little stamens; the green calyx is barely visible. The flowers are set
on thread stems, in loose, stiff, club-shaped and long clusters.
The most important feature of this plant is the seed; as the bloom
moves upward it leaves behind a long stretch of maturing seed-pods,
like little flat discs with a tiny notch at the top; a pungent flavor
belongs to these pods, which is found acceptable by the cosmopolitan
palate of childhood.
[Illustration: PEPPERGRASS: Lepidium Virginicum.]
ROCK-ROSE FAMILY.
CISTACEÆ.
*Rock-Rose.* _Helianthemum Canadense._
*Frost Weed.*
Found in bloom during June on dry open hillsides and pastures.
The slightly branching, leafy stalk, which grows from 12 to 15 inches
high, is woody-fibred, and slender, and rough to the touch with short
stiff hairs; it is red or tawny in color.
The long narrow oval leaf is pointed at both ends; its edge is slightly
rolled under, and the ribs are prominent and rough beneath; the texture
is strong-fibred, and the surface is rough; its green is tawny. The
leaves are set on short stems, with a pair of wings (“stipules”) at the
junction with the stalk, and occur alternately.
The 5-petaled flower is shaped like a shallow cup of very fine and thin
texture and a clear vigorous yellow color, which is in good harmony
with the many orange-tipped stamens; the 5-pointed calyx is hairy, and
its green is toned with tawny.
A very individual trait of this flower is the fact that the stamens
almost always gather together to one side of the pistil, lying flat
upon a petal, caused by the rude touch of a passing insect, it is said,
so sensitive is this charming plant,--a quality further manifested by
the swift fall of its petals if plucked. The flower never lasts more
than a single day, and but few blossoms are borne on a plant. This is
the first flowering of the Rock-Rose; though ripening the seeds now
formed, there comes a second bloom in the fall whose blossoms are very
small, with few or no petals, clustered in the angles of the leaves,
and bearing but a few seeds. “Generally called ‘Beauties of the Sun’ by
the ancients,--‘Sun-roses’ by the English folk.”
[Illustration: ROCK-ROSE: Helianthemum Canadense.]
VIOLET FAMILY.
VIOLACEÆ.
*Sweet White Violet.* _Viola blanda._
Found in swamps, by roadside runnels, and in moist meadows, in April.
The leaves and flowers, on stems 4 or 5 inches in height, grow from the
root.
The leaf is a round heart-shape, with a toothed margin, fine strong
fibre, and smooth surface; in color, a light yellowish-green. The stem
is slender.
The flower is small in all parts, the spur not conspicuous, the
5 petals much recurved and white, veined on the lower petal by
reddish-violet hair-lines. It is set on a slender pale stem.
This is one of the earliest Violets, sweet-scented and graceful in
growth.
[Illustration: SWEET WHITE VIOLET: Viola blanda.]
*Arrow-Leaved Violet.* _Viola sagittata._
*Upland Violet.*
Found in upland pastures in May.
The leaves and flowers, from the roots, are set on very short stems.
The leaf is arrow-shaped, with a blunt tip and slightly heart-shaped
base; the margin is minutely notched, the upper surface, particularly,
is softly downy, and the color is green, with a slight grayish bloom.
The stem is flattened on its upper side and furnished with narrow
margins.
The side-petals of the small flower are bearded, and the spur is small;
the corolla is violet; the stem is hairy.
A small Violet, which grows close to the ground on high pastures, and
puts forth few demands upon our attention.
[Illustration: ARROW-LEAVED VIOLET: V. sagittata.]
*Downy Yellow Violet.* _Viola pubescens._
Found in woods and moist shade, in May.
The branching, leafy, slightly angular stalk is shining near the foot,
but hairy above, and grows from 5 to 12 inches high. It is light green.
Near the foot a small sheathing leaf may be observed.
The leaf is large, usually broader than it is long, and varying in form
from a round-pointed to a sharp-pointed shape; its ribs show plainly
underneath, its margin is slightly notched, and the surface is soft and
downy to the touch; in color, a clear green, lighter underneath. The
leaves, on their long, grooved stems, grow alternately, with a pair of
up-pointing little wings at the joint.
The lower petal of the flower is scoop-shaped, shallow and short, and
notched into two scallops at the tip, with a very short spur; the 4
other petals are rounding and nearly equal in size. In color, a pure
golden-yellow, with many dark markings on the lower petal, and fainter
lines on the others. The single flowers grow on slender stems from the
angles of the leaves.
The branches are wide-spreading, and the flower-stem springs away from
the leaves with a decided gesture, nor does the Yellow Violet bend
its head; the leaves are generally flat in manner of growth save for
the little scoop at the stem. A few separate leaves on independent
stems rise about the foot of the flowering stalk. This plant bears a
profusion of blossoms, and continues to flower for a considerable time.
[Illustration: DOWNY YELLOW VIOLET: V. pubescens.]
*Canada Violet.* _Viola Canadensis._
Found in May, and again less profusely in August, in forests and
woodlands to the north, or in high regions.
The branching, leafy stalk varies from 6 inches to 2 feet in height; it
is smooth to the touch. Light green in color.
The heart-shaped leaf with its tapering point has a strong midrib, a
slightly notched and wavy margin, and a thin, firm texture; it is a
clear green color. The leaves, on stems, grow alternately, with a pair
of little wings at the stalk; they are gathered close at the ends of
the branches.
The small flower has an inconspicuous spur, its lower broadest petal is
pinched sharply together in the middle at the edge, the other 4 petals
are all long oval, the side petals are bearded and flaring, while the
upper two turn back. The texture of the petals is fine and thin. This
is a two-colored flower--the face of the corolla is white, while the
outside is lavender or dark rich violet; the heart of the blossom is
yellow-tinged, and its markings are in bluish-lavender lines. The
5-parted green calyx is possessed of a violet lining which it displays
to the world by daintily turning back its uppermost tip. The flowers,
on stems, spring from the angles of the leaves.
Sometimes the lavender facing of the petals is betrayed by a faint
tinge of the color showing through their thin texture. This is an
odorous Violet, and particularly pretty, with a kindly habit of
blossoming a second time in the late summer,--a not uncommon custom in
the family, but followed by no other member with such regularity and
generosity of bloom.
[Illustration: CANADA VIOLET: V. Canadensis.]
*Running Violet.* _Viola canina, var. Muhlenbergii._
*Dog Violet.*
Found in May and June in light woods and along shady roads.
The small, round, leafy stems, from 3 to 7 inches high, are at first
upright, but later send out creeping branches; they are smooth, and
pale green.
The small leaf is rounding, and heart-shaped at the base, sometimes
slightly pointed at the tip; the margin is faintly notched, the surface
smooth, and the color light yellowish-green. The leaves, on short
stems, are arranged in pairs, with long-pointed wings at the joint.
The flower is small; its spur rather long, the two side-petals bearded,
and the color of the corolla pale violet, running into white at the
base of the petals, the lower one being marked with fine lines of dark
Violet; the tips of the stamens are orange; the 5-parted calyx light
green. The flowers are set on slender pale green stems, and rise from
the angles of the leaves.
This charming and profusely flowering Violet is invidiously nicknamed
“Dog” by the English, because it is scentless.
[Illustration: RUNNING VIOLET: V. canina, var. Muhlenbergii.]
*Common Blue Violet.* _Viola palmata, var. cucullata._
*Meadow Violet.*
Found in meadows and roadsides, among the grass everywhere, in May and
June.
The leaf and flower stems vary in height from 3 to 6 or 7 inches.
The large heart-shaped leaf (1 or 2 inches wide at the base) is
strongly ribbed, minutely hairy, and cut in rounded scallops along its
margin; full green in color. The stem is half-round, and grooved on its
flat side.
The 5 petals and the spur of the flower are variable in color from
dark to light (rarely white), from blue- to red-violet; the bearded
side-petals and the lower petal are white at the base. The flower-stem
is long, slender and smooth.
“The flower-stems are the length of the leaf-stems usually, or a
little shorter, and the blossoms appear in the midst of the rich green
foliage. In the new growths the lower edges of the leaves at the base
are rolled inwards.
“This violet was taken from N. America to England in 1762, and in some
English botanies is called _V. obliqua_.”--Sir D. Wooster.
[Illustration: COMMON BLUE: V. palmata, var. cucullata.]
*Sand Violet.* _Viola pedata._
*Bird-Foot Violet.*
Found in May (later than the Meadow Violet) on dry banks and gravelly
soil.
The leaves and flowers rise from the root on slender stems.
The leaf is deeply divided into 3 or 5 narrow and long parts, which
are sometimes again cleft into 2 or 3 segments; the middle parts are
notched by 2 or 3 rounding scallops, the side parts being shorter, with
taper-pointed tips; the ribs show obscurely, the texture is thickish,
and the surface is dull above and shining underneath; the color is a
dull green. The leaves, on half-rounding stems, that are a darker-hued
green than the leaves, spread widely. The early spring leaves are less
often divided.
This is the largest of the Violet flowers, with 5 flat petals, the
upper ones curling backwards on the stem, and a small, very flat
spur; the texture is fine and close, and the color varies from deep
red-violet to pale lavender, with a dash of white at the base of
the lower petals, just beneath the green-tipped pistil, and dry
tawny-orange stamens; the 5-parted calyx is pale green. The flowers are
set on large shining, smooth stems, which bear a little pair of wings
near the ground.
The Bird-Foot Violet flower does not droop, or nod, but holds itself
out at an angle almost parallel with the stem; its bud shows white, and
generally the paler lavender tints prevail in the full-blown flowers.
Many folk-names are given this plant, which grows in little clumps and
sometimes thickly spreads all over a favorably located sand-barren,--it
is often found in burnt-over fields, and stump-lots. Its flowering
season is not so long as many others of its family and as observed, it
seldom blooms again in the autumn.
[Illustration: SAND VIOLET: V. pedata.]
PINK FAMILY.
CARYOPHYLLACEÆ.
*Field Chickweed.* _Cerastium arvense._
Found in May on dry and sandy banks.
The stalk branches a little for the flowers, and varies in height from
6 to 10 inches; it is rough with hairs, and green.
The small, grass-like leaves are rough-hairy, and green; they are set
in pairs, joined about the stalk in a marked cup-like socket; the pairs
occur at right angles to each other.
The small flowers commonly have 5 petals apiece, but sometimes the
number is scamped and they are contented with 4 instead; each petal is
so deeply cleft as to give the appearance of being quite divided; the
texture is thin enough to show the veins, the outer surface is glossy,
and the color is white; the calyx has as many sharp-pointed divisions
as there are petals, and is green; the 10 stamens are pale straw-color.
The flowers form little groups on long stems which spring from the
angles of the leaves in pairs.
After the manner of the Pinks this nice little plant sets a blossom
between the fork of the main stems.
[Illustration: FIELD CHICKWEED: Cerastium arvense.]
*Common Chickweed.* _Stellaria media._
Blossoming around dwellings in spring, summer, and autumn.
Its weak-fibred stem, lopping over the ground, is green, and smooth,
with a barely visible little line of hairs down one side.
The small oval leaves have entire edges, and a smooth surface; they
grow in pairs and are of a full green color.
The 5 white petals of the small flower are so deeply notched as to
look like 10 very narrow ones; they are shorter than the 5 green calyx
divisions; the flowers grow singly on short foot-stems, from the
leaf-angles.
The Chickweed is a common plant of the dooryard, but without the usual
obnoxious habits of a “weed,--” it is unobtrusive in demeanor, and, the
roots having but a slight hold on the ground, is easily removed where
undesired. It is a natural weather-glass, and can be trusted not to
open its starry eye when rain threatens. The “Hen’s Inheritance” is an
English folk-name for this plant.
[Illustration: COMMON CHICKWEED: Stellaria media.]
*Long-Leaved Stitchwort.* _Stellaria longifolia._
Found blossoming in June, in the tall grasses of wet meadows.
This almost thread-like and weak-fibred stalk varies from 6 to 15
inches in height, and is branching and leafy, almost square, with
somewhat roughened angles, and pale green color.
The long grass-like leaves are very taper-pointed at each end, thin,
and smooth, and in color full green, paler underneath; they are set
upon the stalk in pairs, at long intervals.
The flower is small; its 5 petals cleft so deeply as to give the
appearance of double the number, very fine and delicate in texture,
and pure white, the 5-parted spreading calyx being green, while the
10 silky thread-like stamens are white. The flowers, on long, slight
stems, spring singly from the angles of the leaves.
A few-flowered fragile plant, with its tiny star-flowers and sparse
flat leafage, this Stitchwort loves to grow among rank sedges and
swamp grasses, from whose sturdy rectitude it may claim support and
protection.
[Illustration: LONG-LEAVED STITCHWORT: S. longifolia.]
*Sand Spurrey.* _Buda rubra._
Found on sandy barrens in blossom during June.
This very modest little plant is seldom more than 2 or 3 inches high,
with its single, round, slender, and smooth stalk of a light green
color, with red rings at the leaf-joints.
The small narrow leaf is entire, flat, a trifle thick in texture, and
dusty green in color. The leaves occur in pairs that box the compass
around the stalk in little groups, and sit very close together; a dry
sheath encircles the stalk at their junction.
The very small flower has 5 scoop-shaped petals, fine in quality, and
pale lilac inclining to pink in color, and several pale yellow stamens;
its 5 calyx-parts are sometimes longer than its petals and are hairy,
and gray-green, with pinkish tips. Two or three flowers occur on the
top of the stalk.
Only one flower opens at a time, but the calyx splits apart and shows
the color of the petals a day before the bud opens. This smallest of
the Pinks grows in such sociable crowds in sandy spots as to form a
thick carpet, very pretty to discover when its close green is starred
with its tiny flowers.
[Illustration: SAND SPURREY: Buda rubra.]
*Bouncing Bet.* _Saponaria officinalis._
Found on dry soil, by the wayside and in the fields, blossoming in July
through September.
The large leafy stalk, which grows from 1 to 2 feet high, is stout,
slightly rough, and noticeably enlarged at the joints. Its color is
green, or more often a dark crimson.
The oval leaf, tapering at the tip, clasps the stalk at the foot; it is
3-ribbed and the middle-rib being a little short the blade is fulled to
it on either side; it has a smooth surface, and is of a thick texture;
the color is a grayish-green (usually dusty). The leaves are opposite
in growth.
The flower is large, about 1 inch across, with 5 petals, broad and
slightly notched at the top, and extended down into a narrow stem-like
base, which is confined within the long cylindrical calyx; at the
spread of the broad part of the petal are two little thread-like
fringes. The color runs from white to pink, the 10 stamens are pale
yellow, and the long, 5-notched calyx is a pale yellowish-green. The
pistil divides at the tip into two curling spires.
Stocky and sturdy in growth, hearty and wholesome in nature, Bouncing
Bet grows in great communities along the waysides, and railroad
embankments; it is a little ragged in attire, owing to the habit the
flowers have of drying up in the calyx. It looks its best under a gray
sky.
[Illustration: BOUNCING BET: Saponaria officinalis.]
*Night-Flowering Campion.* _Silene noctiflora._
*Gentlemen’s Hats (N. H.).*
Found along roadside thickets in July and August.
The sparingly leafy stalk branches in an angular fashion, and grows
from 1 to 3 feet high; although stout, the branches are slender; it is
round, hairy, and sticky to the touch; light green.
The large leaves are sometimes 3 inches long; near the foot they are
oval in shape with a wavy edge, above they are long and narrow; the
margins are entire, the surface hairy and gummy to the touch; green.
They completely clasp the stalk and are united in pairs, the pairs
being set at right angles to each other.
The 5 petals of the flower are deeply cleft; where they spread from the
deep tube-shaped calyx, each is provided with a pair of little notched
tags, which form a pretty crown about the throat of the flower; the
texture of the corolla is thin and fine, and the color is pale pink, or
white just tinted with rose; the pale, yellow-green calyx is 5-parted
and elegantly ornamented with 10 branching ribs, or veins, of a darker
color; it is sticky and hairy. The flowers are set on short stems in
the angles of the leaves, in pairs usually, while a single blossom sits
on a short stem, in the fork of the branches.
After blossoming the seed-box changes its shape to round, and becomes
large, the calyx-tips folding together over its top, and the green
pattern of the ribs showing more plainly. There is a faint sweet
perfume about the flowers which may be only discovered at twilight or
in a gray morning, for this is a night-blooming plant.
[Illustration: NIGHT-FLOWERING CAMPION: Silene noctiflora.]
*Deptford Pink.* _Dianthus Armeria._
*Mountain Pink.*
Found from July till frost-time, in upland fields and pastures.
The slender, angular and jointed stalk is from 8 to 12 inches in
height, occasionally branching, round, smooth and shining. In color
dark green.
The leaf is long and narrow, with a strong midrib, an entire margin,
thin, tough texture, and a downy surface; in color it is rather a dark
and cool green. The leaves, as with all the pinks, clasp the stalk in
pairs with a noticeable joint; the pairs occur at right angles to each
other.
The 5 petals of the small flower are oblong with finely notched tips;
they spread widely, and are of a fine smooth texture, and a deep
rose-pink color, dotted with pale pink specks; the green calyx is
tubular, 5-parted, and downy, and is enfolded by 4 narrow green bracts.
The flowers occur in pairs, from the angles of the leaves, on short
leafy stems.
Sometimes, but not often, two flowers are borne on the same stem; it
has been observed that the flower-stems are of about equal length
with the curving leaves from which they spring. The plant grows in
charming jerks and slants, and like all its kin is neatly finished at
the joints. An October walk seldom fails to discover a few of these
bright-hued Pinks amidst the dying meadow grasses and bare growths of
summer; if the seeds are then gathered and spring-sown in the home
garden this hardy little plant will consent to cultivation.
[Illustration: DEPTFORD PINK: Dianthus Armeria.]
ST. JOHN’S-WORT FAMILY.
HYPERICACEÆ.
*Large St. John’s-Wort.* _Hypericum perforatum._
*Common St. John’s-Wort.*
Found from June to September, in broad sunlight or in shade, growing in
dry or moist soil.
The branching, leafy stalk, 1 or 2 feet high, rather slender and
smooth, is green in color.
The leaves are usually oblong, with a tapering point, but do not
rigorously conform to any model; with entire margins and a thin
texture, which if held to the light is seen to be perforated by tiny
punctures. The color is a full green, and they are set on the stalk in
pairs, the pairs being placed at right angles to each other.
The flower is sometimes ¾ of an inch in width, but more often smaller;
the 5 petals are finely notched at the tip and along one side, their
color is a strong yellow turning in maturity to tawny; the calyx is
5-parted and a light yellow-green modulating between the petal and leaf
colors; the many yellow stamens radiate from the center. The flowers
are set in leafy terminal groups.
This cheery neighbor to the Daisy and Yarrow, though spruce and
pretty when freshly adorned with bloom, is, it must be confessed,
a sad slattern, for it does not shed its withered petals but holds
them, ragged and unkempt, among the newly opened flowers during the
long season of its blossoming. The yellow of the unopened bud is of a
noticeably fine quality.
[Illustration: LARGE ST. JOHN’S-WORT: Hypericum perforatum.]
*Lesser St. John’s-Wort.* _Hypericum maculatum._
Found in damp, weedy thickets and fields, during July and August.
The slender, very round, fine-fibred stalk, from 12 to 18 inches high,
is noticeably erect in gesture, and bears short angular branches. Its
green is often tinged with a ruddy color.
The leaf is oblong, with an entire margin, and smooth, fine texture;
the perforations are not conspicuous, and the color is a full green.
The arrangement is in pairs.
The 5 petals of the small flower are sharp-pointed, thin, and yellow,
faintly marked with black lines which show more strongly on the outside
than on the inside of the corolla; the calyx is greenish and 5-parted.
The flowers, on short stems, form terminal groups.
This little plant’s habits are in marked contrast to its larger brother
John, for it is as tidy in rolling up into tiny bundles its faded
petals, as the other is careless of appearances. Though its flower
is less conspicuous, the reward, when the plant matures, more than
compensates, for as early as mid-July the upper surface of the leaves
take on a beautiful crimson flush that mingles with the green of the
underside, while the stalk becomes a slender wand of scarlet.
[Illustration: LESSER ST. JOHN’S-WORT: H. maculatum.]
MALLOW FAMILY.
MALVACEÆ.
*Common Mallow.* _Malva rotundifolia._
*Cheeses.*
Found from August till frost-time around dwellings and along waysides.
The lopping, large, round stalk, with many leaves, lies low upon the
ground; it is slightly hairy, and green.
The large, rounding leaf is heart-shaped at the base, and is slightly
lobed; the margin is notched with small round scallops, the ribs
radiate from the base, and the surface is soft to the touch. The
leaves, on their long, and short, rough stems (from 1 to 12 inches in
length), are placed alternately. The color is a dark green.
The flower has a spreading bell-shaped corolla cut into 5 long points,
with notched tips; it is in color a translucent pinky-white, faintly
lined with pink. The calyx is 5-parted, and green; just beneath
the calyx occur 3 line-like bracts. The flowers, on their slender
foot-stems, grow from the angles of the leaves all along the stems, 3
or 4 grouped together.
The seed of this Mallow endears the plant to children by whom it is
eaten under the name of “Cheeses”; it is pretty to look at, being
round, and light green, and enfolded by the 5 green tips of its
calyx-cup.
“Sitting down when school was o’er
Upon the threshold of the door,
Picking from mallows, sport to please,
The crumpled seed we call’d the cheese.”
--_Clare._
[Illustration: COMMON MALLOW: Malva rotundifolia.]
GERANIUM FAMILY.
GERANIACEÆ.
*Cranesbill.* _Geranium maculatum._
*Wild Geranium.*
Found in lush grass, or light shade, in fields and roadside banks,
during May and June.
The stalk, single at first, but presently parting into twice-forking
branches, is from 10 to 18 inches in height, and leafy above the
branches; its surface is hairy, and color yellow-green.