Part 4

There is something singularly fragile and spring-like in the appearance of this plant as its heart-shaped blossoms nod from the rocky ledges where they thrive best. One would suppose that the firmly closed petals guarded against any intrusion on the part of insect-visitors and indicated the flower’s capacity for self-fertilization; but it is found that when insects are excluded by means of gauze no seeds are set, which goes to prove that the pollen from another flower is a necessary factor in the continuance of this species. The generic name, _Dicentra_, is from the Greek and signifies _two-spurred._ The flower, when seen, explains its two English titles. It is accessible to every New Yorker, for in early April it whitens many of the shaded ledges in the upper part of the Central Park.

SQUIRREL CORN. _Dicentra Canadensis._ Fumitory Family.

The squirrel corn closely resembles the dutchman’s breeches. Its greenish or pinkish flowers are heart-shaped, with short, rounded spurs. They have the fragrance of hyacinths, and are found blossoming in early spring in the rich woods of the North.

FOAM-FLOWER. FALSE MITRE-WORT. _Tiarella cordifolia._ Saxifrage Family.

_Stem._—Five to twelve inches high, leafless, or rarely with one or two leaves. _Leaves._—From the rootstock or runners, heart-shaped, sharply lobed. _Flowers._—White, in a full raceme. _Calyx._—Bell-shaped, five-parted. _Corolla._—Of five petals on claws. _Stamens._—Ten, long and slender. _Pistil._—One, with two styles.

Over the hills and in the rocky woods of April and May the graceful white racemes of the foam-flower arrest our attention. This is a near relative of the _Mitella_ or true mitre-wort. Its generic name is a diminutive from the Greek for _turban_, and is said to refer to the shape of the pistil.

EARLY SAXIFRAGE. _Saxifraga Virginiensis._ Saxifrage Family.

_Scape._—Four to nine inches high. _Leaves._—Clustered at the root, somewhat wedge-shaped, narrowed into a broad leaf-stalk. _Flowers._—White, small, clustered. _Calyx._—Five-cleft. _Corolla._—Of five petals. _Stamens._—Ten. _Pistil._—One, with two styles.

In April we notice that the seams in the rocky cliffs and hill-sides begin to whiten with the blossoms of the early saxifrage. _Steinbrech_—stonebreak—the Germans appropriately entitle this little plant, which bursts into bloom from the minute clefts in the rocks and which has been supposed to cause their disintegration by its growth. The generic and common names are from _saxum_—a rock, and _frango_—to break.

MITRE-WORT. BISHOP’S CAP. _Mitella diphylla._ Saxifrage Family.

_Stem._—Six to twelve inches high, hairy, bearing two opposite leaves. _Leaves._—Heart-shaped, lobed and toothed, those of the stem opposite and nearly sessile. _Flowers._—White, small, in a slender raceme. _Calyx._—Short, five-cleft. _Corolla._—Of five slender petals which are deeply incised. _Stamens._—Ten, short. _Pistil._—One, with two styles.

The mitre-wort resembles the foam-flower in foliage, but bears its delicate crystal-like flowers in a more slender raceme. It also is found in the rich woods, blossoming somewhat later.

INDIAN POKE. FALSE HELLEBORE. _Veratrum viride._ Lily Family.

_Root._—Poisonous, coarse and fibrous. _Stem._—Stout, two to seven feet high, very leafy to the top. _Leaves._—Broadly oval, pointed, clasping. _Flowers._—Dull greenish, inconspicuous, clustered. _Perianth._—Of six spreading sepals. _Stamens._—Six. _Pistil._—One, with three styles.

When we go to the swampy woods in March or April we notice an array of green, solid-looking spears which have just appeared above the ground. If we handle one of these we are impressed with its firmness and rigidity. When the increasing warmth and sunshine have tempted the veiny, many-plaited leaves of the false hellebore to unfold themselves it is difficult to realize that they composed that sturdy tool which so effectively tunnelled its way upward to the earth’s surface. The tall stems and large bright leaves of this plant are very noticeable in the early year, forming conspicuous masses of foliage while the trees and shrubs are still almost leafless. The dingy flowers which appear later rarely attract attention.

CARRION-FLOWER. CAT-BRIER. _Smilax herbacea._ Lily Family.

_Stem._—Climbing, three to fifteen feet high. _Leaves._—Ovate, or rounded heart-shaped, or abruptly cut off at base, shining. _Flowers._—Greenish or yellowish, small, clustered, unisexual. _Perianth._—Six-parted. _Stamens._—six. _Pistil._—One, with three spreading stigmas. (Stamens and pistils occurring on different plants.) _Fruit._—A bluish-black berry.

One whiff of the foul breath of the carrion flower suffices for its identification. Thoreau likens its odor to that of “a dead rat in the wall.” It seems unfortunate that this strikingly handsome plant which clambers so ornamentally over the luxuriant thickets which border our lanes and streams, should be so handicapped each June. Happily with the disappearance of the blossoms, it takes its place as one of the most attractive of our climbers.

The common green-brier, _S. rotundifolia_, is a near relation which is easily distinguished by its prickly stem.

The dark berries and deeply tinted leaves of this genus add greatly to the glorious autumnal display along our roadsides and in the woods and meadows.

LARGER WHITE TRILLIUM. _Trillium grandiflorum._ Lily Family.

_Stem._—Stout, from a tuber-like rootstock. _Leaves._—Ovate, three in a whorl, a short distance below the flower. _Flower._—Single, terminal, large, white, turning pink or marked with green. _Calyx._—Of three green, spreading sepals. _Corolla._—Of three long pointed petals. _Stamens._—Six. _Pistil._—One, with three spreading stigmas. _Fruit._—A large ovate, somewhat angled, red berry.

This very beautiful and decorative flower must be sought far from the highway in the cool rich woods of April and May. Mr. Ellwanger speaks of the “chaste pure triangles of the white wood lily,” and says that it often attains a height of nearly two feet.

_T. cernuum_ has no English title. Its smaller white or pinkish blossom is borne on a stalk which is so much curved as to sometimes quite conceal the flower beneath the leaves. It may be sought in the moist places in the woods.

The painted trillium, _T. erythrocarpum_, is also less large and showy than the great white trillium, but it is quite as pleasing. Its white petals are painted at their base with red stripes. This species is very plentiful in the Adirondack and Catskill Mountains.

GROUND-NUT. DWARF GINSENG. _Aralia trifolia._ Ginseng Family.

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

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

GINSENG. _Aralia quinquefolia._ Ginseng Family.

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

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

WILD SARSAPARILLA. _Aralia nudicaulis._ Ginseng Family.

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

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

SPIKENARD. _Aralia racemosa._ Ginseng Family.

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

CANADA VIOLET. _Viola Canadensis._ Violet Family.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

CHOKE-BERRY. _Pyrus arbutifolia._ Rose Family.

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

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

CREEPING SNOWBERRY. _Chiogenes serpyllifolia._ Heath Family.

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

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

BEARBERRY. _Arctostaphylos Uva-ursi._ Heath Family.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

BELLWORT. _Oakesia sessilifolia._ Lily Family.

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

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

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

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

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

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

WHITE BANEBERRY. _Actæa alba._ Crowfoot Family.

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

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

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

MOUNTAIN HOLLY. _Nemopanthes fascicularis._ Holly Family.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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