Part 7

_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.

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.

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.

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.”

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.

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.

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).