colour from a pale green to a mealy white. Stem stout, erect, from one
to three feet high. Lower leaves stalked, ovate or rhomboid, more or
less toothed or angular, but entire at the base. Upper leaves
lanceolate, entire. Spikes of flowers irregularly clustered, leafy, and
usually branched; the upper ones forming a long panicle, intermixed with
the upper leaves. Perianth entirely covering the fruit.
5. Fig-leaved Goose-foot (_C. ficifolium_).--by some regarded as a
distinct species, but by others included among the varieties of _C.
album_. It closely resembles the latter in general appearance, but its
lower leaves are divided into three unequal lobes, and are somewhat
spear-shaped.
6. Red Goose-foot (_C. rubrum_).--An erect plant, from one to three feet
high, with smooth, triangular, irregularly-toothed leaves, resembling
those of the Upright Goose-foot. The spikes, also, closely resemble
those of the same plant, but the flowers have generally only two or
three segments to the perianth, and these often turn red as the fruit
ripens. The flowers appear during August and September. This species is
moderately common in most parts, and especially near the sea, where it
may be seen growing on the shingle very close to the water's edge.
7. Mercury Goose-foot, Allgood, or Good King Henry (_C.
Bonus-Henricus_).--An erect plant, from one to three feet high, growing
from a thick, fleshy root like that of the Dock. Leaves stalked,
triangular, acute, wavy or toothed, of a dark green colour. Upper leaves
smaller, and almost sessile. Flowers in clustered, compound spikes,
forming a terminal panicle, leafy below. Fruit completely enclosed in
the perianth. This plant was formerly cultivated as a potherb, and is
now commonly found on waste ground near villages. Time of
flowering--June to August.
In the same order we have the Common Orache (_Atriplex patula_)--a very
variable plant, from a few inches to three feet in height, with erect or
prostrate stem, and more or less mealy in appearance. Lower leaves
triangular, with spreading lobes at the base. Upper leaves narrower, and
entire or slightly toothed. Flowers in simple spikes, forming leafy,
terminal panicles. They are of two kinds--male and female, either
mixed, or collected in separate clusters. Segments of the perianth
united, pointed, sometimes toothed, and spotted above. The plant flowers
from July to September, and is abundant in most parts, especially near
the sea.
The order _Polygonaceæ_ also includes several wayside plants which may
be easily distinguished as a group by the following characters:--At the
bases of the alternate leaves are membranous stipules that form a sheath
round the stem. The flowers are small, arranged in clusters in the axils
of the leaves, or in terminal spikes or racemes. The fruit is a small
nut, enclosed more or less in the persistent perianth.
Three of the plants to which we refer belong to the genus _Polygonum_,
in which the sheathing stipule is usually fringed at the edge; and the
small flowers are either green or red, with a perianth of five segments,
and stamens not exceeding eight in number. The little nuts, too, are
either flattened or triangular. The three species may be identified by
the following summary of their leading features:
[Illustration: THE SPOTTED PERSICARIA.]
1. The Spotted Persicaria (_Polygonum Persicaria_).--A very common
wayside plant, and a weed of almost all cultivated soils, growing from
one to two feet high, and flowering from July to October. The leaves
have, usually, a dark-coloured patch in the centre; and the stipules
are fringed at the top with fine, stiff hairs. The flowers are
rose-coloured, with more or less green, arranged in short axillary or
terminal spikes without any leaves; and the nuts are rather thick, but
flattened, smooth, and glossy.
2. Pale-flowered Persicaria (_P. lapathifolium_).--Very similar to the
Spotted Persicaria, and sometimes regarded as a variety of that species;
but it differs in that its leaves are never spotted, and the lower
stipules are not fringed with hairs. The peduncle and perianth, which
are smooth in _P. persicaria_, are here rough, being dotted with small,
projecting glands; and the styles, which are united to about half way up
in the last species, are quite free in the present one. The flowers are
pink, with more or less green, and do not usually bloom after August;
and the plant often attains a length of three or four feet.
3. Knot-grass or Knot-weed (_P. aviculare_).--A very common procumbent
weed, with wiry stems from one to two or three feet long. The leaves,
seldom as much as an inch in length, are narrow, oblong, and flat; and
the stipules are white, membranous, more or less cut at the edges, with
a few veins. The flowers are small, very variable in colour, arranged in
short-stalked clusters of about three or four in the axils of nearly all
the leaves; and the fruit is a triangular nut, shorter than the segments
of the perianth. This plant flowers from July to September. An erect
variety, growing to a height of two feet or more, may be seen in
cornfields.
The same order includes the well-known Docks (_Rumex_), which differ
from _Persicaria_ as follows:--The root is very thick, and grows to a
great depth; the stems are erect and furrowed; and the thin membranous
stipules, though never fringed with hairs, often become more or less
torn. The flowers are small, green, in axillary clusters or terminal
racemes, often turning red as the fruit ripens. The perianth is deeply
divided into five segments, three of which become enlarged and close
over the triangular nut. Two species of this genus are abundant on
waysides. They are:--
1. The Broad-leaved Dock (_Rumex obtusifolius_).--A stout plant, two or
three feet high, and slightly branched. The lower leaves are ovate,
cordate at the base, blunt, often eight or nine inches long; and the
upper ones narrow and pointed. The flowers are perfect, reddish green,
in distant whorls, forming a terminal raceme which is leafless above.
The inner segment of the perianth is enlarged, ovate, distinctly
toothed, with a long point. Time of flowering--July to September.
2. The Curled Dock (_R. crispus_).--Very similar to the Broad-leaved
Dock in size and habit, but flowering somewhat earlier. The lower leaves
are much narrower, six to eight inches long, lanceolate, pointed, and
wavy at the edges. The upper leaves are small and narrower, passing
gradually into still smaller bracts towards the lower flowers. The
flowers are in crowded whorls, on slender pedicels which are longer than
the perianths; and the inner segment of the perianth is enlarged,
cordate, but not toothed.
[Illustration: THE CURLED DOCK.]
We have now to note two species of Spurge (_Euphorbia_) that grow by the
wayside; but before doing so it will be well to make ourselves
acquainted with the general characters of the interesting group to which
they belong. The Spurges are herbs with a milky juice, and a stem which
is usually unbranched below, bearing alternate leaves. The flowering
branches, towards the top of the plant, generally radiate from one
point, forming an umbel of from two to five or more rays that proceed
from the axil of one or more leaves. Each ray is usually forked, and
sometimes repeatedly so, with a pair of leaves at each angle, and a
little head of yellowish-green flowers between the branches. Each
flower-head is surrounded by a small cup of united bracts, inside which
is a whorl of little yellow or brownish glands, placed horizontally. In
the centre of the head is a single female flower, consisting of a
three-celled ovary, with a three-cleft style, mounted on a stalk of such
a length that the flower droops over the edge of the cup. Around this
female flower are from ten to fifteen little male flowers, each
consisting of a single stamen with a minute scale at its base. The fruit
contains three seeds, one in each carpel.
The Sun Spurge (_Euphorbia Helioscopia_) is a common species, varying
from six to eighteen inches high, flowering from June to October. Its
stem is generally simple, but sometimes branched at the base; and the
leaves are obovate or broadly oblong, without stipules, serrate, and
narrowed down at the base to a short stalk. The floral leaves are very
broad--almost round--and edged with very small teeth. The umbel consists
of five rays, each of which is forked, with very short branches; and the
glands within the cup are nearly round. The fruits are quite smooth, and
the seeds have a netted surface.
The other species--the Petty Spurge (_E. Peplus_)--is a smaller plant,
seldom exceeding a foot in length, with an erect or decumbent stem
branching at the bottom. The stem-leaves are oval or obovate, entire,
shortly-stalked and placed alternately; and the floral leaves are
cordate or broadly ovate. The flower-heads are small, surrounded by
crescent-shaped glands with long points; and the carpels of the fruit
have rough keels or wings.
[Illustration: THE GREAT NETTLE.]
Passing to the Stinging Nettles (order _Urticaceæ_), we have to deal
with three herbs that are remarkable for the stinging hairs which clothe
both leaves and stem. The leaves of all are opposite, and the flowers
imperfect. The male flowers have four stamens, and a small, green
perianth of four segments; while the females consist of an ovary with a
tufted stigma, surrounded by a perianth of four segments the two inner
of which are larger, or of two segments only. The fruit is a small,
flattened nut, enclosed in the persistent perianth. The distinguishing
characters of the three species are as follows:
1. The Small Nettle (_Urtica urens_).--An erect herb, from one to two
feet high, with leaves and stem smooth with the exception of the stiff,
stinging hairs. The leaves are thin, elliptical, deeply and regularly
toothed; and the flowers are in unbranched axillary spikes which are
shorter than the petioles, the males and females being intermixed. This
is a common species, flowering from June to September.
2. The Great Nettle (_U. dioica_).--A dark green herb, from one to four
feet high, more or less clothed with soft downy hairs in addition to the
stiff, stinging ones. The lower leaves are ovate or cordate, coarsely
toothed; and the upper ones narrower. The spikes of flowers are
branched, longer than the petioles, in the axils of the leaves. The
flowers are very similar to those of the Small Nettle, but the males and
females are usually on separate plants. This is a very common species,
flowering from June to September.
[Illustration: CANARY GRASS.]
3. The Roman Nettle (_U. pilulifera_).--A coarse, erect plant, from one
to two feet high, with stinging hairs more powerful than those of the
other species. The leaves are ovate or cordate, deeply and regularly
toothed. The male flowers are in clusters along the peduncles, which are
often as long as the leaves; and the females are in globular heads at
the top of stalks from half an inch to an inch in length. The heads of
fruits are about a third of an inch in diameter, thickly covered with
stinging hairs. This plant flowers from June to September. It is not so
abundant as the other nettles, and is found principally in the
neighbourhood of villages, especially in the eastern counties of
England.
Although the Hop (_Humulus Lupulus_) does not sting, the whole plant is
rough with stiff hairs resembling those of the nettles, and it is placed
in the same order. It is a climber, and clings to the hedgerow shrubs by
twining its long stems, which always turn in the same direction as the
sun. Its leaves are opposite, stalked, broadly heart-shaped in general
form, but cut into three or five sharply-toothed lobes. The flowers,
like those of the nettles, are imperfect, and the male and female
blossoms grow on separate plants. The former are in lax panicles, in the
axils of the upper leaves: they are small, of a yellowish green colour,
each consisting of five stamens surrounded by a perianth of five
segments. The females are arranged in rounded heads or spikes on short
stalks in the axils of the leaves. The heads are made up of a number of
closely-placed bracts, each with two little flowers at its base; and
each flower consists of an ovary, enclosed in a scale, with two long,
narrow stigmas. After fertilisation the scales of the head grow very
large, forming very conspicuous 'cones' in which the little fruits lie
concealed. The Hop flowers from July to September, and is common in
hedgerows and thickets.
Of the several wayside Grasses we have space for the mention of but one
species--the interesting Canary Grass (_Phalaris canariensis_). It is a
native of South Europe, introduced into this country and cultivated for
its seed (canary seed), but is now often seen growing wild in waste
places. It is represented on p. 209.
[Illustration: _Plate IV._
FLOWERS OF THE FIELD.
1. Rough Cock's-foot Grass. 2. Lucerne. 3. Crimson Clover. 4. Blue
Bottle. 5. Common Vetch. 6. Meadow Clary.]
XIV
MEADOWS, FIELDS AND PASTURES--SUMMER
In the present chapter we shall briefly describe a considerable number
of flowers which are to be seen in fields and pastures during the summer
months; but we must remind the reader that many of the species
previously mentioned in Chapter VIII as flowering in similar situations
in the spring, continue to bloom during the whole or a portion of the
summer. A list of these is given below; and it should be noted that the
flowers described in this chapter are those which do not generally
commence to bloom till the month of June.
SPRING FLOWERS OF MEADOWS, FIELDS AND PASTURES WHICH CONTINUE TO BLOOM
IN THE SUMMER.
Creeping Buttercup.
Bulbous Buttercup.
Field Penny Cress.
Wild Pansy.
Ragged Robin.
Spotted Medick.
Netted Medick.
White Clover.
Purple Clover.
Earthnut.
Daisy.
Dandelion.
Yellow Rattle.
Field Louse-wort.
Henbit Dead Nettle.
Common Sorrel.
Sheep's Sorrel.
Twayblade.
The Upright Buttercup or Meadow Crowfoot (_Ranunculus acris_) is often
confused with the two similar species (_R. repens_ and _R. bulbosus_)
already described in Chapter VIII, but it may be easily distinguished
from the former by the absence of creeping stems, and from the latter by
the spreading calyx and by the fibrous root without any bulbous
swelling. The whole plant is covered with soft hairs more or less
spreading; and it varies in height from six inches to three feet
according to the nature of the soil in which it grows. Its leaves are
all stalked with the exception of the few upper ones, and are very
deeply divided into three, five, or seven radiating segments which are
again cut into three lobes with acute divisions. The flowers are rather
large, on long terminal stalks, with a calyx of five yellowish-green,
concave sepals; and a very bright yellow corolla. The carpels are ovate,
slightly flattened, smooth, arranged in a globular head; and the fruits
are also smooth. The plant flowers during June and July.
Another 'Buttercup'--the Pale Hairy Crowfoot (_R. hirsutus_) is to be
seen in our pastures; and though not so common as the three just
mentioned, it is very generally distributed in England and the South of
Scotland. It seldom exceeds a foot in height, and flowers from June to
the end of the summer. Its stem is erect, hairy, and freely branched;
and its leaves are much like those of the Bulbous Buttercup (p.
110). The flowers, however, are smaller and more numerous than
those of the latter, and are of a paler yellow colour; but the sepals
are bent back on the flower-stalk as in this species. The fruits are
rough when quite ripe, with little tubercles along the margins.
[Illustration: THE GOLD OF PLEASURE.]
Cruciferous flowers are not at all abundant in fields and meadows during
the summer months, but one species--the Gold of Pleasure (_Camelina
sativa_)--may be seen in the flax-fields of South Britain and Ireland
during June and July. The plant has a simple or slightly branched stem,
from one to three feet high; and its leaves are all sessile, narrow,
arrow-shaped, either entire or slightly toothed, with pointed lobes at
the base. The flowers are small, yellow, arranged in a long, loose
raceme; and the fruits are oval siliquas, with convex valves, a distinct
central vein, and edges flattened into a narrow wing.
[Illustration: THE BLADDER CAMPION.]
The order _Caryophyllaceæ_ is represented in pastures by the Bladder
Campion (_Silene inflata_ or _S. cucubalis_)--a flower that is easily
recognised among the Campions and the Catchflys by the globular calyx.
The stem of the plant is semi-erect, branched below, and from two to
three feet high. The leaves are sessile, smooth, oblong, usually acute,
and placed in pairs on the jointed stem. The flowers are rather large,
arranged in lax, terminal panicles, and often droop slightly. The calyx
is globular, veined, and about half an inch or more in diameter; and the
five petals, which are deeply cleft into two lobes, have each a scale at
the base of the spreading limb. The plant is very widely distributed
over Britain, and is very common in some districts, flowering during
June and July.
The same order contains the White Campion (_Lychnis vespertina_)--a
hairy plant, with a branched stem from one to two feet high, and rather
large white or very pale pink flowers that open in the evening. It is
abundant in most parts of Britain, and flowers during June and July.
Its leaves are oval or oblong, usually pointed, and tapering towards the
base. The flowers are in loose cymes, and imperfect; the staminate and
the pistillate ones being usually on different plants. The calyx is
generally more than half an inch long, hairy, with ten ribs and five
narrow teeth. It is tubular at first, but becomes broadly oval, with a
contracted mouth, as the fruit ripens. The five limbs of the corolla are
spreading and rather deeply cleft into two parts; and the fruit is a
capsule that splits at the top by ten teeth which remain erect or curve
only slightly outwards. The plant is found principally in fields and in
open waste ground.
[Illustration: THE WHITE CAMPION.]
Our fields and pastures are particularly rich in flowers of the Pea
family (order _Leguminosæ_) during the summer months; and of these we
shall first note the pretty Kidney Vetch or Lady's Fingers (_Anthyllis
Vulneraria_), which is common in the dry pastures of most parts of
Britain. The whole plant is covered with short silky hairs which lie
close against the surface; and the stem, from six inches to over a foot
in length, is either erect or spreading. The leaves are pinnately
divided into several entire leaflets which are half an inch or more in
length, the terminal leaflet of the lower leaves being generally much
larger than the others. The flowers, which bloom from June to August,
are usually clustered into two dense heads at the tip of each stalk,
with a deeply-divided bract at the base of each head. The calyx is
densely covered with silky hairs; and the small corolla varies in colour
from pale yellow to red.
In the neighbourhood of cultivated fields we may frequently meet with
the Lucerne or Purple Medick (_Medicago sativa_). This is not a British
plant, but it has been introduced and largely cultivated, and is
commonly found as an escape. It has an erect stem, from one to two feet
high; and the flowers bloom during June and July, followed by smooth,
spirally-twisted pods of two or three coils. This plant appears on Plate
IV, Fig. 2.
In the genus _Melilotus_, of the same order, we have to note three
species, all of which agree in the following particulars:--They have
trifoliate leaves; and small, white or yellow flowers in long racemes on
axillary peduncles. The calyx has five teeth, and the corolla falls
after it fades. The stamens are ten in number, the upper one quite free,
while the filaments of the other nine are united into a split tube that
surrounds the ovary. The pod is only a little longer than the calyx,
rather thick in proportion to its length, with only one or two seeds,
and it does not split when ripe. The three species referred to may be
identified by the following descriptions:--
[Illustration: THE KIDNEY VETCH.]
The Common Melilot (_Melilotus officinalis_) is a smooth plant, with a
branched stem from two to four feet high; and long-stalked leaves with
roundish or oval leaflets, and narrow, pointed stipules. The flowers are
very numerous, yellow, about a quarter of an inch long, in long
racemes. The petals are equal; and the hairy pods are only about a sixth
of an inch long.
The Field Melilot (_M. arvensis_) is very similar, but not so tall, and
the flowers are less numerous. The 'keel' is shorter than the other
petals; and the pods are ribbed and blunt. The third species--the White
Melilot (_M. alba_)--is also very similar, but it has white flowers, in
which the 'standard' or upper petal is the longest. All three species
flower from June to August, but only the first may be described as
common.
The genus _Trifolium_, containing the Clovers and Trefoils, resembles
_Melilotus_ in its trifoliate leaves, five-toothed calyx, and in the
arrangement of the stamens; but it differs in that the stipules adhere
to the leaf stalks, and the corolla often persists round the ripened
fruit. Several species of this group are common in fields and pastures.
[Illustration: THE COMMON MELILOT.]
One of these is the Clustered Clover or Smooth Round-headed-Trefoil
(_Trifolium glomeratum_)--a smooth plant, with purple or pink flowers,
found principally in the dry pastures of South and East England,
flowering during June and July. Its spreading stems are from six to
twelve inches long; and the heads of flowers are small, sessile,
globular, and either axillary or terminal. The calyx is ten-veined,
shorter than the corolla, with five pointed teeth which bend outwards as
the fruit ripens.
The Strawberry Trefoil (_T. fragiferum_) has long-stalked, axillary
heads of rose-coloured flowers which become very compact and
strawberry-like when fruiting, at which time they are half an inch or
more in diameter. Its creeping stem roots at the nodes; and the leaves
are long-stalked, with toothed leaflets. Each head is surrounded below
by a whorl of lobed bracts about as long as the calyces which become
swollen after flowering. This is common in England, and flowers during
July and August.
The Hare's-foot Trefoil (_T. arvense_) is a slender, erect or sub-erect
plant, covered with short, soft hairs, flowering from June to the end of
the summer. Its stem is branched, from six inches to a foot in length;
and the heads of flowers, on long, terminal or axillary stalks, are at
first nearly globular, but afterwards cylindrical and about three
quarters of an inch long. The flowers are small, pink, with corolla
shorter than the calyx. The latter has five very long, feathery teeth,
giving the whole head of flowers a soft and feathery appearance. The
plant is abundant, especially in the southern counties of England.
The Crimson Clover (_T. incarnatum_) was introduced into England and
cultivated as fodder, but it is often found wild as an escape from
cultivation. The plant is erect, varying from six inches to two feet in
height, and is covered with soft, silky hairs. It flowers in June and
July. The corolla, which is much longer than the calyx, is sometimes
almost white. This flower is shown on Plate IV.
[Illustration: THE LADY'S MANTLE.]
One of the commonest flowers of this genus is the Hop Trefoil (_T.
procumbens_)--a slender plant, with erect or sub-erect stem much
branched below. Its leaflets are obovate or obcordate, and toothed; and
the flower-heads are dense, globular, on long axillary stalks, each
consisting of about forty bright yellow flowers. When fruiting the heads
are turned downwards, and the pods are then covered by the persistent,
brown corollas. This species flowers from June to August.
The Lesser Yellow Trefoil (_T. minus_) is very much like the last, and
flowers at the same time, but is more slender and more procumbent; and
its flower-heads, which consist of from ten to twenty pale yellow
flowers, are on stiff peduncles.