemma_, signifying _crown of the fields_. Its present one of _Lychnis_, signifies _a light_ or _lamp_.

BLUE VERVAIN. SIMPLER’S JOY.
_Verbena hastata._ Vervain Family.

Four to six feet high. _Leaves._—Opposite, somewhat lance-shaped,
the lower often lobed and sometimes halberd-shaped at
base. _Flowers._—Purple, small, in slender erect spikes.
_Calyx._—Five-toothed. _Corolla._—Tubular, somewhat unequally
five-cleft. _Stamens._—Two, in pairs. _Pistil._—One.

Along the roadsides in midsummer we notice these slender purple spikes, the appearance of which would be vastly improved if the tiny blossoms would only consent to open simultaneously.

PLATE XCII

BLUE VERVAIN.—_V. hastata._
]

In earlier times the vervain was beset with classic associations. It was claimed as the plant which Virgil and other poets mention as being used for altar-decorations and for the garlands of sacrificial beasts. It was believed to be the _herba sacra_ of the ancients, until it was understood that the generic title _Verbena_ was a word which was applied to branches of any description which were used in religious rites. It certainly seems, however, to have been applied to some especial plant in the time of Pliny, for he writes that no plant was more honored among the Romans than the sacred _Verbena_. In more modern times as well the vervain has been regarded as an “herb of grace,” and has been gathered with various ceremonies and with the invocation of a blessing, which began as follows:

Hallowed be thou, Vervain,
As thou growest on the ground,
For in the Mount of Calvary
There thou was first found.

It was then supposed to be endued with especial virtue, and was worn on the person to avert disaster.

The time-honored title of Simpler’s joy arose from the remuneration which this popular plant brought to the “Simplers”—as the gatherers of medicinal herbs were entitled.

BEARD-TONGUE.
_Pentstemon pubescens._ Figwort Family.

_Stem._—One or two feet high, clammy above. _Leaves._—Opposite, oblong
to lance-shaped. _Flowers._—Dull purple or partly whitish, showy, in a
slender open cluster. _Calyx._—Five-parted. _Corolla._—Tubular,
slightly dilated, the throat nearly closed by a bearded palate;
two-lipped, the upper lip two-lobed, the lower three-cleft.
_Stamens._—Four, one densely bearded sterile filament besides.
_Pistil._—One.

These handsome, showy flowers are found in summer in dry or rocky places. They are especially plentiful somewhat southward.

The white beard-tongue of more western localities is _P. digitalis_. This is a very effective plant, which sometimes reaches a height of five feet, having large inflated white flowers.

SELF-HEAL. HEAL-ALL.
_Brunella vulgaris._ Mint Family (p. 16).

_Stems._—Low. _Leaves._—Opposite, oblong. _Flowers._—Bluish-purple, in
a spike or head. _Calyx._—Two-lipped, upper lip with three short
teeth, the lower two-cleft. _Corolla._—Two-lipped, the upper lip
arched, entire, the lower spreading, three-cleft. _Stamens._—Four.
_Pistil._—One, two-lobed at the apex.

PLATE XCIII

SELF-HEAL.—_B. vulgaris._
]

Throughout the length and breadth of the country, from June until September, the short, close spikes of the self-heal can be found along the roadsides. The botanical name, _Brunella_, is a corruption from _Prunella_, which is taken from the German for quinsy, for which this plant was considered a certain cure. It was also used in England as an application to the wounds received by rustic laborers, as its common names, carpenter’s herb, hook-heal, and sicklewort, imply. That the French had a similar practice is proved by an old proverb of theirs to the effect that “No one wants a surgeon who keeps _Prunelle_.”

WILD BERGAMOT.
_Monarda fistulosa._ Mint Family (p. 16).

Two to five feet high. _Leaves._—Opposite, fragrant, toothed.
_Flowers._—Purple or purplish, dotted, growing in a solitary, terminal
head. _Calyx._—Tubular, elongated, five-toothed. _Corolla._—Elongated,
two-lipped. _Stamens._—Two, elongated. _Pistil._—One, with style
two-lobed at apex.

Although the wild bergamot is occasionally found in our eastern woods, it is far more abundant westward, where it is found in rocky places in summer. This is a near relative of the bee balm (Pl. LXXXII.), which it closely resembles in its manner of growth.

DAY-FLOWER.
_Commelina Virginica._ Spiderwort Family.

_Stem._—Slender, branching. _Leaves._—Lance-shaped to linear, the
floral ones heart-shaped and clasping, folding so as to enclose the
flowers. _Flowers._—Blue. _Calyx._—Of three unequal somewhat colored
sepals, the two lateral ones partly united. _Corolla._—Of three
petals, two large, rounded, pale blue, one small, whitish, and
inconspicuous. _Stamens._—Six, unequal in size, three small and
sterile, with yellow cross-shaped anthers, three fertile, one of which
is bent inward. _Pistil._—One.

The odd day-flower is so named because its delicate blossoms only expand for a single morning. At the first glance there seem to be but two petals which are large, rounded, and of a delicate shade of blue. A closer examination, however, discovers still another, so inconspicuous in form and color as to escape the notice of the casual observer. This inequality recalls the quaint tradition as to the origin of the plant’s generic name. There were three brothers Commelin, natives of Holland. Two of them were botanists of repute, while the tastes of the third had a less marked botanical tendency. The genus was dedicated to the trio: the two large bright petals commemorating the brother botanists, while the small and unpretentious one perpetuates the memory of him who was so unwise as to take little or no interest in so noble a science. These flowers appear throughout the summer in cool woods and on moist banks.

BLUE LINARIA. BLUE TOADFLAX.
_Linaria Canadensis._ Figwort Family.

_Stems._—Slender, six to thirty inches high. _Leaves._—Linear.
_Flowers._—Pale blue or purple, small, in a long terminal raceme.
_Calyx._—Five-parted. _Corolla._—Two-lipped, with a slender spur,
closed in the throat. _Stamens._—Four. _Pistil._—One.

The slender spikes of the blue linaria flank the sandy roadsides nearly all summer, and even in November we find a few delicate blossoms still left upon the elongated stems. These flowers have a certain spirituality which is lacking in their handsome, self-assertive relation, butter-and-eggs.

SPIDERWORT.
_Tradescantia Virginica._ Spiderwort Family.

_Stems._—Mucilaginous, leafy, mostly upright. _Leaves._—Linear,
keeled. _Flowers._—Blue, clustered, with floral leaves as in the
day-flower. _Calyx._—Of three sepals. _Corolla._—Of three petals.
_Stamens._—Six, with bearded filaments. _Pistil._—One.

The flowers of the spiderwort, like those of the day-flower, to which they are nearly allied, are very perishable, lasting only a few hours. They are found throughout the summer, somewhat south and westward. The genus is named in honor of Tradescant, gardener to Charles I. of England.

PICKEREL-WEED.
_Pontedaria cordata._ Pickerel-weed Family.

_Stem._—Stout, usually one-leaved. _Leaves._—Arrow or heart-shaped.
_Flowers._—Blue, fading quickly, with an unpleasant odor, growing in a
dense spike. _Perianth._—Two-lipped, the upper lip three-lobed and
marked with a double greenish-yellow spot, the lower of three
spreading divisions. _Stamens._—Six, three long and protruding, the
three others, which are often imperfect, very short and inserted lower
down. _Pistil._—One.

The pickerel-weed grows in such shallow water as the pickerel seek, or else in moist, wet places along the shores of streams and rivers. We can look for the blue, closely spiked flowers from late July until some time in September. They are often found near the delicate arrow-head.

BLUEWEED. VIPER’S BUGLOSS.
_Echium vulgare._ Borage Family.

_Stem._—Rough, bristly, erect, about two feet high.
_Leaves._—Alternate, lance-shaped, set close to the stem.
_Flowers._—Bright blue, spiked on one side of the branches, which are
at first rolled up from the end, straightening as the blossoms expand.
_Calyx._—Five-parted. _Corolla._—Of five somewhat unequal, spreading
lobes. _Stamens._—Five, protruding, red. _Pistil._—One.

When the blueweed first came to us from across the sea it secured a foothold in Virginia. Since then it has gradually worked its way northward, lining the Hudson’s shores, overrunning many of the dry fields in its vicinity, and making itself at home in parts of New England. We should be obliged to rank it among the “pestiferous” weeds were it not that, as a rule, it only seeks to monopolize land which is not good for very much else. The pinkish buds and bright blue blossoms with their red protruding stamens make a valuable addition, from the æsthetic point of view, to the bunch of midsummer field-flowers in which hitherto the various shades of red and yellow have predominated.

NIGHTSHADE.
_Solanum Dulcamara._ Nightshade Family.

_Stem._—Usually somewhat climbing or twining. _Leaves._—Heart-shaped,
the upper halberd-shaped or with ear-like lobes or leaflets at the
base. _Flowers._—Purple, in small clusters. _Calyx._—Five-parted.
_Corolla._—Five-parted, wheel-shaped. _Stamens._—Five, yellow,
protruding. _Pistil._—One. _Fruit._—A red berry.

PLATE XCIV

BLUEWEED.—_E. vulgare._
]

The purple flowers, which at once betray their kinship with the potato plant, and, in late summer, the bright red berries of the nightshade, cluster about the fences and clamber over the moist banks which line the highway. This plant, which was imported from Europe, usually indicates the presence of civilization. It is not poisonous to the touch, as is often supposed, and it is doubtful if the berries have the baneful power attributed to them. Thoreau writes regarding them: “The Solanum Dulcamara berries are another kind which grow in drooping clusters. I do not know any clusters more graceful and beautiful than these drooping cymes of scented or translucent, cherry-colored elliptical berries.... They hang more gracefully over the river’s brim than any pendant in a lady’s ear. Yet they are considered poisonous; not to look at surely.... But why should they not be poisonous? Would it not be bad taste to eat these berries which are ready to feed another sense?”

GREAT LOBELIA.
_Lobelia syphilitica._ Lobelia Family.

_Stem._—Leafy, somewhat hairy, one to three feet high.
_Leaves._—Alternate, ovate to lance-shaped, thin, irregularly toothed.
_Flowers._—Rather large, light blue, spiked. _Calyx._—Five-cleft, with
a short tube. _Corolla._—Somewhat two-lipped, the upper lip of two
rather erect lobes, the lower spreading and three-cleft.
_Pistil._—One, with a fringed stigma.

The great lobelia is a striking plant which grows in low ground, flowering in midsummer. In some places it is called “High-Belia,” a pun which is supposed to reflect upon the less tall and conspicuous species, such as the Indian tobacco, _L. inflata_, which are found flowering at the same season.

If one of its blossoms is examined, the pistil is seen to be enclosed by the united stamens in such a fashion as to secure self-fertilization, one would suppose. But it is hardly probable that a flower as noticeable as this, and wearing a color as popular as blue, should have adorned itself so lavishly to no purpose. Consequently we are led to inquire more closely into its domestic arrangements. Our curiosity is rewarded by the discovery that the lobes of the stigma are so tightly pressed together that they can at first receive no pollen upon their sensitive surfaces. We also find that the anthers open only by a pore at their tips, and when irritated by the jar of a visiting bee, discharge their pollen upon its body through these outlets. This being accomplished the fringed stigma pushes forward, brushing aside whatever pollen may have fallen within the tube. When it finally projects beyond the anthers, it opens, and is ready to receive its pollen from the next insect-visitor.

PLATE XCV

GREAT LOBELIA.—_L. syphilitica._
]

The genus is named after an early Flemish herbalist, de l’Obel.

INDIAN TOBACCO.
_Lobelia inflata._ Lobelia Family.

One to two feet high. _Stem._—Branching from the root.
_Leaves._—Alternate, ovate, or oblong, somewhat toothed.
_Flowers._—Blue or purple, small, growing in a loose raceme,
resembling in structure those of the great lobelia. _Pod._—Much
inflated.

During the summer we note in the dry, open fields the blue racemes of the Indian tobacco, and in the later year the inflated pods which give it its specific name. The plant is said to be poisonous if taken internally, and yields a “quack-medicine” of some notoriety. The Indians smoked its dried leaves, which impart to the tongue a peculiar tobacco-like sensation.

There are other species of lobelia which may be distinguished by their narrower leaves and uninflated pods, and by their choice of moist localities.

HOG PEA-NUT.
_Amphicarpæa monoica._ Pulse Family (p. 16).

_Stem._—Climbing and twining over plants and shrubs. _Leaves._—Divided
into three somewhat four-sided leaflets. _Flowers._—Papilionaceous,
pale lilac, or purplish, in nodding racemes. _Pod._—One inch long.

Along the shadowy lanes which wind through the woods the climbing members of the Pulse family are very abundant. During the late summer and autumn the lonely wayside is skirted by

Vines, with clust’ring bunches growing;
Plants, with goodly burden bowing.

And in and out among this luxuriant growth twist the slender stems of the ill-named hog pea-nut, its delicate lilac blossoms nodding from the coarse stalks of the golden-rods and iron-weeds or blending with the purple asters.

This plant bears flowers of two kinds: the upper ones are perfect, but apparently useless, as they seldom ripen fruit; while the lower or subterranean ones are without petals or attractiveness of appearance, but yield eventually at least one large ripe seed.

PLATE XCVI

INDIAN TOBACCO.—_L. inflata._
]

BEACH PEA.
_Lathyrus maritimus._ Pulse Family (p. 16).

About one foot high, or more. _Stem._—Stout. _Leaves._—Divided
into from three to five pairs of thick oblong leaflets.
_Flowers._—Papilionaceous, large, purple, clustered.

The deep-hued flowers of this stout plant are commonly found along the sand-hills of the seashore, and also on the shores of the Great Lakes, blooming in early summer. Both flowers and leaves are at once recognized as belonging to the Pulse family.

——— ———
_Strophostyles angulosa._ Pulse Family (p. 16).

_Stems._—Branched, one to six feet long, prostrate or climbing.
_Leaves._—Divided into three leaflets, which are more or less
prominently lobed toward the base, the terminal two-lobed; or some or
all without lobes. _Flowers._—Purplish or greenish, on long
flower-stalks. _Pod._—Linear, straight, or nearly so.

This somewhat inconspicuous plant is found back of the sand-hills along the coast, often in the neighborhood of the beach pea, and climbing over river-banks, thickets, and fences as well. It can usually be identified by its oddly lobed leaflets.

BLUE VETCH.
_Vicia cracca._ Pulse Family (p. 16).

_Leaves._—Divided into twenty to twenty-four leaflets, with slender
tips. _Flowers._—Papilionaceous, blue turning purple, growing in
close, many-flowered, one-sided spikes.

This is an emigrant from Europe which is found in some of our eastern fields and thickets as far south as New Jersey. It usually climbs more or less by means of the tendril at the tip of its divided leaves, and sometimes forms bright patches of vivid blue over the meadows.

Another member of this genus is _V. sativa_, the common vetch or tare, with purplish or pinkish flowers, growing singly or in pairs from the axils of the leaves, which leaves are divided into fewer and narrower leaflets than those of the blue vetch. This species also takes possession of cultivated fields as well as of waste places along the roadside.

PLATE XCVII

BEACH PEA.—_L. maritimus._
]

CHICORY. SUCCORY.
_Cichorium Intybus._ Composite Family (p. 13).

_Stems._—Branching. _Leaves._—The lower oblong or lance-shaped, partly
clasping, sometimes sharply incised, the floral ones minute.
_Flower-heads._—Blue, set close to the stem, composed entirely of
strap-shaped flowers; opening at different times.

Oh, not in Ladies’ gardens,
My peasant posy!
Smile thy dear blue eyes,
Nor only—nearer to the skies—
In upland pastures, dim and sweet,—
But by the dusty road
Where tired feet
Toil to and fro;
Where flaunting Sin
May see thy heavenly hue,
Or weary Sorrow look from thee
Toward a more tender blue![12]

This roadside weed blossoms in late summer. It is extensively cultivated in France, where the leaves are blanched and used in a salad which is called “Barbe des Capucins.” The roots are roasted and mixed with coffee both there and in England.

Horace mentions its leaves as part of his frugal fare, and Pliny remarks upon the importance of the plant to the Egyptians, who formerly used it in great quantities, and of whose diet it is still a staple article.

BLUE AND PURPLE ASTERS.
_Aster._ Composite Family (p. 13).

_Flower-heads._—Composed of blue or purple ray-flowers, with a centre
of yellow disk-flowers.

PLATE XCVIII

CHICORY.—_C. Intybus._
]

As about one hundred and twenty different species of aster are native to the United States, and as fifty-four of these are found in Northeastern America, all but a dozen being purple or blue (_i.e._, with purple or blue ray-flowers), and as even botanists find that it requires patient application to distinguish these many species, only a brief description of the more conspicuous and common ones is here attempted.

Along the dry roadsides in early August we may look for the bright blue-purple flowers of _A. patens_. This is a low-growing species, with rough, narrowly oblong, clasping leaves, and widely spreading branches, whose slender branchlets are usually terminated by a solitary flower-head.

Probably no member of the group is more striking than the New England aster, _A. Novæ Angliæ_, whose stout hairy stem (sometimes eight feet high), numerous lance-shaped leaves, and large violet-purple or sometimes pinkish flower-heads, are conspicuous in the swamps of late summer.

_A. puniceus_ is another tall swamp-species, with long showy pale lavender ray-flowers.

One of the most commonly encountered asters is _A. cordifolius_, which is far from being the only heart-leaved species, despite its title. Its many small, pale blue or almost white flower-heads mass themselves abundantly along the wood-borders and shaded roadsides.

Perhaps the loveliest of all the tribe is the seaside purple aster, _A. spectabilis_, a low plant with narrowly oblong leaves and large bright heads, the violet-purple ray-flowers of which are nearly an inch long. This grows in sandy soil near the coast and may be found putting forth its royal, daisy-like blossoms into November.

Great Britain can claim but one native aster, _A. Trifolium_, or sea-starwort as it is called. Many American species are cultivated in English gardens under the general title of Michaelmas daisies. The starwort of Italy is _A. amellus_. The Swiss species is _A. Alpinum_.

This beautiful genus, like that of the golden-rod, is one of the peculiar glories of our country. Every autumn these two kinds of flowers clothe our roadsides and meadows with so regal a mantle of purple and gold that we cannot but wonder if the flowers of any other region combine in such a radiant display.

IRON-WEED.
_Vernonia Noveboracensis._ Composite Family (p. 13).

_Stem._—Leafy, usually tall. _Leaves._—Alternate, somewhat
lance-oblong. _Flower-heads._—An intense red-purple, loosely
clustered, composed entirely of tubular flowers.

Along the roadsides and low meadows near the coast the iron-weed adds its deep purple hues to the color-pageant of late August. By the uninitiated the plant is often mistaken for an aster, but a moment’s inspection will discover that the minute flowers which compose each flower-head are all tubular in shape, and that the ray or strap-shaped blossoms which an aster must have are wanting. These flower-heads are surrounded by an involucre composed of small scales which are tipped with a tiny point and are usually of a purplish color also.

BLUE CURLS. BASTARD PENNYROYAL.
_Trichostema dichotomum._ Mint Family (p. 16).

_Stem._—Rather low, branching, clammy. _Leaves._—Opposite, narrowly
oblong or lance-shaped, glutinous, with a balsamic odor.
_Flowers._—Purple, occasionally pinkish, not usually clustered.
_Calyx._—Five-cleft, two-lipped. _Corolla._—Five-lobed, the three
lower lobes more or less united. _Stamens._—Four, very long and
curved, protruding. _Pistil._—One, with a two-lobed style.

In the sandy fields of late summer this little plant attracts notice by its many purple flowers. Its corolla soon falls and exposes to view the four little nutlets of the ovary lying within the enlarged calyx like tiny eggs in their nest. Its aromatic odor is very perceptible, and the little glands with which it is covered may be seen with the aid of a magnifier. The generic name, _Trichostema_, signifies _hairy stamens_ and alludes to the curved hair-like filaments.

SEA LAVENDER. MARSH ROSEMARY.
_Statice Caroliniana._ Leadwort Family.

_Stems._—Leafless, branching. _Leaves._—From the root, somewhat
oblong, thick. _Flowers._—Lavender-color or pale purple, tiny,
scattered or loosely spiked along one side of the branches.
_Calyx._—Dry, funnel-form. _Corolla._—Small, with five petals.
_Stamens._—Five. _Pistil._—One, with five, rarely three, styles.

In August many of the salt marshes are blue with the tiny flowers of the sea lavender. The spray-like appearance of the little plant would seem to account for its name of rosemary, which is derived from the Latin for _sea-spray_, but Dr. Prior states that this name was given it on account of “its usually growing on the sea-coast, and its odor.”

Blossoming with the lavender we often find the great rose mallows and the dainty sea pinks. The marsh St. John’s-wort as well is frequently a neighbor, and, a little later in the season, the salt marsh fleabane.

BLAZING STAR.
_Liatris scariosa._ Composite Family (p. 13).

_Stem._—Simple, stout, hoary, two to five feet high.
_Leaves._—Alternate, narrowly lance-shaped. _Flower-heads._—Racemed
along the upper part of the stem, composed entirely of tubular flowers
of a beautiful shade of rose-purple.

These showy and beautiful flowers lend still another tint to the many-hued salt marshes and glowing inland meadows of the falling year. Gray assigns them to dry localities from New England to Minnesota and southward, while my own experience of them is limited to the New England coast, where their stout leafy stems and bright-hued blossoms are noticeable among the golden-rods and asters of September. The hasty observer sometimes confuses the plant with the iron-weed, but the two flowers are very different in color and in their manner of growth.

COMMON DITTANY.
_Cunila Mariana._ Mint Family (p. 16).

About one foot high. _Stem._—Much branched, reddish.
_Leaves._—Opposite, aromatic, dotted, smooth, ovate, rounded or
heart-shaped at base, set close to the stem. _Flowers._—Small, purple,
lilac or white, clustered. _Calyx._—Five-toothed. _Corolla._—Small,
two-lipped, the upper lip erect, usually notched, the lower
three-cleft. _Stamens._—Two, erect, protruding. _Pistil._—One, with a
two-lobed style.

In late August or early September the delicate flowers of the dittany brighten the dry, sterile banks which flank so many of our roadsides. At a season when few plants are flowering save the omnipresent members of the great Composite family these dainty though unpretentious blossoms are especially attractive. The plant has a pleasant fragrance.

PLATE XCIX

BLAZING STAR.—_L. scariosa._
]

CLOSED GENTIAN.
_Gentiana Andrewsii._ Gentian Family.

_Stem._—One to two feet high, upright, smooth. _Leaves._—Opposite,
narrowly oval or lance-shaped. _Flowers._—Blue to purple, clustered at
the summit of the stem and often in the axils of the leaves.
_Calyx._—Four or five-cleft. _Corolla._—Closed at the mouth, large,
oblong. _Stamens._—Four or five. _Pistil._—One, with two stigmas.

Few flowers adapt themselves better to the season than the closed gentian. We look for it in September when the early waning days and frost-suggestive nights prove so discouraging to the greater part of the floral world. Then in somewhat moist, shaded places along the roadside we find this vigorous, autumnal-looking plant, with stout stems, leaves that bronze as the days advance, and deep-tinted flowers firmly closed as though to protect the delicate reproductive organs within from the sharp touches of the late year.

To me the closed gentian usually shows a deep blue or even purple countenance, although like the fringed gentian and so many other flowers its color is lighter in the shade than in the sunlight. But Thoreau claims for it a “transcendent blue,” “a splendid blue, light in the shade, turning to purple with age.” “Bluer than the bluest sky, they lurk in the moist and shady recesses of the banks,” he writes. Mr. Burroughs also finds it “intensely blue.”

FIVE-FLOWERED GENTIAN.
_Gentiana quinqueflora._ Gentian Family.

_Stem._—Slender, branching, one or two feet high. _Leaves._—Opposite,
ovate, lance-shaped, partly clasping. _Flowers._—Pale blue, smaller
than those of the closed gentian, in clusters of about five at the
summit of stems and branches. _Calyx._—Four or five-cleft, small.
_Corolla._—Funnel-form, four or five-lobed, its lobes bristle-pointed.
_Stamens._—Four or five. _Pistil._—One, with two stigmas.

Although the five-flowered gentian is far less frequently encountered than the closed gentian, it is very common in certain localities. Gray assigns it to “moist hills” and “along the mountains to Florida.” I have found it growing in great abundance on the Shawangunk Mountains in Orange County, N. Y., where it flowers in September.

PLATE C

CLOSED GENTIAN.—_G. Andrewsii._
]

FRINGED GENTIAN.
_Gentiana crinita._ Gentian Family.

_Stem._—One to two feet high. _Leaves._—Opposite, lance-shaped or
narrowly oval. _Flowers._—Blue, large. _Calyx._—Four-cleft, the lobes
unequal. _Corolla._—Funnel-form, with four fringed, spreading lobes.
_Stamens._—Four. _Pistil._—One, with two stigmas.

In late September when we have almost ceased to hope for new flowers we are in luck if we chance upon this

—blossom bright with autumn dew

whose

—sweet and quiet eye
Looks through its fringes to the sky,
Blue—blue—as if that sky let fall,
A flower from its cerulean wall;[13]

for the fringed gentian is fickle in its habits, and the fact that we have located it one season does not mean that we will find it in the same place the following year; being a biennial, with seeds that are easily washed away, it is apt to change its haunts from time to time. So our search for this plant is always attended with the charm of uncertainty. Once having ferreted out its new abiding-place, however, we can satiate ourselves with its loveliness, which it usually lavishes unstintingly upon the moist meadows which it has elected to honor.

Thoreau describes its color as “such a dark blue! surpassing that of the male bluebird’s back!” My experience has been that the flowers which grow in the shade are of a clear pure azure, “Heaven’s own blue,” as Bryant claims; while those which are found in open, sunny meadows may be justly said to vie with the back of the male bluebird. If the season has been a mild one we shall perhaps find a few blossoms lingering into November, but the plant is probably blighted by a severe frost, although Miss Emily Dickinson’s little poem voices another opinion:

· · · · ·

But just before the snows
There came a purple creature
That ravished all the hill:
And Summer hid her forehead,
And mockery was still.
The frosts were her condition:
The Tyrian would not come
Until the North evoked it,
“Creator! shall I bloom?”

PLATE CI

FRINGED GENTIAN.—_G. crinita._
]

VI
MISCELLANEOUS

SKUNK CABBAGE. SWAMP CABBAGE.
_Symplocarpus fœtidus._ Arum Family.

_Leaves._—Large, becoming one or two feet long; heart-shaped,
appearing later than the purple-mottled spathe and hidden flowers.
_Flowers._—Small and inconspicuous; packed on the fleshy spike which
is hidden within the spathe.

If we are bold enough to venture into certain swampy places in the leafless woods and brown cheerless meadows of March, we notice that the sharply pointed spathes of the skunk cabbage have already pierced the surface of the earth. Until I chanced upon a passage in Thoreau’s Journal under date of October 31st, I had supposed that these “hermits of the bog” were only encouraged to make their appearance by the advent of those first balmy, spring-suggestive days which occasionally occur as early as February. But it seems that many of these young buds had pushed their way upward before the winter set in, for Thoreau counsels those who are afflicted with the melancholy of autumn to go to the swamps, “and see the brave spears of skunk-cabbage buds already advanced toward a new year.” “Mortal and human creatures must take a little respite in this fall of the year,” he writes. “Their spirits do flag a little. There is a little questioning of destiny, and thinking to go like cowards to where the weary shall be at rest. But not so with the skunk-cabbage. Its withered leaves fall and are transfixed by a rising bud. Winter and death are ignored. The circle of life is complete. Are these false prophets? Is it a lie or a vain boast underneath the skunk-cabbage bud pushing it upward and lifting the dead leaves with it?”

PLATE CII

SKUNK CABBAGE.—_S. fœtidus._
]

The purplish shell-like leaf, which curls about the tiny flowers which are thus hidden from view, is a rather grewsome-looking object, suggestive of a great snail when it lifts itself fairly above its muddy bed. When one sees it grouped with brother-cabbages it is easy to understand why a nearly allied species, which abounds along the Italian Riviera, should be entitled “Cappucini” by the neighboring peasants, for the bowed, hooded appearance of these plants might easily suggest the cowled Capuchins.

It seems unfortunate that our earliest spring flower (for such it undoubtedly is) should possess so unpleasant an odor as to win for itself the unpoetic title of skunk cabbage. There is also some incongruity in the heading of the great floral procession of the year by the minute hidden blossoms of this plant. That they are enabled to survive the raw March winds which are rampant when they first appear is probably due to the protection afforded them by the leathery leaf or spathe. When the true leaves unfold they mark the wet woods and meadows with bright patches of rich foliage, which with that of the hellebore, flash constantly into sight as we travel through the country in April.

It is interesting to remember that the skunk cabbage is nearly akin to the spotless calla lily, the purple-mottled spathe of the one answering to the snowy petal-like leaf of the other. Meehan tells us that the name bear-weed was given to the plant by the early Swedish settlers in the neighborhood of Philadelphia. It seems that the bears greatly relished this early green, which Meehan remarks “must have been a hot morsel, as the juice is acrid, and is said to possess some narcotic power, while that of the root, when chewed, causes the eyesight to grow dim.”

WILD GINGER.
_Asarum Canadense._ Birthwort Family.

_Leaves._—One or two on each plant, kidney or heart-shaped, fuzzy,
long-stalked. _Flower._—Dull purplish-brown, solitary, close to the
ground on a short flower-stalk from the fork of the leaves.
_Calyx._—Three-cleft, bell-shaped. _Corolla._—None. _Stamens._—Twelve.
_Pistil._—One, with a thick style and six thick, radiating stigmas.

PLATE CIII

WILD GINGER.—_A. Canadense._
]

Certain flowers might be grouped under the head of “vegetable cranks.” Here would be classed the evening primrose, which only opens at night, the closed gentian, which never opens at all, and the wild ginger, whose odd, unlovely flower seeks protection beneath its long-stemmed fuzzy leaves, and hides its head upon the ground as if unwilling to challenge comparison with its more brilliant brethren. Unless already familiar with this plant there is nothing to tell one when it has reached its flowering season; and many a wanderer through the rocky woods in early May quite overlooks its shy, shamefaced blossom.

The ginger-like flavor of the rootstock is responsible for its common name. It grows wild in many parts of Europe and is cultivated in England, where at one time it was considered a remedy for headache and deafness.

JACK-IN-THE-PULPIT. INDIAN TURNIP.
_Arisæma triphyllum._ Arum Family.

_Scape._—Terminated by a hood-like leaf or spathe. _Leaves._—Generally
two, each divided into three leaflets. _Flowers._—Small and
inconspicuous, packed about the lower part of the fleshy spike or
spadix which is shielded by the spathe. _Fruit._—A bright scarlet
berry which is packed upon the spadix with many others.

These quaint little preachers, ensconced in their delicate pulpits, are well known to all who love the woods in early spring. Sometimes these “pulpits” are of a light green veined with a deeper tint; again they are stained with purple. This difference in color has been thought to indicate the sex of the flowers within—the males are said to be shielded by the green, the females by the purple, hoods. In the nearly allied cuckoo-pints of England, matters appear to be reversed: these plants are called “Lords and Ladies” by the children, the purple-tinged ones being the “Lords,” the light green ones the “Ladies.” The generic name, _Arisæma_, signifies _bloody arum_, and refers to the dark purple stains of the spathe. An old legend claims that these were received at the Crucifixion:

Beneath the cross it grew;
And in the vase-like hollow of the leaf,
Catching from that dread shower of agony
A few mysterious drops, transmitted thus
Unto the groves and hills their healing stains,
A heritage, for storm or vernal shower
Never to blow away.

PLATE CIV

JACK-IN-THE-PULPIT.—_A. triphyllum._
]

The Indians were in the habit of boiling the bright scarlet berries which are so conspicuous in our autumn woods and devouring them with great relish; they also discovered that the bulb-like base or _corm_, as it is called, lost its acridity on cooking, and made nutritious food, winning for the plant its name of Indian turnip. One of its more local titles is memory-root, which it owes to a favorite school-boy trick of tempting others to bite into the blistering corm with results likely to create a memorable impression.

The English cuckoo-pint yielded a starch which was greatly valued in the time of Elizabethan ruffs, although it proved too blistering to the hands of the washerwomen to remain long in use. Owing to the profusion with which the plant grows in Ireland efforts have been made to utilize it as food in periods of scarcity. By grating the corm into water, and then pouring off the liquid and drying the sediment, it is said that a tasteless, but nutritious, powder can be procured.

ALUM-ROOT.
_Heuchera Americana._ Saxifrage Family.

_Stems._—Two to three feet high, glandular, more or less hairy.
_Leaves._—Heart-shaped, with short, rounded lobes, wavy-toothed,
mostly from the root. _Flowers._—Greenish or purplish, in long narrow
clusters. _Calyx._—Bell-shaped, broad, five-cleft. _Corolla._—Of five
small petals. _Stamens._—Five. _Pistil._—One, with two slender styles.

In May the slender clusters of the alum-root are found in the rocky woods.

BLUE COHOSH.
_Caulophyllum thalictroides._ Barberry Family.

_Stems._—One to two and a half feet high. _Leaf._—Large, divided into
many lobed leaflets; often a smaller one at the base of the
flower-cluster. _Flowers._—Yellowish-green, clustered at the summit of
the stem, appearing while the leaf is still small. _Calyx._—Of six
sepals, with three or four small bractlets at base. _Corolla._—Of six
thick, somewhat kidney-shaped or hooded petals, with short claws.
_Stamens._—Six. _Pistil._—One. _Fruit._—Bluish, berry-like.

In the deep rich woods of early spring, especially westward, may be found the clustered flowers and divided leaf of the blue cohosh. The generic name is from two Greek words signifying _stem_ and _leaf_, “the stems seeming to form a stalk for the great leaf.” (Gray.)

EARLY MEADOW RUE.
_Thalictrum dioicum._ Crowfoot Family.

One to two feet high. _Leaves._—Divided into many smooth, lobed, pale,
drooping leaflets. _Flowers._—Purplish and greenish, unisexual.
_Calyx._—Of four or five petal-like sepals. _Corolla._—None.
_Stamens._—Indefinite in number, with linear yellowish anthers
drooping on hair-like filaments (stamens and pistils occurring on
different plants). _Pistils._—Four to fourteen.

The graceful drooping foliage of this plant is perhaps more noticeable than the small flowers which appear in the rocky woods in April or May.

LILY-LEAVED LIPARIS.
_Liparis liliifolia._ Orchis Family (p. 17).

_Scape._—Low, from a solid bulb. _Leaves._—Two, ovate, smooth.
_Flowers._—Purplish or greenish, with thread-like reflexed petals and
a large brown-purplish lip an inch and a half long; growing in a
raceme.

In the moist, rich woods of June we may look for these flowers. The generic name is derived from two Greek words which signify _fat_ or _shining_, in reference to “the smooth or unctuous leaves.” (Gray.)

BEECHDROPS. CANCER-ROOT.
_Epiphegus Virginiana._ Broom-rape Family.

_Stems._—Slender, fleshy, branching, with small scales; purplish,
yellowish or brownish. _Leaves._—None. _Flowers._—Purplish, yellowish
or brownish, spiked or racemed, small, of two kinds, the upper
sterile, the lower fertile.