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WILD  FIDWERS 

nF 

CANADA 


j 


\ 


By 


WILLIAM  COPELAND   McCALLA 


With  Sixty  Plates  from  Original  Photographs 
by  the  Author 


TORONTO 

THE  MUSSON  BOOK  COMPANY 
LIMITED 


596017 


Copyright,  Canada,  1920 
by 

W.  C.  McCALLA 


TO 

MARGARET 


NATURE 

11  The  bubbling  brook  doth  leap  when  I  come  by, 
Because  my  feet  find  measure  with  its  call; 
The  birds  know  when  the  friend  they  love  is  nigh, 
For  I  am  known  to  them,  both  great  and  small. 
The  flower  that  on  the  lonely  hillside  grows 
Expects  me  there  when  spring  its  bloom  has  given; 
And  many  a  tree  and  bush  my  wanderings  knows, 
And  e'en  the  clouds  and  silent  stars  of  heaven;" 

— Jones  Very. 


PREFACE 

The  plants  pictured  and  described  in  thia  little  book  are  for  the  most 
part  quite  common  in  Western  Canada.  With  a  territory  so  vast  and  varied 
in  character  as  is  ours,  the  reader  will  not  expect  to  find  them  all  in  his  own 
neighborhood,  but  he  will  find  many  of  them,  also  others  quite  as  beautiful 
and  interesting.  He  may  regret  that  some  favorite  flower  is  not  included, 
but  he  may  be  sure  that  his  regret  is  shared  by  the  author  who  found  it  difficult 
to  make  the  final  selection.  No  two  persons  would  have  made  an  identical 
choice,  still,  it  is  believed  that  representative  plants  from  all  parts  of  the 
West  except  the  extreme  North  and  the  Pacific  slope  have  been  included. 

In  a  general  way  the  plants  are  arranged  according  to  their  time  of  bloom, 
beginning  with  the  early  flowers  of  Spring.  But  owing  to  the  extent  of  our 
counti  y,  to  local  conditions  of  soil  and  exposure,  and  to  variations  in  weather 
from  year  to  year,  it  is  impossible  to  be  exact  as  to  either  order  or  dates. 
Still,  for  a  work  of  this  kind,  it  was  felt  to  be  the  best  arrangement. 

In  writing  of  western  wild  flowers  one  meets  the  difficulty  that  many  of 
them  have  as  yet  no  generally  recognized  common  name.  Such  names  as 
far  as  possible  have  been  hunted  out  and  used.  In  some  cases  they  lack 
definiteness,  as  where  a  common  generic  name  has  come  into  use  and  is  applied 
loosely  to  any  one  or  to  all  of  the  several  species.  To  accurately  identify 
the  flower  the  botanical  name  is  also  given.  As  the  photographs  together 
with  the  notes  on  size,  color,  and  habitat  are  believed  to  be  quite  sufficient 
to  enable  the  reader  to  recognize  any  of  the  plants,  it  has  not  been  thought 
necessary  or  desirable  to  give  detailed  technical  descriptions. 

The  landscape  pictures  are  introduced  to  give  variety  of  interest  and  to 
direct  attention  to  the  fascinating  subject  of  plant  societies. 

To  know  the  name  of  a  flower  is,  of  course,  but  a  preliminary  to  acquain- 
tance. It  is  hoped  that  the  presentation  of  certain  facts  in  the  life  history 
of  these  plants  may  lead  readers  to  more  attentively  observe  the  plants 
about  them — to  notice  how  they  adapt  themselves  in  structure  and  habit 
to  their  environment,  how  they  bravely  meet  vicissitudes  of  fortune,  how 
eagerly  they  take  advantage  of  favorable  opportunities,  and  how  marvelously 
in  form  and  service  they  and  the  insects  are  interrelated  and  mutually  depend- 
ent. Refeience  to  these  subjects  has  been  much  curtailed  by  limitation  of 
space  but  this  is  not  necessarily  a  disadvantage.  Were  an  attempt  made  to 
give  the  whole  life  history  of  each  plant  it  would  be  attended  by  two  dangers: 
first,  its  length  might  discourage  many  casual  readers;  and  second,  the  more 
interested  might  be  tempted  to  study  the  written  story  rather  than  the  living 
plant.  Hence,  the  endeavor  has  been  to  make  the  brief  text  stimulative 
and  suggestive. 

May  we  all  find  in  the  contemplation  of  the  manifold  beauties  and  wonders 
of  Nature  fresh  joy,  quickened  sympathy,  and  enlarged  outlook  on  life. 

W.  C.  McCALLA. 

Glenbrook  Farm, 

Bremner,  Alberta, 
May,  1920. 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE 

Golden  Pea 11 

Fairy  Bells 13 

Wild  Sarsaparilla 15 

Early  Purple  Violet 17 

Shooting  Star 19 

Purple  Milk  Vetch 21 

The  Forest  Invading  a  Peat  Bog 23 

Baked-Apple  Berry .  .  . 25 

Arctic  Raspberry 27 

Water  Arum 29 

Silver  Weed 31 

Round-leaved  Orchis 33 

Blue  Beard  Tongue 35 

Bird's-eye  or  Mealy  Primrose 37 

Marsh  Ragwort 39 

Zones  of  Vegetation  around  a  Pond 41 

Tall  Lungwort 43 

Yellow  Lady's  Slipper 45 

Twin-flower 47 

Bunchberry 49 

Yellow  Columbine 51 

Northern  Bedstraw 53 

Seneca  Snakeroot 55 

Red  Lily 57 

-In  a  Western  Woodland 59 

Pink  Wintergreen 61 

One-flowered  Wintergreen 63 

Purple  Geranium 65 

Tall  White  Cinquefoil 67 

Cow  Parsnip 69 

Prairie  Pink 71 

Scarlet  Gaura 73 

Purple  Prairie  Clover 75 

Northern  Hedysarum 77 

.   • 

. 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE 

A  Flower-bordered  Road 79 

Hedge  Nettle 81 

Great-flowered  Gaillardia 83 

Tall  Meadow  Rue 85 

Loco-weed 87 

Nodding  Wild  Onion 89 

Tall  or  Glaucous  Zygadenus 91 

Oval-leaved  Milkweed 93 

Rough  Fleabane  Daisy 95 

Wild  Bergamot 97 

A  Ferny  Dell 99 

Great  Willow-herb 101 

Grass  of  Parnassus : 103 

Spreading  Dogbane 105 

Giant  Hyssop 107 

Wild  Morning  Glory. 109 

Blazing  Star r Ill 

Painted  Cup 113 

A  Western  River  Scene 115 

Giant  Sunflower 117 

Broad-leaved  Arrow-head 119 

Marsh  Felwort 121 

Lesser  Pasture  Sage  Brush 123 

White  Prairie  Aster 125 

Drummond's  Dryas 127 

A  Group  of  Airship  Seeds 129 


WILD  FLOWERS 
WESTERN  (ANADA 


GOLDEN  PEA;  PRAIRIE  BEAN 

Thermopsis  rhombifolia  (Nutt.)  Richards 
PEA  FAMILY 

The  early  flowers  are  especially  welcome  and  are  eagerly 
looked  for.  It  is  an  event  of  the  year  to  find  the  first  anemone, 
the  well-known  " crocus"  of  the  prairie.  Following  this  pioneer 
come  the  sweet  coltsfoot,  a  dwarf  buttercup,  a  tiny,  leafy-stemmed 
violet,  and,  showiest  of  all,  this  splendid  Golden  Pea.  It  perfumes 
and  brightens  many  a  hillside  and  bit  of  prairie,  always  showing 
a  preference  for  sandy  soil. 

When  the  stalk  emerges  from  the  ground  it  wears  a  gray  coat 
of  silky  hairs.  Its  tip  is  bent  over  and  sheltered  by  large  stipules 
(those  leaf-like  appendages  at  the  base  of  each  leaf -stalk),  as  if 
the  plant  hid  its  face  between  huge  ear  tabs  from  the  sudden 
exposure  to  wind  and  sunshine.  As  the  stem  grows,  the  three- 
parted  leaves  push  out  from  this  protection,  but  for  a  time  the 
leaflets  remain  folded  along  their  mid-ribs,  only  gradually  opening 
out  and  assuming  the  horizontal  position.  The  flower  buds  are 
soon  revealed,  and  rapidly  develop  into  large,  bright  yellow,  pea- 
shaped  blossoms,  followed  a  few  weeks  later  by  sickle-shaped  pods. 

It  is  interesting  to  observe  the  various  and  ingenious  devices 
used  by  plants  to  ensure  the  safety  of  the  tender  young  shoots 
and  leaves  during  the  great  change  from  the  snug  cradle  of  the 
bud  to  the  full  exposure  of  maturity.  The  transition  is  usually 
made  without  injury.  Many  people  believe  that  while  man- 
made  gardens  are  often  caught  by  late  frosts  and  storms,  the  wild 
plants  have  a  sure  instinct  that  leads  them  to  defer  growth  until 
the  weather  is  safe.  But  this  is  not  wholly  correct,  "for  only 
those  who  have  studied  nature  but  very  little  will  maintain  that 
she  never  errs."*  The  Golden  Peas  growing  on  a  sunny  slope 
near  the  house  of  the  writer  have  been  badly  frozen  three  years 
out  of  six,  while  those  near  by,  but  on  the  north  side  of  a  coppice, 
have  escaped  all  injury.  These  are  no  wiser  than  their  brothers 
on  the  hillside,  but  the  brush  held  the  snow  and  frost  and  so  de- 
layed their  start. 

'Maeterlinck. 


10 


GOLDEN  PEA;  PRAIRIE  BEAN 

11 


FAIRY  BELLS 

Disporum  trachycarpum  8.  Wats. 
LILY  FAMILY 

Here  is  no  plant  of  the  open  prairie.  The  thin,  soft  tissue 
of  it  leaves  and  of  its  creamj^-white  flowers  could  not  stand 
exposure  to  high  wind,  beating  rain,  or  strong  sunshine,  hence  it 
is  in  deep  woods,  especially  on  the  sheltered  sides  of  ravines, 
that  this  graceful  and  dainty  beauty  of  early  Spring  is  to  be 
found.  How  well  it  chooses  its  home  is  shown  by  the  fact  that 
this  photograph  of  perfect  specimens  was  taken  in  the  morning, 
after  a  late  snowstorm,  followed  by  frost,  had  bedraggled  or 
blighted  the  hardier  plants  up  in  the  open. 

As  the  developing  foliage  of  the  trees  shuts  out  more  sunlight, 
the  Disporum  broadens  out  with  the  ample,  horizontal  leaves 
characteristic  of  woodland  undergrowth.  Still  later  in  the 
season,  each  branch  now  widely  divergent,  bears  one  or  two 
bright  berries  where  once  hung  the  delicate  bells.  These  globose, 
three-lobed  fruits  are  about  one-half  inch  in  diameter,  and  in 
process  of  ripening  change  from  green  to  orange  and  then  to 
dazzling  scarlet.  Their  skin  is  minutely  roughened,  giving  it 
th«'  richness  of  velvet.  Within  is  a  small  quantity  of  juicy  pulp 
and  numerous  ivory-white  seeds.  The  berries,  although  not 
likely  to  be  used  for  human  food,  seen  harmless  enough.  These 
are  ripe  before  the  leaves  assume  their  autumn  tints,  so,  unless 
••arrinl  away  promptly  by  the  birds,  they  have  first  a  rich  green 
and  later  a  bright  yellow  background. 


12 


FAIRY  BELLS 
13 


WILD  SARSAPARILLA 

Aralia  nudicaulis  L. 
GINSENG  FAMILY 

The  Wild  Sarsaparilla  can  hardly  be  called  a  beautiful  flower, 
yet  the  plant  as  a  whole  is  attractive,  and,  for  a  time  in  early  June, 
its  abundance  makes  it  the  most  conspicuous  feature  of  many  a 
woodland  from  Newfoundland  to  British  Columbia. 

A  long  aromatic  rootstock  bears  a  very  short  stem,  from  a 
bud  on  which  spring  one  leaf  and  one  flower-stalk.  Developing 
together  the  newly-expanded  leaf  overarches  the  newly-opened 
flowers.  As  will  be  seen  by  the  picture,  both  are  in  threes.  This 
is  the  usual  number,  although  sometimes  there  are  four  main 
divisions  to  the  leaf,  and  the  umbels,  or  clusters  of  flowers,  may 
vary  from  two  to  seven;  if  more  than  four,  the  extra  umbels 
spring  from  one  or  more  of  the  primary  clusters,  so  giving  a  two- 
storied  effect. 

The  small,  greenish-white  flowers  seem  to  be  followed  by  either 
a  full  crop  of  fruit  or  none  at  all.  In  1919  the  bloom  was  copious, 
but  little  fruit  was  produced;  such  plants,  however,  as  had  any 
berries  bore  full  clusters,  there  being  no  half-filled  ones.  The 
berries  are  purplish-black  or  finally  jet-black,  rather  sweet  when 
first  put  in  the  mouth,  but  quickly  turning  bitter  like  quinine. 
They  ripen  late  in  the  season,  about  the  time  the  leaf  turns  a 
clear  yellow. 

The  roots  are  supposed  to  have  some  medicinal  value  and  there 
is  a  slight  commercial  demand  for  them.  The  official  sarsaparilla, 
however,  is  from  quite  a  different  plant,  the  smilax  of  Central 
and  South  America. 


14 


WILD  SARSAPARILLA 


EARLY  PURPLE  VIOLET 

Viola  nephrophylla  Greene 
VIOLET  FAMILY 


Everyone  knows  and  admires  the  violet,  and  with  our 
admiration  is  combined  a  warmer  feeling,  for  it  is  a  lovable  flower 
with  a  personal,  almost  human  appeal. 

Out  of  the  two  hundred  or  more  species  that  have  been  described 
by  botanists,  Canada  has  her  full  share  (whether  with  blue,  purple, 
white,  or  yellow  flowers),  but  none  is  finer  than  this  one,  which 
grows  abundantly  in  wet  meadows  and  beside  ponds  and  streams 
from  Quebec  to  British  Columbia.  The  large,  long-stemmed  blos- 
soms are  a  true  violet  in  color,  wonderfully  deep  and  rich  if  seen 
when  "violets  bathe  in  the  weto'  the  morn."  If ,  some  dewy  morning, 
it  is  your  privilege  to  come  upon  a  little  pool,  bordered  with 
these  Early  Purple  Violets,  then  you  have  indeed  chanced  upon 
one  of  the  most  exquisite  of  Nature's  floral  gems.  You  will 
notice  the  rich,  suffused  beauty  of  the  violet  faces.  You  will 
notice  the  tender  green  of  the  leaves,  acting,  by  the  contrast 
of  their  simple  freshness,  as  a  foil  to  intensify  the  blushing  beauty 
of  the  violets  which  shyly  peep  forth  above,  bejewelled  with 
wonderful,  translucent  pearls  of  dew-drops.  The  human  appeal 
is  so  strong  that  one  smiles  in  wondering  if  each  violet  face, 
peeping  into  the  expectant  waters  of  the  pool  is  simply  greeting, 
or  studying  awaking  Nature.  Or  have  we  here  simply  the  charm- 
ing vanity  of  conscious  beauty? 

A  remarkable  fact,  not  generally  known,  is  that  violets  have 
two  kinds  of  flowers.  The  second  kind  are  inconspicuous  green 
or  purple  buds  on  short,  often  prostrate,  stems.  The  buds 
do  not  open  and  yet  they  produce  capsules  full  of  seeds.  When 
this  was  first  noticed  by  botanists  of  the  eighteenth  century, 
it  seemed  such  a  wonder  that  they  named  that  particular  kind 
the  Miracle  Violet.  It  has  since  been  found  that  with  few  excep- 
tions all  violets  produce  these  cleistogamous  flowers,  as  they  are 
called.  Self-fertilization  in  the  bud  is  of  course  the  explanation 
of  the  wonder. 


16 


17 


SHOOTING  STAR;  AMERICAN  COWSLIP 

Dodecatheon  pauciflorum  (Durand)  Greene 
PRIMROSE  FAMILY 

The  Shooting  Star  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  and  beautiful 
of  our  wild  flowers,  whether  we  consider  in  detail  its  form  and 
color  or  its  general  effect  on  the  June  landscape.  It  grows  in 
wet  meadows  and  the  bright  blossoms  dancing  above  the  grass 
are  a  delightful  sight.  Even  as  with  Wordsworth's  daffodils — 
"A  poet  could  not  but  be  gay, 
In  such  a  jocund  company," 
and  those  of  us  who  are  not  poets  can  also  feel  our  hearts  fill  with 
pleasure  and  dance  with  the  sprightly  Shooting  Stars.  Although 
one  may  sometimes  see  ten  thousand  at  a  glance,  they  do  not 
form  a  solid  mass  of  color  but  are  so  scattered  as  to  retain  the 
effect  of  lightness  and  grace. 

The  habit  of  the  plant  is  shown  by  the  picture.  From  the 
smooth,  light  green  leaves  rise  the  scapes  six  to  fifteen  inches 
high,  carrying  in  umbel-like  clusters  three  to  ten  or  more  nodding 
flowers.  With  their  reflexed  and  twisted  corolla-lobes,  they  re- 
semble their  relative,  the  cyclamen,  of  the  greenhouse,  but  are 
much  more  slender  and  dainty.  The  color  is  a  bright  purple, 
almost  cerise,  with  the  throat  showing  ;i  pretty  combination  of 
white  and  yellow  with  an  encircling  wavy  line,  narrow  but  sharply 
defined,  of  dark  purple.  The  stamens  closely  surround  the  slender 
style  giving  a  tapering  point  to  this  quaint,  winged  blossom. 
A  fragrance,  as  of  hyacinths,  completes  the  charm. 


18 


SHOOTING  STAR;  AMERICAN  COWSLIP 
19 


PURPLE  MILK  VETCH 

Astragalus  hypoglottis  L. 
PEA  FAMILY 

This  is  one  of  the  earlier  and  smaller  of  the  milk  vetches,  of 
which  many  different  kinds  grow  in  Western  Canada.  Its  stems 
are  slender,  rather  weak,  branched  at  the  base,  and  from  three  to 
eight  inches  high.  The  flower  clusters  resemble  clover-heads, 
while  the  leaves  are  reminiscent  of  those  of  the  true  vetch  but 
are  without  the  tendril.  The  pods  are  short,  thick,  and  hairy. 

The  Purple  Milk  Vetch  is  common  over  a  wide  area,  growing 
in  the  open  or  on  the  edge  of  thickets,  in  a  variety  of  soils.  It 
likes  some  moisture,  and,  among  the  grass  in  low  meadows, 
makes  a  thrifty  growth  like  that  shown,  almost  natural  size, 
in  the  picture;  but  the  deep  black  loam  of  the  prairie  is  for  some 
reason  not  congenial.  It  may  be  noticed,  however,  that,  where 
the  grading  of  a  road  through  such  soil  has  in  places  removed 
the  top  layer,  exposing  the  hard,  poor-looking  subsoil,  the  Purple 
Milk  Vetch  is  often  one  of  the  plants  that  quickly  and  mysteriously 
covers  the  naked  earth  with  verdure.  How  do  plants,  strangers 
to  the  immediate  neighborhood,  so  promptly  take  possession? 
To  attempt  a  full  explanation  would  take  many  pages,  and  be 
beyond  the  scope  of  this  little  book.  One  is  reminded  of  a  sentence 
by  Oliver  Wendell  Homes — 

"Nay,  there  are  certain  patches  of  ground,  which,  having 
lain  neglected  for  a  time,  Nature,  who  always  has  her  pockets 
full  of  seeds,  and  holes  in  all  her  pockets,  has  covered  with  hungry 
plebian  growths,  which  fight  for  life  with  each  other,  until  some 
of  them  get  broad-leaved  and  succulent,  and  you  have  a  coarse 
vegetable  tapestry  which  Raphael  would  not  have  disdained  to 
spread  over  the  foreground  of  his  masterpiece." 


20 


PuRFLEjMiLK  VETCH 
21 


THE  FOREST  INVADING  A  PEAT  BOG 
Antagnostic  Plant  Societies 

I  It- re  is  a  typical  picture  of  one  phase  of  the  struggle  that  is 
constantly  going  on  between  different  plant  societies.  The  birch 
lives,  supported  by  willows  and  alders,  have  established  outposts 
in  the  bo<r,  and  the  main  forces  of  the  forest  are  coming  up  to 
complete  the  conquest.  The  common  bog  plants  are  still  holding 
their  ground,  but  their  leaves  are  no  longer  a  healthy  green, 
and  their  flowers  are  small  and  scattered.  Evidently  they  cannot 
last  many  more  years.  Behind  this  victory  of  the  forest  over 
the  bog  is  a  long  story  concise^  told  by  the  late  Prof.  Geo.  F. 
Atkinson  of  Cornell  University  in  the  following  paragraphs : 

"Many  of  the  peat  bogs  were  once  small  ponds  or  lakes. 
The  peat  moss  and  other  plants  which  find  shallow  water  a  con- 
genial place  to  grow  in  begin  marching  out  from  the  edge  of  the 
water  toward  the  centre  of  the  pond.  The  stems  of  the  peat 
die  below  and  grow  above.  So  in  this  way  they  build  up  a  floor 
or  platform  in  the  water.  The  dead  peat  now  in  the  water 
below  does  not  thoroughly  rot,  as  the  leaves  do  in  the  moist  ground 
of  the  forest,  because  the  water  shuts  out  the  air.  The  partly 
dead  stems  of  the  moss  pile  up  quite  fast  in  making  the  platform, 
which  sometimes  is  entirely  composed  of  peat.  Other  plants 
may  grow  along  with  the  peat.  Their  dead  bodies  also  help  to 
build  up  this  floor  beneath. 

"The  army  of  peat  and  other  water  plants  continues  to  march 
out  toward  the  centre  of  the  pond,  though  slowly.  Finally,  in 
many  cases,  the  line  around  the  shore  meets  in  the  centre  and  the 
pond  is  filled  up,  the  floor  having  been  extended  entirely  across. 
But  they  keep  on  adding  each  year  to  the  floor,  raising  it  higher 
and  hi'jher.  until  it  is  high  enough  and  dry  enough  for  the  march- 
ing armies  of  the  dry  land  Brasses,  shrubs,  and  trees.  At  length  a 
forest  comes  to  stand  on  the  floor  built  across  the  pond  by  the 
peat  moss  and  the  other  members  of  its  society." — First 
<>f  I ' lii n f  /,//>.  (thin  and  Company. 


22 


THE  FOREST  INVADING  A  PEAT  BOG 
23 


BAKED- APPLE  BERRY;  CLOUD-BERRY 

Rubus  Chamaemorus  L. 
ROSE  FAMILY 

One  must  go  to  a  peat  bog  in  early  June  to  find  this  curious 
little  raspberry  in  blossom.  Springing  from  rootstocks  creeping 
through  the  moss,  the  stems  rise  only  a  few  inches  high.  They 
are  neither  woody  nor  prickly  as  are  most  raspberries,  and  bear 
two  or  three  simple  leaves  instead  of  the  usual  divided  ones. 
These  leaves  are  plaited  in  the  bud,  and  in  process  of  expansion 
the  underside,  with  firm,  close  ribbing,  is  first  exposed.  Slowly 
the  ribs  or  veins  lengthen  and  spread  apart,  and  as  they  do  so, 
the  leaf  settles  to  its  proper  position  facing  the  sky,  so  that  its 
millions  of  cells,  each  a  tiny  starch  factory,  may  by  the  energy 
of  the  sunshine  produce  a  full  day's  output.  Strikingly  handsome 
the  leaves  are,  rich  and  deep  in  texture  and  color. 

A  single  flower,  like  a  little  white  rose,  tops  each  stalk.  There 
are  two  kinds,  as  may  be  seen  in  the  picture,  where  the  four  centre 
ones  bear  clusters  of  stamens,  while  the  two  tall,  outside  plants 
have  flowers  with  pistils  only.  The  staminate  blossoms  soon 
shed  their  yellow  dust,  then  shrivel  up  and  that  is  the  end  of  them  ; 
but  the  pistillate  ones,  if  they  have  received  the  vitalizing  touch 
of  the  pollen  grains,  develop  into  the  pleasant  berries  which  give 
the  plant  one  of  its  popular  names.  Many  fruits  in  ripening 
change  from  green  through  yellow  to  red  at  full  maturity,  but 
here  the  order  is  reversed,  from  green  to  red,  then  to  yellow. 

When  stamens  and  pistils  are  produced  by  separate  individuals, 
the  plant  is  said  to  be  dioecious.  This  habit  makes  sure  of  cross- 
fortilization,  with  its  advantage  of  seeds  endowed  with  superior 
vigor  and  adaptability.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  not  an  economical 
method  as  only  about  half  the  plants  can  produce  seeds,  hence 
most  of  the  higher  plants  combine  stamens  and  pistils  in  the  same 
flower,  but  so  arrange  things  that  cross-fertilization  is  usually 
assured,  or  at  least  encouraged. 


24 


ARCTIC  RASPBERRY;  ARCTIC  BRAMBLE 

Rubus  arcticus  L. 
ROSE  FAMILY 

Many  interesting  plants  not  elsewhere  found  grow  in  bogs, 
for  conditions  of  life  in  company  with  peat  moss  are  so  unusual 
that  only  plants  of  special  structure  and  habits  can  endure  or 
thrive.  Among  the  commonest  of  these  bog-dwellers  are  the 
Labrador  tea,  a  low  shrub  with  round  clusters  of  white  flowers 
and  thick  leaves,  rusty  woolly  underneath,  and  the  cranberry, 
with  its  slender  creeping  stems,  firm,  tiny  leaves  and  dainty, 
pink  flowers  nodding  an  inch  or  two  above  the  moss.  Among 
the  most  curious  are  three  carnivorous  plants,  the  sundew,  the 
butterwort  (whose  leaves  catch  and  devour  insects),  and  the 
pitcher-plant  whose  pitfalls  are  baited  with  honey  above  a  slippery 
incline  that  sends  unwary  visitors  to  certain  death  below.  Of 
the  beautiful  flowers  might  be  mentioned  the  three-leaved 
Solomon's  seal,  the  tall  white  bog  orchis,  and  the  pretty  little  rasp- 
berry shown  natural  size  on  the  opposite  pa'ge. 

Like  the  Baked-apple  Berry,  the  Arctic  Raspberry  is  herbaceous 
and  unarmed,  but  more  slender  and  with  thinner  three-foliolate 
leaves.  The  season  of  bloom  is  a  week  or  ten  days  later,  the 
flowers  being  pink  or  rose-colored  and  delightfully  fragrant. 
As  these  are  usually  perfect,  that  is,  have  both  stamens  and 
pistils,  they  each  produce  a  berry,  bright  red  and  of  good  flavor. 
The  Arctic  Raspberry  likes  a  little  shade,  and  is  at  home  in  wet 
mossy  woods  as  well  as  in  open  bogs. 

Although  its  name  suggests  the  polar  regions,  it  is  sometimes 
found  far  south  in  Canadian  territory. 


26 


WATER  ARUM;  WILD  CALLA 

Calla  palustris  L. 
ARUM  FAMILY 

"  Yes,  though  you  may  think  me  perverse,  if  it  were  proposed  to  me  to  dwell 
in  the  neighborhood  of  the  most  beautiful  garden  that  ever  human  art  contrived, 
or  else  of  a  Dismal  Swamp,  I  should  certainly  decide  for  the  swamp." — Thoreau. 

If  you  feel  in  any  measure  the  fascination  of  these  so-called 
waste  places,  as  did  the  philosopher  of  Walden,  you  will  some  day 
in  your  rambles  come  upon  a  colony  of  Water  Arums.  It  is  likely 
to  be  in  a  little  pool  in  the  bog  or  on  the  margin  of  the  swamp. 
The  dark  masses  of  smooth,  heart-shaped  leaves  should  serve 
as  identification.  If  in  doubt,  look  for  long,  creeping  rootstocks, 
with  white  fibrous  roots  at  the  joints.  If  not  yet  satisfied,  break 
a  rootstalk  and  taste  the  juice,  but  very  delicately,  for  it  has  an 
acrid  bite.  In  early  Summer  the  flowers  make  such  experiments 
unnecessary,  as  you  at  once  recognize  a  humble  relation  of  the 
stately  calla  lily  of  the  greenhouse. 

The  flowers  proper  are  small,  consisting  of  stamens  and  pistil 
only,  and  are  compactly  arranged  around  the  top  of  the  stem 
into  a  fleshy*  spike,  called  the  spadix.  Below  this  is  a  thick, 
pointed  bract,  the  spathe,  white  on  the  inner  surface,  greenish 
on  the  outside.  This  snowy  banner  behind  the  inconspicuous 
spike  serves  to  attract  insects,  who  unconsciously  aid  in  ferti- 
lization as  they  crawl  over  the  flowers  and  pass  from  plant  to 
plant.  By  late  Summer  the  spadix  has  developed  into  a  large, 
knotty  head  of  bright  red  berries,  containing  hard,  smooth  seeds 
surrounded  by  a  jelly-like  pulp. 


28 


SILVER- WEED;  SILVER-FEATHER 

Potentilla  Anserina  L. 
ROSE  FAMILY 

The  Silver-weed  has  a  cheerful  and  active  disposition,  readily 
adapting  itself  to  a  variety  of  conditions,  and  quickly  grasping 
opportunities  for  advancing  its  fortunes.  Preferring  wet  ground, 
yet  making  the  most  of  dry,  it  has  occupied  so  much  territory 
that  its  neat  silver-green  uniform  is  well  known  from  Newfound- 
land and  New  Jersey  to  Alaska  and  California.  While  its  behavior 
at  times  is  such  as  to  class  it  with  the  weeds,  it  certainly  is  not 
pernicious. 

Silver-feather  is  a  better  name  because  of  its  plume-like 
leaves,  silvered  beneath  by  long,  silky  hairs  and  usually  green 
on  top.  Sometimes,  however,  the  upper  surface  has  also  a  thin, 
silky  covering.  This  variation  with  its  cause  is  nicely  shown  by 
two  patches  beside  the  house  of  the  writer.  One  is  close  to  the 
foundation  on  the  south  side  in  poor  soil,  exposed  to  full  sunlight, 
and  the  leaves  are  gray  green.  The  other  is  on  the  west  side 
in  rich  loam,  getting  no  sun  until  after  eleven  o'clock,  and  here 
the  upper  surface  is  bright  green. 

The  yellow  flowers  are  produced  over  a  long  season,  as  they 
spring  from  the  axils  of  small  leaves  on  the  strawberry-like  runners 
sent  out  in  profusion.  These  runners  are  usually  from  one  to 
three  feet  long,  and  from  them  new  plants  start  every  few  inches. 
A  mat  of  vegetation  is  soon  formed.  In  producing  and  directing 
their  runners,  the  plants  exhibit  something  very  like  intelligence, 
as  the  following  instance  will  show.  On  the  shore  of  a  little  lake 
in  1919  grew  a  vigorous  Silver-weed.  The  dry  season  lowered 
the  water  until  a  strip  of  sandy  bottom  eight  feet  wide  was  exposed. 
The  plant  was  crowded  behind  and  on  either  side  by  competing 
neighbors,  but  in  front  lay  this  land  of  promise,  so,  with  concen- 
trated energy,  a  single  runner  was  pushed  out  straight  towards 
it.  By  the  twenty-fourth  of  August  an  advance  of  over  five  feet 
had  been  made,  and  eighteen  young  plants  established  on  the  line 
of  march  were  aiding  the  parent  in  its  forward  movement. 


ROUND-LEAVED  ORCHIS 

Orchis  rotundijolia  Pursh 
ORCHID  FAMILY 

Although  not  one  of  our  rarest  or  showiest  orchids,  this  one 
is  pretty  enough,  and  in  most  districts  uncommon  enough,  to 
make  its  discovery  a  happy  event  to  the  lover  of  flowers.  Some 
years  ago,  in  October,  I  found  a  few  dried  stems  with  empty  seed 
cases  at  the  top  and  a  withered  leaf  at  the  base  of  each,  and 
recognized  an  old  acquaintance  not  met  with  for  fifteen  years. 
My  eagerness  took  me  back  too  early  the  next  June,  but  on  a 
second  visit,  the  two  or  three  dozen  plants  were  in  full  bloom. 
This  small  colony  has  flourished  and  spread  along  the  little 
waterway,  and  last  Summer  several  hundred  flower-spikes  were 
produced — a  sight  worth  going  far  to  see,  and  a  natural  garden 
worth  preserving. 

The  Round-leaved  Orchis  lives  in  rich,  moist  woods,  often 
where  the  ground  is  covered  with  moss,  from  which,  leaving  its 
single  leaf  behind,  the  flowers  rise  in  crisp,  glistening  purity  to 
a  height  of  about  six  inches.  They  are  white,  delicately  tinted 
pink  with  a  suggestion  of  mauve.  The  upper  sepal  and  two 
petals  form  a  hood,  and  under  it  stands  the  column,  a  structure 
peculiar  to  the  orchid  family,  in  which  are  combined  the  organs 
corresponding  to  stamens  and  pistil  in  other  flowers.  On  either 
side  are  wing-like  sepals,  while  in  front,  the  third  petal  spreads 
out  into  a  purple-spotted  lip  or  apron,  and  below  is  a  curved  tube 
containing  nectar.  The  hood  protects  the  column,  the  essential 
part  of  the  flower,  the  lip  is  the  landing  stage  for  the  winged 
guest,  who  finding  in  front  of  him  the  opening  into  the  nectary, 
thrusts  in  his  tongue,  thus  bringing  his  head  against  the  adhesive 
ends  of  the  two  pollen  masses.  When  he  flies  away  to  the  next 
flower  he  of  course  carries  the  pollen  along. 

The  wonderful  interrelationship  in  form  and  service  that 
exists  between  flowers  and  insects,  suggested  in  the  above  descrip- 
tion, is  nowhere  carried  to  such  a  specialized  degree  as  in  the 
orchid  family. 


32 


ROUND-LEAVED  ORCHIS 
33 


BLUE  BEARD-TONGUE 

Pentstemon  procerus  Dougl. 

FIOWORT  FAMILY 

The  Penstemons  liold  an  important  place  in  the  flora  of 
\\Vst, TII  America.  Dr.  Rydberg  describes  ninety-seven  species 
of  which  at  least  a  score  are  found  in  Canada.  They  are  perennial 
herbs  found  for  the  most  part  on  dry  plains  and  hillsides.  Their 
stems,  which  branch  from  the  base  only,  hear  opposite  leaves 
and  terminal  clusters  of  showy  blue,  purple,  yellow,  or  white 
Mowers.  The  corolla  is  irregular  with  a  long  tube  and  two  spread- 
ing lips.  Four  stamens  are  anther-bearing,  but  the  fifth  is  sterile 
and  usually  densely  hairy,  giving  to  the  plant  its  curious  but 
appropriate  name  of  Beard-tongue. 

This  parl  ieular  species — the  Blue  Beard-tongue — is  character- 
istic of  the  southern  part  of  our  territory  but  strays  northward 
in  places.  The  clustered  stems  are 'from  four  to  twelve  inches 
hijrh  and  usually  quite  smooth  as  are  also  the  leaves.  The  crowded 
Mowers  are  smaller  than  those  of  most  beard-tongues  and  are 
dark  purplish-blue  of  such  a  distinctive  shade  that  once  seen, 
it  thereafter  serves  as  a  means  of  indentification. 

Color,  however,  is  not  always  constant  enough  to  be  a  safe 
guide.  Blue  and  purple  flowers  are  especially  subject  to  variation, 
and  among  such  plants  as  the  bluebells,  blue  asters,  bergamots, 
and  great  willow-herb,  lighter  shades  than  normal  are  common, 
and  even  albinos  may  occasionally  be  found.  Delicate  shades 
of  pink  and  mauve  are  quite  inconstant,  and  the  brilliant  pink. 
rose,  or  red  of  the  painted  cup  seems  to  change  with  each  variation 
of  soil  or  exposure.  Yellow  is  much  more  stable,  and.  although 
we  have  many  yellow-flowered  plants,  each  has  its  own  particular 
tone,  or  its  own  particular  way  of  bearing  its  Mowers,  even  its 
own  way  of  forming  groups  or  masses.  Hence,  by  means  of  the 
colcr  and  the  disposition  of  the  color  masses,  a  close  observer 
can  usually  recognize  a  plant  while  he  is  still  too  far  away  to  dis- 
tinguish the  form  of  either  flower  or  leaf.  Vet  even  the  yellows 
will  sometimes  prove  misleading. 


34 


BLUE  BEARD-TONGUE 
85 


BIRD'S-EYE  OR  MEALY  PRIMROSE 

Primula  farinosa  L. 
PRIMROSE  FAMILY 

The  primrose,  like  the  violet,  has  ever  been  a  favorite  with 
the  poets.  Shakespeare,  Burns,  Wordsworth,  and  many  others 
have  sung  its  j>raises.  One  who  has  rambled  in  the  woods  and 
along  the  lanes  and  hedgerows  of  England  in  early  Spring  can 
understand  what  a  large  place  the  primrose  holds  in  the  life 
and  literature  of  the  people. 

But  the  Bird's-eye  Primrose,  although  widely  distributed 
and  often  abundant,  will  never  take  the  place  in  Canada  that 
its  yellow  namesake  holds  in  the  Old  Land.  It  is  too  shy,  and  so 
unassertive  in  color  and  habit  that  it  is  often  walked  over  without 
being  seen.  It  grows  in  wet  meadows  and  is  usually  half  hidden 
among  the  grass.  Of  this  Primrose,  as  of  the  walking-fern, 
it  may  be  said  that  no  one  ever  found  it,  unless  it  was  first  in  his 
heart.  £Still,  observation  can  be  assisted  to  locate  it.  For 
instance,  the  Shooting  Star  and  this  Primrose  frequently  grow 
together,  so  that  the  gaudy  flowers  of  the  former  may  readily 
help  one  to  find  its  pretty  but  retiring  relative.* 

Ah!  here  are  a  few,  on  tip-toe,  as  it  were,  to  peep  over  the 
surrounding  damp  sedge.  Pluck  one  and  notice  the  corolla, 
pale  lilac  in  color,  .with  a  yellow  eye.  And  the  leaves!  Notice 
how  they  are  tufted^at  the  roots,  of  a  pale  green  color  on  the  upper 
side,  and  covered  on  the  under  side^with  a  fine  white  down  which 
gives  a  white  mealy  effect.  This  white  down  also  creeps  up  to 
cover  the  flower-stem  which  is  from  four  to  fifteen  inches  high. 
The  whole  color  effect  is  in  harmony  with  the  surroundings, 
whilst  yet  leaving  the  flower  with  a  modest  distinction. 

*It  should  be  said  that  while  their  periods  of  bloom  overlap,  the  Shooting 
Star  opens  first  by  a  week  or  two. 


36 


BIRD'S-EYE  OR  MEALY  PRIMROSE 
37 


MARSH  RAGWORT 

Senecio  Palustris  (L.)  Hook. 
THISTLE   FAMILY 

The  March  Ragwort  belongs  to  the  great  family  of  the 
which  numbers  over  ten  thousand  species  in  all  parts 
of  the  earth.  In  Western  Canada,  beginning  in  early  Spring 
with  the  sweet  coltsfoot,  the  family  increases  in  importance  as 
the  season  advances  until  late  in  Summer  the  sunflowers,  daisies, 
asters,  goldenrods,  and  other  members  of  the  family  quite  dom- 
inate the  floral  world. 

The  flowers  differ  from  those  of  other  families  being  borne 
many  together  in  a  compact  head  surrounded  by  bracts.  In 
this  subdivision  of  the  family  the  flowers  are  of  two  kinds,  the 
di>k  f Ion-is,  small,  tubular,  and  crowded,  in  the  centre;  and  the 
ray  florets,  more  or  less  strap-shaped  and  spreading  outward  to 
form  a  kind  of  aureole.  On  account  of  its  great  size  the  Russian 
sunflower  is  a  good  composite  to  study  first. 

Coming  back  to  the  March  Ragwort,  we  notice  that  it  is  a 
stout,  hairy  plant.  The  stems  are  eight  to  forty  inches  high, 
the  bigger  ones  as  thick  as  a  broom  handle.  All  are  hollow, 
with  no  cross  partitions  from  just  above  the  root  to  the  flower 
brandies.  The  outside  of  the  grooved  stem  and  the  veins  of 
the  wavy-ed«red  leaves  are  often  thickly  covered  with  white 
cobwebby  hairs  which,  seen  through  a  hand  lens,  look  as  if  spun 
from  clear  glass.  The  intlorcscncc  is  at  first  compact,  but  soon 
opens  out  in  a  rather  raided  way.  The  disks  are  yellowish,  and 
the  short  broad  rays  are  li<rht  yellow.  After  flowering,  the  heads 
turn  down  and  remain  in  that  position  until  the  seed  is  ripe, 
when  they  straighten  up  again.  As  with  many  other  members 
of  the  family,  each  seed  is  furnished  with  a  tuft  of  white  hair 
that  acts  as  a  parachute  to  float  it  away  on  the  breeze. 


38 


MARSH  RAGWORT 
39 


ZONES  OF  VEGETATION  AROUND  A  POND 

Marsh  Ragwort  forming  the  first  belt  thirty  feet  wide 

Such  a  pond  as  this  is  a  good  place  to  study  plant  societies, 
both  congenial  and  antagonistic.  Some  plants  live  together  in 
peace,  sharing  space,  food,  and  water,  and  in  various  ways  being 
mutually  helpful;  others  wage  war  on  their  neighbors,  the  success 
of  one  bringing  disaster  to  competitors.  The  character  of  the 
season  has  a  large  share  in  determining  with  whom  victory  shall 
rest. 

The  year  1919,  or  perhaps  the  Fall  of  1918,  seemed  to  favor 
the  Marsh  Ragwort  which  is  usually  a  Winter  annual.  In  many 
places  it  was  more  in  evidence  than  usual,  but  nowhere  have  I 
seen  a  more  complete  triumph  over  competing  vegetation  than 
it  won  around  this  particular  pond.  In  the  zone  suited  to  it, 
every  foot  of  space  was  occupied  to  the  exclusion  of  all  else. 
Behind  the  ragworts  was  a  fairly  solid  belt  of  the  great  bulrush. 
Back  of  this  were  coarse  grasses  and  sedges,  among  which,  how- 
ever, the  northern  green  orchis,  the  skullcap,  mint,  knotweed, 
and  other  plants  were  thriving.  On  still  higher  ground  the  willows 
dominated,  as  did  the  poplars  on  the  low  ridge  in  the  background. 

By  mid-August  the  water  was  gone  and  the  mud  beginning 
to  dry  and  crack.  The  portion  of  the  pond  bottom  that  shows 
as  a  mud  bar  in  the  picture  was  densely  carpeted  with  young 
ragworts  six  inches  high.  In  the  deeper  parts,  where  the  water 
remained  longest,  and  among  the  dead  stems  of  the  parent  plants, 
seedlings  were  breaking  ground  in  countless  numbers,  hence  the 
ragworts  bid  fair  to  repeat  their  triumph  next  year.  We  may  wish 
them  good  luck,  for  they  stay  in  their  own  place,  do  not  march 
%p  on  to  higher  land  to  choke  out  the  farmer's  crops,  and  in 
June  transform  their  portion  of  the  landscape  into  a  veritable 
"Field  of  the  Cloth  of  Gold." 


40 


•* 


II 


TALL  LUNGWORT;  BLUEBELLS 

Mertensia  paniculate  (Ait.)  G.  Don 
BORAGE  FAMILY 

Although  many  members  of  the  Borage  family  are  rough, 
hairy  herbs  of  weedy  aspect,  others  are  of  marked  beauty  and 
refinement.  Among  the  latter  might  be  mentioned  the  vanilla- 
scented  heliotrope  of  the  greenhouses,  and  the  forget-me-not 
which  beautifies  alike  lonely  mountain  streams  and  formal  city 
gardens.  But  the  finest  of  the  family  and  perhaps  the  loveliest 
of  all  blue  wild  flowers  in  Canada  is  the  Virginian  cowslip  (Mer- 
tensia virginica).  It,  however,  is  found  only  in  Southern  Ontario 
and  is  rare  even  there,  while  this  western  Mertensia  is  widely 
distributed  and  abundant,  no  other  blue  flower  of  early  Summer 
being  so  conspicuous  in  many  districts. 

The  picture  shows  the  plant  much  reduced  in  size,  as  the 
stems  grow  from  one  to  three  feet  high.  They  bear  open  clusters 
of  drooping  flowers  which  are  pink  when  in  bud,  turning  rich 
blue  as  they  open.  The  dark  green  leaves,  especially  those  at 
the  base  of  the  stem,  are  strongly  and  handsomely  veined. 

In  open  meadows,  where  it  sometimes  grows,  this  Lungwort 
is  rather  stiff  and  quite  hairy;  in  shade  and  along  streams  it  becomes 
smoother,  taller,  and  more  graceful;  while  among  bushes  on 
mountain  slopes,  high  enough  to  be  frequently  bathed  injmist, 
it  may  be  seen  in  such  perfection  as  to  rival  its  lovely  eastern 
relative. 


42 


TALL  LUNGWORT;  BLUEBELLS 
43 


YELLOW  LADY'S  SLIPPER 

Cypripedium  parviflorum  Salisb. 
ORCHID  FAMILY 

The  orchids,  the  aristocrats  of  the  floral  world,  form  a  large 
family,  with  family  seat;  as  it  were,  in  the  tropics  and  scions  in 
almost  all  parts  of  the  earth.  Some  of  them,  especially  those 
that  grow  as  airplants  on  tl.  bark  of  trees  in  hot,  moist  forests, 
produce  flowers  weird  and  fantastic,  or  marvelously  beautiful, 
beyond  imagination.  Thousands  of  species  have  been  found 
by  collectors  who  risked,  and  sometimes  lost,  their  lives  in  the 
search.  Sent  home  to  Europe  or  America,  these  dormant  plants 
have  been  purchased  by  orchid  enthusiasts  in  whose  hothouses 
under  skilful  and  devoted  care  they  bloom  again  in  wondrous 
diversity  of  form  and  color. 

Our  Canadian  orchids  are  all  land  plants,  and  while  a  number 
have  small,  inconspicuous  flowers,  interesting  chiefly  because 
of  their  structure  and  family  relationship,  a  dozen  or  so  are  of 
such  beauty  and  distinction  that  they  would  be  noticed  in  any 
company.  Of  such  is  the  Yellow  Lady's  Slipper  pictured  here. 

The  inflated  lip  or  slipper  is  deep  yellow,  and  the  other  parts 
are  yellowish-green,  often  striped  or  shaded  with  dark  purple. 
The  long,  narrow  side  petals  are  usually  twisted  or  curled,  enhanc- 
ing the  charm  of  these  strange  flowers,  which  are  so  poised  that 
in  a  breeze  they  seem  animate,  expectant,  ready  for  eager  flight. 

This  orchid,  growing  in  open  woods  and  thickets  and  blooming 
in  June,  was  at  one  time  comparatively  common  in  many  parts 
of  Canada,  but  advancing  civilization  is  destructive  of  native 
life,  and  they  are  becoming  rarer  each  year.  The  remaining 
ones  should  be  preserved  as  far  as  possible  or  this  splendid  plant 
is  likely  to  be  exterminated. 


44 


YELLOW  LADY'S  SLIPPER 
45 


TWIN-FLOWER 

Linnaea  borealis  var.  americana  Rehder 
HONEYSUCKLE  FAMILY 

"He  saw  beneath  dim  aisles,  in  odorous  beds, 
The  slight  Linnaea  hang  its  twin-born  heads, 
And  blessed  the  monument  of  the  man  of  flowers, 
Which  breathes  his  sweet  fame  through  the  northern  bowers." 

— Emerson. 

This  dainty,  trailing  vine  with  small,  evergreen  leaves  and 
fragrant,  pink  flowers  was  a  favorite  of  Linnaeus,  the  great 
Swedish  botanist  of  the  eighteenth  century,  in  whose  honor  it 
is  named. 

In  Canada  it  occurs  from  ocean  to  ocean  and  from  the  Arctic 
to  the  international  boundary.  It  is  likely  to  be  found  in  woods 
surrounding  bogs,  on  the  shady  side  of  ravines,  and  in  any  cool, 
moist  forest.  It  is  especially  at  home  in  the  mountains,  and 
many  readers  will  remember  how  delightfully  some  of  the  wood- 
land trails  at  Banff,  Lake  Louise,  and  Jasper  are  bordered  with 
its  "odorous  beds."  Spring  comes  first  to  the  valleys  and  travels 
slowly  up  the  mountain  sides,  so  if  the  visitor  be  too  late  for  it 
at  the  lower  altitudes  he  need  only  do  a  little  climbing.  Late 
in  July  on  a  mountain  slope  at  Jasper  Park  I  saw,  not  patches 
only,  but  a  vast,  continuous  carpet  stretching  away  for  miles. 
As  we  went  up  through  the  lodgepole  pines,  the  first  plants  met 
with  were  in  seed ;  a  few  hundred  feet  higher  some  belated  flowers 
were  seen;  still  higher,  bloom  was  at  its  best,  tinting  the  floor 
of  the  rather  open  forest  as  far  as  one  could  see.  The  slender, 
leafy  vines  crept  over  and  through  the  fallen  needles,  weaving 
a  ground  covering  of  pale  green  over  which  shimmered  a  delicate 
rosy-tinted  light  caused  by  the  millions  of  little  pink  bells,  each 
a  minute  censer  filling  the  air  with  delicious  and  delicate  perfume. 

"  'Neath  cloistered  boughs,  each  floral  bell  that  suringeth 

And  tolls  its  perfume  on  the  passing  air, 
Makes  Sabbath  in  the  fields,  and  ever  ringeth 
A  call  to  prayer." — Horace  Smith. 


46 


47 


BUNCHBERRY;   DWARF  CORNEL 

Cornus  canadensis  L. 
DOGWOOD  FAMILY 

The  Dogwood  family  is  represented  in  Canada  by  many 
handsome  shrubs  and  trees.  The  most  famous  of  the  latter 
group  are  the  two  flowering  dogwoods,  one  species  found  in 
Southern  Ontario  and  the  other  on  the  Pacific  Coast.  These 
trees,  when  covered  in  Spring  with  clouds  of  large  white  blossoms 
and  in  Autumn  with  brilliant  foliage  and  bright  red  berries,  are 
the  most  splendid  ornaments  of  the  woodlands  where  they  occur. 
Owing  to  their  limited  range,  however,  these  flowering  dogwoods 
are  known  to  comparatively  few  Canadians. 

But  the  Dwarf  Cornel,  the  pigmy  of  the  family,  is  common 
in  cool,  damp  woods  from  coast  to  coast.  Its  floral  arrangement 
is  like  that  of  its  two  big  relatives.  The  true  flowers  are  small 
and  greenish,  in  a  compact  head  surrounded  by  four  white,  petal- 
like  bracts.  Each  flower-head  springs  from  the  centre  of  a 
whorl  of  broad,  strongly-ribbed  leaves,  borne  at  the  summit 
of  a  stem  from  three  to  eight  inches  high.  The  stems  are  pro- 
duced freely  from  creeping  underground  rootstocks  and  some- 
times dense  patches  are  formed.  A  stretch  of  forest  floor  carpeted 
with  these  handsome  leaves,  studded  with  four-pointed  stars, 
is  a  pretty  sight. 

The  flowers  fade,  and  are  succeeded  by  berries  in  the  close 
bunches  which  give  to  the  plant  one  of  its  common  names.  In 
late  Summer,  therefore,  the  green  carpet  is  again  brightened, 
this  time  with  coral-red  fruit  clusters.  A  little  later,  the  leaves 
assume  the  rich  crimson  shades  characteristic  of  dogwood  foliage 
Even  against  this  gorgeous  background  the  berries  stand  out 
clearly.  When  the  sunlight  flickers  through  the  autumn  woods 
on  this  final  stage  in  the  Bunchberry  development  it  lights  up 
a  scene  so  warm  and  glowing  that  memory  recalls  it  with  pleasure 
in  the  gray  days  of  Winter. 


48 


I" 


YELLOW  COLUMBINE 
Aquilegia  flavescens  8.  Wats. 

CROWFOOT  FAMILY 

"One  sometimes  seems  to  discover  a  familiar  wild  flower  anew  bi/ 
upon  it  in  some  peculiar  and  striking  situation.  Our  columbine  is  at  all  times 
and  in  all  places  one  of  the  most  exquisitely  beautiful  of  flowers:  yet  one 
spring  day,  when  I  saw  it  growing  out  of  a  small  seam  on  the  face  of  a  great 
lichen-covered  wall  or  rock,  where  no  soil  or  mould  was  visible, — a  jet  of 
foliage  and  color  shooting  out  of  a  black  line  on  the  face  of  a  perpendicular 
mountain  wall  and  rising  up  like  a  tiny  fountain,  its  drops  turning  to  flame- 
colored  jewels  that  hung  and  danced  in  the  air  against  the  gray  rock  if  sur- 
face,— its  beauty  became  something  magical  and  audacious." 

— John  Burrouglis. 

Mr.  Burroughs,  in  the  fine  descriptive  passage  quoted  above, 
refers  to  the  Wild  Columbine  (Aquilegia  canadensis)  with  gay 
scarlet  and  yellow  flowers,  the  common  species  in  Eastern  Canada, 
but  with  its  western  range  limited,  perhaps,  to  Manitoba.  Our 
illustration  is  of  the  Yellow  Columbine,  found  chiefly  in  the 
mountains  and  foothills.  The  sepals  of  this  nodding  flower 
are  spreading  and  wing-like,  sometimes  pale  yellow,  but  frequen- 
tly flushed  more  or  less  with  crimson.  The  cream-colored  petals 
are  concave  and  spurred,  five  horns  of  honey  in  a  circle,  from  the 
centre  of  which  projects  a  cluster  of  yellow  stamens.  Very  grace- 
ful in  form  and  foliage,  as  well  as  dainty  in  coloring,  is  this 
Yellow  Columbine. 

Among  the  foothills,  and  extending  its  range  eastward  in 
open  woods  and  meadows,  grows  the  Small-flowered  Columbine. 
The  neat  little  flowers  of  this  species  have  blue  sepals,  white 
short-spurred  petals  and  short  stamens  which  do  not  form  a  pro- 
jecting tassel  as  in  the  Yellow  Columbine. 

The  spurs  of  these  quaint  anl  lovely  blossoms  contain  nectar 
that  can  be  reached  only  by  long-tongued  bees  or  by  butterfies, 
who  pay  for  the  feast  by  carrying  pollen  from  flower  to  flower. 
Sometimes,  however,  one  may  find  a  columbine  in  which  some 
insect,  unable  to  reach  the  nectar  in  a  legitimate  way,  has  ciitcn 
or  bored  a  hole  in  the  bottom  of  the  spur.  Such  back-entrance 
robbery  is  not  confined  to  the  columbine.  Other  plants  also  suffer 
from  it  occasionally,  but  usually  the  designs  of  insect  marauders 
are  frustrated  by  a  sticky  flower  stem,  a  brisly  calyx,  a  bitter 
juice  in  the  tissue  of  the  corolla,  or  by  some  other  device. 


50 


YELLOW  COLUMBINE 
51 


NORTHERN  BEDSTRAW 

Galium  boreale  L. 
MADDER  FAMILY 

The  Northern  Bedstraw  is  a  common  plant  from  Quebec  to 
Alaska  and  southward  across  the  international  boundary.  But 
it  is  most  abundant  and  reaches  its  highest  floral  development 
in  the  northern  part  of  its  range,  blooming  over  quite  an  extended 
period  in  June  and  July.  Woods  and  thickets,  gravelly  roadsides, 
railway  embankments,  and  rocky  hillsides  are  made  beautiful 
by  its  light  clouds  of  tiny  four-parted  blossoms,  and  the  passing 
air  is  sweetened  by  its  fragrant  breath.  Wild  Baby's  Breath 
would  seem  to  be  a  more  appropriate  name  for  this  dainty  flower. 

In  the  woods  the  Northern  Bedstraw  grows  thirty  inches  high 
with  large,  open  panicles  of  white  flowers.  In  the  open  the  height 
is  reduced  to  eighteen  inches  or  less,  the  stems  are  stouter  and 
more  erect,  and  the  flower  clusters  more  compact.  The  plants 
pictured  on  the  opposite  page  grew  in  dry  soil  in  full  sunshine, 
and  were  fifteen  inches  high.  It  will  be  noticed  that  the  stems 
are  square,  and  the  narrow  leaves  borne  in  fours.  The  flowers 
are  followed  by  small  bristly-hairy  burrs. 

Several  other  kinds  of  bedstraws  are  found  in  Canada.  All 
have  small,  often  inconspicuous  flowers,  and  all  have  their  leaves 
arranged  in  whorls  of  four  to  eight.  The  stems  of  the  Sweet- 
scented  Bedstraw — a  woodland  species  with  leaves  in  sixes  and 
greenish  flowers  in  threes — are  soft  and  weak,  and  when  dried 
make  a  comfortable  and  fragrant  camp  bed.  Other  weak-stemmed 
species  are  usually,  furnished  with  stiff,  deflexed  hairs  or  bristles 
on  the  angles  of  their  stems  and  on  the  edges  and  midveins  of 
their  leaves  to  enable  them  to  scramble  over  stronger  neighbors. 
The  burrs  of  many  species  have  hooked  bristles  which  cling  to 
passing  animals  or  men,  and  in  this  way  they  become  widely 
distributed. 


52 


NORTHERN  BEDSTRAW 
53 


SENECA  SNAKEROOT 

Polygala  Senega  L. 
MILKWORT  FAMILY 

The  Seneca  Snakeroot  is  found  in  dry  or  rocky  soil  from  New 
Brunswick  to  Alberta.  It  seems  to  be  equally  at  home  in  open 
woods,  among  thickets,  or  on  the  plains.  If  supplied  with  shade 
and  sufficient  moisture,  it  may  reach  a  height  of  sixteen  inches. 
On  the  other  hand,  in  full  sunshine  and  dry  soil  it  seems  also  to 
prosper,  but  may  be  only  one-quarter  as  tall. 

The  clustered  stems  rise  from  a  thick,  hard,  and  knotty  root- 
stock.  The  lower  part  of  the  stem — the  part  hidden  in  the  grass — 
is  purple  in  color,  and  here  the  leaves  are  reduced  to  scales.  The 
ordinary  leaf  is  remarkably  uniform  in  size  and  shape,  smooth 
except  on  the  edges,  and  with  a  prominent  mid  vein.  The  white 
flowers,  borne  in  a  terminal  spike,  are  irregular  in  form.  Two 
of  the  five  sepals  are  white  and  petal  like,  and  are  called  wings. 
Of  the  three  petals,  the  lower  and  larger  one — concave  and  crested 
—is  called  the  keel.  The  flowers  never  open  widely,  and  most 
of  the  time  are  closed,  giving  the  flower-spike  the  appearance 
of  being  always  in  bud.  The  whole  aspect  of  this  little  plant 
is  neat  and  attractive,  and  although  it  is  not  at  all  showy  its 
discovery  always  gives  pleasure. 

The  name  Polygala  is  from  the  Greek  meaning  "much  milk." 
It  was  applied  from  a  belief  that  the  eating  of  it  by  cows  increased 
the  secretion  of  the  lactic  fluid.  Some  of  the  other  species  may 
be  partaken  of  by  cattle,  but  this  one  does  not  seem  to  be  eaten. 
The  roots,  however,  although  no  longer  considered  to  be  a  remedy 
for  snakebite,  have  some  medicinal  value,  and  there  is  a  limited 
commercial  demand  for  them. 


54 


CA   SNAKKK(  M  »T 

56 


RED  LILY;  WOOD  LILY 

Lilium  montanum  A.  Nels. 
LILY  FAMILY 

The  Red  Lily,  in  slightly  different  forms,  is  common  in  many 
districts  from  Ontario  to  Alberta.  It  grows  in  open  woods, 
among  bushes,  and  along  roadsides  in  rather  dry  soil.  Usually 
each  leafy  stem  is  crowned  by  a  single  red,  or  orange-red  flower, 
although  vigorous  plants  may  produce  two,  three,  or  even  five 
in  a  cluster. 

Admired  for  its  beauty,  and  easily  found  because  of  its  large 
size  and  vivid  color,  the  Red  Lily  is  eagerly  gathered.  In  rural 
homes  and  schools  it  may  be  seen  in  great  bunches  packed  into 
vases,  cans,  or  pails.  Town  and  city  dwellers  returning  from  an 
evening's  run  into  the  country  or  from  a  First  of  July  excursion 
have  their  arms,  one  might  almost  say  their  cars,  filled  with  the 
bright  blossoms.  The  country  for  miles  around  is  stripped. 
Those  who  gaily  picked  them  had  probably  a  hazy  idea  that  wild 
flowers  just  happen,  and  in  some  way  will  always  happen.  But 
into  the  flower  the  plant  puts  its  supreme  effort,  an  effort  that 
leaves  the  roots  lax  and  depleted.  Their  energy  can  be  restored 
only  by  the  work  of  the  leaves  during  the  Summer.  These  Lilies 
and  many  other  flowers  are  pulled  up  or  broken  off  with  all  their 
leaves  attached,  hence  the  roots  in  their  weakened  condition 
either  die  or  at  best  require  several  years  to  regain  strength 
enough  to  produce  more  flowers. 

The  beautiful  wild  flowers  are  the  culmination  of  Nature's 
efforts  applied  to  plant  life  through  millions  of  years*  They  should 
be  the  heritage  of  mankind  for  all  time,  but  the  choicest  are  in 
danger  of  disappearing  in  a  single  generation.  We  have  learned 
to  hunt  song-birds  with  field-glass  and  camera  instead  of  a  gun. 
Let  us  learn  to  enjoy  wild  flowers  where  they  grow.  Each  has 
aMife  story  well  worth  reading,  legible  to  the  patient  and  sym- 
pathetic^observer. 


56 


RED  LILY;  WOOD  LILY 
57 


IN  A  WESTERN  WOODLAND 

" Nestled  at  his  root 

Is  beauty  such  as  blooms  not  in  the  glare 
Of  the  broad  sun.     That  delicate  forest  flower 
With  scented  breath,  and  look  so  like  a  smile, 
Seems  as  it  issues  from  the  shapeless  mould, 
An  emanation  of  the  indwelling  Life." 

A  Forest  Hymn — Bryant. 

Something  there  is  in  the  perspective  of  a  woodland  glade  that 
has  a  tranquilizing  and  restorative  effect  upon  the  mind.  Analysis 
would  -but  destroy  the  charm.  And  yet,  just  as  one  is  here 
aware  of  a  different  mental  attitude  when  "far  from  the  madding 
crowd's  ignoble  strife,"  so  one  must  notice  the  special  appeal 
made  by  woodland  flowers.  Usually  they  are  smoother  and 
broader  of  leaf,  more  delicately  colored,  and  generally  more  grace- 
ful than  their  kinsmen  of  the  plains.  Nor  is  variety  of  plant 
societies  lacking.  In  mixed  woods  especially,  a  few  steps  may 
take  one  readily  from  one  type  of  vegetation  to  another,  the 
determining  factors  of  the  change,  of  course,  being  the  amount 
of  sunshine  finding  its  way  through  the  foliage  and  the  amount 
of  moisture  in  the  soil. 

In  the  picture  opposite,  showing  the  sloping  bank  of  a  wooded 
ravine,  we  have  in  the  foreground  a  rather  compact  group  of 
spruce  trees,  and  beyond  the  sunlit  aspen  forest.  In  the  dense 
coniferous  shade  grow  mosses  and  lichens  in  abundance  but 
flowering  plants  are  few.  We  may  find,  however,  an  odd  specimen 
of  the  wild  sarsaparilla,  of  the  green-flowered  wintergreen,  the 
one-sided  wintergreen,  and  small  clusters  of  that  curious 
saprophytic  orchid,  the  early  coral-root — a  plant  without  leaves, 
just  pale  stems  bearing  small  flowers  mottled  with  dull  white, 
yellow,  and  purple.  Moving  out  into  the  lighter  shade  on  the 
edge  of  the  spruce  grove  we  notice  flowers  of  cleaner  and  brighter 
colors — the  pink  wintergreen,  the  dwarf  cornel,  the  fairy  bell, 
and  the  twin-flower.  Under  an  overhanging  bank  are  lovely 
soft  beds  of  the  oak  fern,  and  lower  down  a  few  scattered  fronds 
of  the  brittle  fern.  In  the  more  open  poplar  woods  grow  colum- 
bines, geraniums,  Canada  violets,  lungworts,  and  nodding  onions. 
Going  down  near  the  brook,  in  still  more  open  spaces,  we  find 
anemones,  fleabanes,  and  jewel-weeds.  In  the  stream  itself 
are  beds  of  the  dainty  blue  speedwell. 

This  list  of  plants,  although  by  no  means  complete,  will  give 
the  reader  some  idea  of  the  flowers  to  be  found  in  such  a  wooded 
ravine  almost  anywhere  throughout  that  vast  irregular  region, 
stretching  from  Manitoba  to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  lying 
between  the  open  prairie  and  the  great  sub-arctic  forest. 


58 


IN  A  WESTERN  WOODLAND 
N 


PINK  WINTERGREEN 

Pyrola  asarifolia  Michx. 
HEATH  FAMILY 

Our  woods  in  early  Spring  lack  many  a  delicate  forest  flower 
that  some  of  us  knew  and  loved  in  the  East.  We  do  not  have 
the  frequent  April  showers  that  bring  forth  May  flowers.  After 
the  first  flush,  heralding  its  advance,  the  floral  pageant  seems 
sometimes  to  halt  and  mark  time,  waiting  for  the  Summer  rains. 
Meanwhile,  the  days  lengthen,  until  only  a  few  hours  of  darkness 
remain.  Then  comes  the  rain  with  its  almost  miraculous  quicken- 
ing of  vegetable  life.  Verdure  flows  over  the  prairies,  up  the 
hills,  and  into  the  woods,  quickly  followed  by  successive  waves 
of  gay  color.  In  the  lighter  aspen  shade  there  are  more  flowers 
than  beneath  the  heavier  foliage  of  the  hardwood  forest,  and  our 
midsummer  woods  are  adorned  with  many  bright  blossoms. 
None  is  more  ornamental  than  the  Pink  Wintergreen  which  grows 
in  great  profusion  in  rich,  damp  woodlands  and  thickets  throughout 
our  territory. 

In  late  June  or  early  July,  from  the  circle  of  thick,  shining, 
evergreen  leaves,  rises  a  slender  stem,  five  to  twelve  inches  high, 
bearing  numerous  nodding  flowers,  each  with  a  curved  and 
protruding  style.  The  petals  are  softly  shaded  from  pale  pink 
in  the  centre  to  deep  rose  on  the  edges.  When  a  fragrance  like  that 
of  the  cultivated  lily-of-the-valley  is  combined  with  such  beauty 
of  form  and  color  it  perfects  a  plant  of  rare  loveliness. 

The  large  buds,  from  which  the  flower-stalks  sprung,  were 
fully  formed  during  the  previous  Summer.  All  parts  were  there 
— stem,  calyx,  corolla,  stamens,  pistil — beautifully  formed  in 
miniature,  each  separate  flower-bud  packed  away  beneath  its 
own  scale,  and  the  whole  enclosed  by  a  few  larger  red  scales. 
In  this  condition,  with  perhaps  a  light  blanket  of  leaves,  they 
were  exposed  to  zero  weather  before  the  snow  came  as  addition* 
protection. 

This  careful  preparation  of  parts  in  miniature,  so  beautifully 
exhibited  by  the  Pink  Wintergreen,  can  be  traced,  in  varying 
degrees,  in  other  plants,  and,  generally  speaking,  accounts  for 
the  rapid  development  of  vegetation  when  the  quickening  breath 
of  Spring  begins  to  loosen  the  hold  of  Winter. 

00 


1 


PINK  WINTER*. i 

i.l 


ONE-FLOWERED  WINTERGREEN;  SINGLE 

BEAUTY 

Moneses  uni  flora  (L.)   Gray. 
HEATH  FAMILY 

The  name  Moneses  is  derived  from  Greek  words  meaning 
"single  delight"  and  is  surely  appropriate.  Many  flower  lovers 
consider  this  our  most  beautiful  wild  flower,  and  the  finding  of 
a  colony  in  bloom  in  the  mossy  spruce  woods  is  the  laying  up  of 
a  treasure  in  memory.  Such  a  pleasure  is  within  the,  reach  of 
many,  for  the  plant  is  widely  distributed,  although  not  as  common 
as  the  Pink  Wintergreen.  These  glistening,  waxy  blossoms 
with  crisped  edges,  are  usually  white,  but  are  said  to  be  occasion- 
ally rose-colored.  They  are  shown  natural  size  in  the  picture 
opposite. 

This  little  plant  is  prudent  as  well  as  fair.  Its  chief  purpose 
is  to  produce  seeds,  and  send  them  forth  with  a  good  chance  of 
success  in  life.  The  vitality  that  comes  from  cross-fertilization 
is  highly  desirable,  and  in  the  early  stage  of  bloom,  the  pendent 
position  of  the  flower  with  the  relative  arrangement  of  pistil 
and  stamens  gives  visiting  insects  every  chance  to  carry  pollen 
from  one  flower  to  another,  and  also  prevents  self-fertilization. 
But  even  self-fertilized  seeds  are  better  than  none,  hence  in  the 
later  stage,  to  make  assurance  doubly  sure,  the  face  of  the  flower 
is  tilted  upward,  even  when  cross-fertilization  has  already  taken 
place,  giving  the  style  an  oblique  postion  and  bringing  some 
of  the  anthers  directly  above  the  five-lobed  stigma.  These 
anthers  open  by  pores  at  one  end,  and  the  curve  of  their  stalk 
of  filament  is  now  changed  so  that  the  pores  point  downward, 
and  the  pollen  remaining  in  the  sacks  is  shaken  out  upon  the 

stigma   below.        Thus    fertilization    is    doubly   provided    for 

surely  a  happy  instance  of  the  attempt  by  the  individual  plant 
to  carry  on  and  extend  the  species. 


62 


PURPLE  GERANIUM  OR  CRANE'S-BILL 

Geranium  indsum  Nutt. 
GERANIUM  FAMILY 

Several  Geraniums  with  comparatively  large  flowers — three- 
quarters  of  an  inch  or  so  in  diameter — occur  in  Western  Canada. 
The  Spotted  Geranium,  the  common  form  in  Eastern  Canada 
has  apparently  not  found  its  way  westward  beyond  Manitoba. 
However,  it  is  replaced  by  at  least  two  handsome  species — 
Richardson's  Geranium,  with  its  thin  leaves  and  delicate  white 
flowers,  found  chiefly  in  woods  and  thickets;  and  this  Purple 
Geranium,  a  more  hairy  and  rugged  plant,  with  bright  purple 
'flowers,  found  in  open  meadows  as  well  as  in  shaded  places. 
Both  grow  to  a  height  of  two  feet  or  more,  and  bloom  from  late 
June  until  August.  In  both,  the  leaves  contribute  not  a  little 
to  the  attractiveness  of  the  plant. 

After  the  petals  have  fallen,  the  seed  vessels  develop  in  such 
a  way  as  to  give  these  plants  the  name  of  Crane's-bill.  The 
five  carpels  or  seed-pods,  growing  in  a  ring,  suggest,  remotely, 
the  head  of  a  bird,  and  the  stout  column,  which  rises  from  their 
centre,  suggests  the  beak  of  a  crane.  This  column  consists  of 
a  central  five-angled  axis  with  which  are  combined  five  stout 
bristles,  each  one  of  which  is  produced  up  from,  and  forms  a 
part  of,  one  of  the  five  seed-pods.  As  the  seeds  ripen,  the  column 
dries  unevenly  and  in  such  a  way  that  there  is  a  great  tension 
in  each  bristle.  This  tension  is  ever  increasing  until  the  seed- 
pod  suddenly  breaks  away  at  its  base.  The  bristle,  coiling  upward 
with  great  force,  acts  as  a  spring  to  fling  the  seed  a  considerable 
distance  from  the  parent  plant.  After  the  explosion  the  empty 
cases  hang  from  the  top  of  the  column's  axis  in  a  pretty  chandelier- 
like  group. 

On  a  dry,  warm  day  it  is  interesting  to  watch  the  operation 
of  this  novel  process  of  seed  distribution.  If  the  observer  be 
pressed  for  time  or  lacking  in  patience  he  may  hasten  its  action, 
for  a  touch  will  often  spring  the  mechanism  of  this  vegetable 
catapult 


G4 


PURPLE  GERANIUM  OR  CRANE'S-BILL 
65 


TALL  WHITE  CINQUEFOIL 

Potentilla  arguta  Pursh 

ROSE  FAMILY 

The  Cinquefoils  are  ubiquitous  in  Western  Canada.  On  Iho 
rocky  summits  of  mountains  grow  low,  tufted  forms,  starred  with 
short-stemmed  blossoms.  In  moist  and  fertile  meadows  in  the 
deep  valleys  the}'  flourish  in  variet}',  reaching  a  height  of  Hirer 
feet  or  more.  On  the  dry  plains,  by  clothing  themselves  in  dense 
hair  or  wool,  they  endure  successfully  scorching  sun  and  wind. 
In  swamps  and  peat  bogs  the  marsh  cinquefoil  with  its  curious 
dark  red  flowers  is  a  common  sight.  Along  brooks  and  fences, 
among  piles  of  rubbish,  and  in  cultivated  ground  one  will  every- 
where find  cinquefoils.  Some  two  score  species  are  scattered 
over  Manitoba,  Saskatchewan,  and  Alberta.  The  great  majority 
have  yellow  flowers  and  all  have  compound  leaves.  The  leaflets 
vary  in  number  from  three  to  thirteen,  but  as  five  is  common, 
the  name,  cinquefoil,  has  been  applied  to  all. 

The  Tall  White  Cinquefoil  impresses  one  as  being  a  rather 
handsome  plant  of  gentlemanly  attitude.  Its  strawberry-like 
blossoms  are  commonplace  enough,  its  general  aspect  is  not  very 
different  from  some  of  its  weedy  kinsfolk,  yet  it  has  an  air  of 
distinction.  Trying  to  analyse  the  cause  we  notice  that  the  stems 
are  tall,  erect,  and  moderately  slender,  that  the  leaves  are  well- 
shaped,  neatly  veined,  and  evenly  covered  with  somewhat  glandu- 
lar hairs,  that  the  flower  clusters  are  compact  and  the  blossoms 
close:set,  and  that  there  is  a  certain  dignified  reserve  about  the 
whole  plant.  It  does  not  take  advantage  of  superior  height  to 
thrust  its  elbows  into  the  faces  of  its  neighbors,  and  it  sends  out 
no  runners  to  seize  adjoining  land.  Yet  the  Tall  While  rinqm't'oil 
ireK  on  very  welli  n  the  world,  and  may  frequently  be  met  with 
in  dry  meadows  and  thiekeis  throughout  the  whole  breadth  of 
our  territory. 


66 


> 

\»SP 


TALL  WHITE  CINQUEFOIL 
67 


COW  PARSNIP 

Heracleum  lanatum  Michx. 
CARROT  FAMILY 

This  lusty  perennial  of  decorative  character  is  widely  distri- 
buted, from  Newfoundland  to  Alaska,  and  south  from  North 
Carolina  to  California,  but  reaching  its  greatest  profusion  in  the 
North  where  one  of  the  rivers  is  named  "The  Parsnip"  because  of 
the  abundance  of  the  growth  of  this  plant  on  its  banks.  In  the 
open  it  grows  three  or  four  feet  high,  and  almost  as  many  wide, 
while  in  moist,  shaded  places  it  stretches  up  eight  feet.  It  prefers 
damp  soil,  as  its  broad  leaf-surfaces  indicate.  The  hollows  in 
these,  caused  by  the  waved  and  curled  edges,  the  shallow  channels 
on  the  stalks  of  the  lower  leaves,  and  the  inflated  sheaths  on  the 
upper  ones,  aid  in  catching  rain  and  conveying  it  down  the  stem 
to  the  cluster  of  fleshy  roots. 

The  white  flowers,  opening  in  June  and  July,  are  borne  in 
great  umbels  sometimes  a  foot  across.  The  outer  petals  of  the 
outside  flowers  are  enlarged,  spreading  out  where  they  find  room, 
so  making  the  whole  head  more  conspicuous.  Such  massing  of 
many  minute  flowers,  in  various  forms,  is  common  among  plants 
and  adds  to  their  beauty  and  efficiency.  In  the  one  under 
consideration,  the  large,  honey-laden  expanse  of  white  attracts 
many  insects,  and  the  flat  clusters  afford  a  firm  and  ample  feeding 
platform  for  these  guests.  In  return  they  carry  the  pollen  from 
one  flower  to  another,  and  from  plant  to  plant,  so  bringing  about 
the  cross-fertilization  necessary  to  maintain  the  vigor  of  successive 
generations. 


68 


COW_PARSNIP 
69 


PRAIRIE  PINK;  SKELETON  WEED 

Lygodesmia  juncea  (Pursh)  D.  Don 
CHICORY  FAMILY 

This  meagre  plant  is  in  striking  contrast  to  the  umbrageous 
Cow  Parsnip  which  we  have  just  been  considering.  The  one 
suggests  the  dry  plains  of  the  South,  the  other,  the  moist  valleys 
of  the  North;  the  one  suggests  stern  struggle  against  conditions 
adverse  to  life,  the  other,  easy  enjoyment  of  all  the  good  things 
in  the  plant  world.  Yet  I  have  seen  them  growing  within  a 
few  hundred  yards  of  each  other,  one  on  a  gravelly,  sunny  slope, 
the  other  in  the  springy  soil  at  the  bottom.  Each  is  a  successful 
and  (if  we  share  Wordsworth's  faith  "that  every  flower  enjoys 
the  air  it  breathes")  a  happy  plant. 

The  Prairie  Pink  is  successful  because  it  has  adapted  itself 
to  hard  conditions  and  ordered  its  life  with  frugality  in  all  things. 
The  roots  are  thick,  woody,  and  deep  in  the  soil,  hence  are  not 
shrivelled  up  by  drought.  The  leaves  are  reduced  to  narrow, 
pointed  bracts  in  order  that  the  scanty  supply  of  moisture  may 
not  be  lost  by  rapid  transpiration.  Even  the  flower-heads  have 
only  five  florets  instead  of  the  one  hundred  or  more  found  in 
many  other  members  of  the  family — the  dandelion  for  instance. 
The  flowers,  which  open  in  bright  weather  and  remain  open  but 
a  short  time,  are  a  pretty  shade  of  pink. 


70 


PRAIRIE  PINK;  SKELETON  WEED 
71 


SCARLET  GAURA;   BUTTERFLY  WEED 

Gaura  coccinea  Nutt. 
EVENING-PRIMROSE  FAMILY 

The  Scarlet  Gaura,  an  interesting  plant  of  the  open  prairie, 
may  often  be  found  growing  in  gravelly  soil  from  Manitoba  to 
the  Foothills  of  the  Rocky  Mountains. 

The  much-branched  stems  are  usually  decumbent  (that 
is,  reclining  at  the  base  with  their  tips  ascending)  and  vary  in 
height  from  four  inches  to  a  foot  or  more.  The  small  and  numer- 
ous leaves  are  usually  hoary  by  reason  of  their  close  coating  of 
short,  gray  hair.  The  drier  the  soil  in  which  the  plant  grows 
the  heavier  is  this  protective  covering. 

But  on  the  flowers  our  chief  interest  centres,  for  they  have 
the  curious  habit  of  expanding  four  pure  white  petals  and  shortly 
afterward  dyeing  them  scarlet.  Hence,  one  may  commonly 
find  flower-spikes  with  white  flowers  above  and  brilliant  scarlet 
ones  beneath.  This  startling  color  scheme  is  rendered  more 
striking  by  reason  of  the  fact  that  the  eight  prominent  stamens 
have  white  filaments  and  large  brick-red  anthers.  Sometimes, 
however,  the  petals  remain  white  during  the  whole  of  a  warm 
sunshiny  day.  This  was  the  case  with  the  plants  whose  photo- 
graph, reproduced  on  the  opposite  page,  was  taken  by  the  roadside 
at  four  o'clock  of  a  day  in  early  July.  It  will  be  noticed  that  the 
petals  are  drooping  somewhat  from  the  ardent  heat,  yet  no  blush 
of  red  has  yet  appeared.  Some  of  these  plants  were  taken  home 
and  placed  in  a  cool  cellar  overnight.  Next  morning  the  flowers 
of  the  previous  day  were  mostly  withered,  but  five  or  six  fresh, 
widely-expanded  flowers  adorned  each  stem.  A  good  photograph 
of  these  plants  with  wide-awake  blossoms  was  then  made. 
Subsequently,  when  shown  to  a  well-known  botanist,  the  early 
morning  photograph  quite  puzzled  him,  while  the  one  taken  in 
the  afternoon  was  declared  at  once  to  be  a  typical  picture  of 
the  Scarlet  Gaura. 

Here  it  has  been  thought  better  to  present  the  plant  in  its 
drowsy  aspect. 


72 


73 


PURPLE  PRAIRIE  CLOVER 

Petalostemon  purpureus  (Vent.)  Rydb. 
PEA  FAMILY 

The  Purple  Prairie  Clover  is  a  perennial  with  a  deep,  tough, 
woody  root  from  which  grow  clustered  stems  in  height  from  one 
to  three  feet.  The  smaller  stems  are  simple,  the  larger  branched, 
and  each  stem  or  branch  is  terminated  by  a  short,  dense  flower- 
spike.  Before  the  flowers  open,  early  in  July,  the  spike  is  a  soft, 
pretty  shade  of  gray,  with  spiral  rows  of  closely  packed  buds. 
The  lower  buds  open  first,  and  the  circle  of  bright  purple  corollas 
travels  upward.  The  color  scheme  of  the  flower  is  rendered 
more  striking  by  reason  of  the  deep  orange  anthers  that  project 
beyond  the  corolla. 

The  structure  of  the  flower  is  so  different  from  the  usual  pea 
blossom  that  young  botanists  often  have  difficulty  in  identifying 
it.  In  the  first  place,  it  has  no  keel  (formed  by  the  union  of  the 
two  lower  petals).  It  has,  it  is  true,  a  banner  but  represented 
only  by  a  petal  somewhat  broader  than  the  rest,  the  other  four 
being  alike.  The  five  stamens  are  distinct  from  each  other, 
as  compared  with  the  nine  or  ten  more  or  less  united  stamens 
in  other  members  of  the  family.  Then  the  pod  is  very  short 
with  only  one  seed. 

The  Purple  Prairie  Clover  is  found  abundantly  on  dry  plains 
and  gravelly  hills  throughout  our  territory.  It  is  a  typical  dry 
ground  plant,  almost  as  much  so  as  the  Prairie  Pink  described 
and  pictured  on  earlier  pages.  It  has  more  foliage  than  the  latter 
plant,  but  the  leaflets  are  narrow  and  the  edges  are  rolled  inward 
to  protect  the  under  side  of  the  leaves,  where  the  breathing  pores 
are  located.  Its  root  also  is  admirably  adapted  to  withstand 
drought. 

A  white-flowered  species,  with  somewhat  broader  leaflets  and 
longer  flower-spikes,  is  common  in  many  districts.  Two  additional 
ones  are  also  sometimes  found — the  slender  white  prairie  clover 
and  the  silky  prairie  clover. 


PURPLE  PRAIRIE  CLOVER 
75 


NORTHERN  HEDYSARUM 

Hedysarum  boreale  Nutt. 
PEA  FAMILY 

The  Northern  Hedysarum  is  a  native  of  the  northern  and 
western  part  of  the  Continent.  Common  among  thickets,  along 
roadsides,  and  on  the  plains,  it  is,  over  wide  areas,  quite  the  most 
abundant  member  of  its  family. 

The  picture  shows  it  greatly  reduced  in  size,  as  the  plants 
photographed  were  more  than  two  feet  tall.  The  height,  however, 
varies  from  one  to  three  feet.  The  rather  stout  stems  bear 
pinnate  leaves,  having  from  eleven  to  twenty-one  leaflets.  From 
the  axils  of  the  upper  leaves  spring  long  racemes  of  numerous 
pale  pink,  rose,  or  purple  flowers.  Although  the  stems  are  stiff, 
the  drooping  blossoms  and  light  foliage  lend  an  air  of  elegance 
and  grace  to  the  plant.  The  drooping  flowers  are  succeeded  by 
drooping  pods.  As  these  are  prominently  jointed,  they  serve 
as  a  ready  means  of  identification. 

Several  other  species  of  Hedysarum  occur  in  Western  Canada. 
As  none  of  them  seem  to  have  yet  been  given  a  common  name, 
they  must  be  referred  to  by  their  botanical  names.  H. 
sulphurescens  closely  resembles  the  one  described  above  but  has 
sulphur-yellow  flowers,  and  is  found  chiefly  in  the  mountains 
and  foothills.  H.  dnerascens,  with  reddish-purple  flowers  and 
silvery  leaves,  is  found  in  dry  soil  on  the  prairie.  H.  Mackenzii, 
the  most  showy  one  of  all,  is  common  in  the  meadows  of  the 
foothills  and  eastward  in  the  southern  part  of  the  prairie  region. 
On  river  banks  it  seems  also  to  be  spreading  far  to  the  East  and 
North.  Its  manner  of  growth — clustered  stems,  eight  to  eighteen 
inches  high,  forming  a  rounded  mass  of  bright  green  foliage 
topped  with  clusters  of  large  flowers  of  a  vivid  rose-purple — 
renders  it  one  of  the  most  striking  and  handsome  of  our  wild 
plants. 


76 


NORTHERN  HEDYSARUM 
77 


A  FLOWER-BORDERED  ROAD 

•-/   lover  of  nature  never  takes  a  walk  without  perceiving  something 
unil   interesting." — John  Burroughs. 

A  flower-bordered  trail  over  the  gently  rolling  prairie,  a  clump 
or  two  of  poplars  or  willows,  overhead  the  deep  blue  sky  and  the 
splendid  everchanging  cloud  formations — such  a  scene  as  this 
is  repeated  in  endless  variation  throughout  the  Prairie  Provinces 
during  the  Summer  months. 

A  list  of  the  roadside  flowers  would  be  too  long  for  this  page. 
They  form  a  lovely  natural  calendar,  giving  to  the  observant 
passer-by  accurate  information  concerning  the  character  and 
progress  of  the  season.  No  two  years  are  just  alike.  Conditions 
of  weather  may  hasten  or  retard  flowering  time.  A  wet  year 
favors  the  moisture-loving  plants  and  they  make  a  remarkable 
display.  A  dry  season  discourages  these  and  brings  a  different 
set  into  unusual  prominence.  One  may  use  a  road  for  a  lifetime 
Mini  still  each  year  will  show  some  new  floral  feature. 

Just  over  the  ridge  on  this  road  is  a  little  pond  which  three 
years  ago  in  June  was  filled  with  slender  submerged  stems 
and  thread-like  leaves  of  the  White  Water-Crowfoot,  the  surface 
being  starred  with  thousands  of  the  delicate,  golden-centred 
Mossoms.  The  following  year  the  water  disappeared.  The 
Water-Crowfoot  bravely  met  the  new  condition.  It  modified 
its  leaves  so  that  they  could  live  out  of  water,  threw  out  roots 
from  creeping  stems,  and  covered  the  mud  with  lacy  foliage 
and  the  same  pretty  flowers.  Last  year  the  mud  dried  up.  ;md 
only  by  careful  search  could  a  few  weak  plants  be  found  among 
the  coarse  grasses  and  sedjres  that  had  taken  possession.  If  this 
(M»niiii«r  season  the  pond  fills  again  will  the  Water-Crowfoot  flour- 
ish as  before? 

This  is  but  an  example  of  the  many  stories  of  plant  life  that 
may  be  read  as  interesting  serials  while  one  travels  familiar 
roads. 


78 


A  FLO 


ROAD 


HEDGE  NETTLE 

Stachys  palustris  L. 

MINT  FAMILY 

So  common  is  the  Hedge  Nettle  throughout  Canada  that  it 
is  no  doubt  known  to  most  of  our  readers.  Yet  to  know  the  name 
of  a  plant  is  but  a  preliminary  to  acquaintance,  so  let  us  consider 
this  plant  in  some  of  its  details  of  structure  and  habit. 

Although  hardly  a  kindly  way  to  begin  we  shall  carefully 
dig  up  a  thrifty  Hedge  Nettle  and  examine  its  roots.  At  once 
it  will  be  noticed  that  the  plant  is  a  perennial  with  quantities 
of  long  underground  rootstocks.  If  our  plant  happens  to  grow 
on  the  edge  of  cultivated  land  these  runners  will  have  been  direct- 
ed away  from  the  congestion  behind  towards  the  space  and  free- 
dom of  the  garden  or  field.  The  Hedge  Nettle  can  therefore 
travel  toward  opportunity. 

In  A ut  iiiiin  some  of  these  underground  stems  become  thickened 
until  they  look  like  slender  white  tubers,  as  indeed  they  are, 
for  the  portion  connecting  them  with  the  plant  is  thin  and  easily 
broken,  and,  if  these  crisp  tubers  be  taken  and  planted  like 
potatoes,  they  will  make  a  ready  growth.  The  Hedge  Nettle 
therefore  carries  life  insurance. 

Leaving  the  root,  we  notice  that  the  stems  are  square.  Now, 
square  stems  are  said  to  have  a  mechanical  advantage  over  round 
stems  where  leaves  are  borne  oppositely,  as  in  this  plant.  For 
it  must  not  be  thought  that  stems  are  a  simple  aggregation  of 
cells.  On  the  contrary,  they  are  wonderful  and  complicated 
structures,  each  designed  to  carry  the  loads  and  stand  the  strains 
incidental  to  the  particular  type  of  plant  and  its  manner  and 
place  of  growth.  Plants  constructed  reinforced  columns  and 
girders  with  great  efficiency  and  economy  of  material,  lonn  In-Tore 
human  engineers  knew  of  such  things,  and  the  Hedge  Nettle 
is  no  mean  exponent  of  Nature's  mechanics.  Of  course  the  si  cm 
has  other  functions  besides  that  of  furnishing  support.  Through 
special  lines  of  cells  in  the  stem  the  raw  sap  is  carried  upwards 
to  the  leaves,  and  through  other  cells  the  enriched  sap  is  returned 
downwards  to  the  roots,  or  carried  to  other  growing  parts  of  the 
plant. 

Although  space  does  not  permit  of  it  here,  the  reader  may  pass 
on  to  the  consideration  of  the  leaves,  flowers,  and  seeds,  assured 
that  each  detail  of  form  and  arrangement  is  of  vital  use  and 
meaning  in  the  life  of  the  Hedge  Nettle. 


80 


HEDGE  NETTLE 
81 


GREAT-FLOWERED  GAILLARDIA 

Gaillardia  aristata  Pursh 
THISTLE  FAMILY 

This  Gaillardia,  perhaps  the  handsomest  member  of  the 
Sunflower  tribe,  is  a  native  of  the  western  hills  and  plains.  Whilst 
found  over  a  wide  area,  it  is  most  abundant  in  the  southern  part 
of  our  territory.  It  prefers  sandy  and  gravelly  soil  and  rejoices 
in  full  exposure  to  sunshine.  Its  graceful  form  and  its  wonderful 
coloring  have  attracted  the  attention  of  horticulturists,  so  that 
today  one  may  find  it  in  the  best  laid  out  gardens  everywhere. 

The  stems,  one  or  two  feet  high,  are  gray-green  by  reason 
of  their  hairy  covering,  as  are  also  the  leaves.  The  flower-heads, 
carried  singly  on  long  stalks,  are  from  two  to  four  inches  in 
diameter.  At  first  the  disk  is  flat  and  light  green,  but  soon  after 
shows  an  outer  ring  of  dark  red.  As  the  florets  open,  the  outer 
ones  first,  this  red  ring  spreads  inward,  its  progress  being  marked 
by  the  projection  of  successive  rings  of  yellow  anthers.  Finally, 
the  green  buds  having  all  opened,  the  whole  disk  becomes  reddish- 
brown,  convex  in  shape,  and  heavily  fringed  with  brown  hairs. 
The  broad,  overlapping  rays,  notched  at  the  ends,  are  sometimes 
entirely  golden  yellow  but  oftener  at  the  base  are  flushed  dark 
red,  and  veined,  especially  on  the  underside,  with  the  same  color. 

The  whole  combination  of  size,  form,  color,  and  texture  is 
charming,  and  vests  this  Brown-eyed  Susan  of  the  plains  with 
a  wealth  of  glowing  beauty.  When  each  Province  comes  to 
adopt  an  official  flower,  the  Gaillardia  should  be  a  candidate  for 
such  honor  in  the  West. 


82 


GREAT-FLOWERED  GAILLARDIA 
83 


TALL  MEADOW  RUE 

Thalictrum  purpurascens  L. 
CROWFOOT  FAMILY 

Growing  in  open  woods  and  thickets  and  along  roadsides, 
this  Meadow  Rue,  lifting  its  big  panicles  of  cream-colored  tassels 
six  feet  high,  is  one  of  the  elegant  plants  of  late  June  or  early 
July.  The  large  but  finely  divided  leaves  resemble  coarse  maiden- 
hair ferns,  and,  together  with  the  feathery  bloom,  give  an  airy 
grace  to  the  tall  herb. 

It  is  usually  of  dioecious  habit.  Neither  male  nor  female 
flowers  have  petals  and  the  sepals  are  small  and  drop  off  early. 
The  male  cluster  owes  its  beauty  to  the  masses  of  anthers  drooping 
on  slender  filaments,  and  the  female  cluster  to  the  numerous 
bunches  of  pistils  with  long,  glistening  stigmas,  which  are  admir- 
ably shaped  to  catch  pollen  as  it  drifts  through  the  air. 

There  is  here  no  elaborate  arrangement  for  securing  fertilization 
by  insects  and  although  they  may  sometimes  be  of  service,  chief 
dependence  seems  to  be  placed  on  the  wind  as  carrier.  Con- 
sequently the  flowers  are  held  above  surrounding  vegetation, 
and  pollen  is  produced  lavishly  to  allow  for  the  great  waste 
resultant  from  this  simple  method. 

Sometimes  the  pistillate  plants  bear  also  a  few  stamens  with 
fertile  anthers,  showing  that  there  is  perhaps  an  ambition  to  reach 
the  higher  development  which  would  be  indicated  by  the  pro- 
duction of  perfect  flowers,  a  point  already  reached  by  some  of 
the  meadow  rues. 

In  our  greatly  reduced  photograph  are  shown  two  male  plants 
on  the  outside  and  a  female  in  the  centre. 


84 


TALL  MEADOW  RUE 
85 


LOCO-WEED 

Oxytropis  Lamberti  Pursh 
PEA  FAMILY 

The  Loco-weed,  although  well-known  in  Western  Canada, 
is  notorious  rather  than  renowned.  Its  bad  reputation  is  due 
to  its  poisonous  effects  when  eaten  by  sheep,  cattle,  and  horses, 
causing  them  to  stagger  in  their  gait,  to  walk  in  circles,  and  other- 
wise behave  as  no  well-regulated  animals  should.  Sometimes  the 
death  of  the  afflicted  animals  results.  Yet  there  seems  to  be 
some  mystery  about  the  plant,  for  over  certain  wide  areas  where 
it  grows  one  scarcely  ever  hears  of  a  case  of  loco-poisoning,  while 
other  parts  of  the  country  report  such  an  occurrence  frequently. 

The  Loco-weed  exhibits  great  variation  also  in  form  and 
color,  both  among  individuals  in  the  same  locality,  and  among 
the  types  found  in  different  localities.  Our  picture  gives  a  general 
idea  of  the  aspect  of  the  plant — clustered  leaves  and  flower-stalks 
springing  from  a  deep  root,  both  leaves  and  stalks  more  or  less 
gray  with  silky  hairs,  and  many  pea-shaped  blossoms  borne  in 
spikes.  Frequently,  however,  the  spikes  are  denser  and  shorter 
than  those  shown  opposite,  and,  instead  of  light  cream-colored 
flowers  such  as  this  plant  produced,  the  bloom  may  be  purple 
or  reddish-purple. 

Although  " beauty  is  what  beauty  does"  the  Loco-weed 
is  a  pretty  plant,  and  it  has  several  handsome  relatives.  Foremost 
of  these  is  the  Showy  Oxytrope  found  commonly  on  dry  prairies 
from  Manitoba  to  the  Rockies.  It  may  be  distinguished  from 
the  Loco-weed  by  its  more  hairy  leaves,  which  are  so  densely 
covered  with  long  silvery  hairs  as  to  appear  white;  by  its  leaflets 
which  are  borne  in  bunches  of  three  to  five  instead  of  singly; 
and  by  its  more  showy  rose-purple  flowers  which  are  arranged 
in  more  narrow  and  elongated  spikes.  Indeed,  the  Showy 
Oxytrope  (0.  splendens)  is  well  named,  for  with  its  shafts  of  bright 
blossoms  rising  from  a  mass  of  soft,  shining  white  foliage  it  forms 
in  June  one  of  the  most  conspicuous  .and  splendid  ornaments 
of  the  dry  prairie. 


86 


LOCO-WEED 
87 


NODDING  WILD  ONION 

Allium  cer-Hiiiim  tioth. 

LILY  FAMILY 

As  a  culinary  herb  the  onion  is  known  to  everyone,  but  many 
fail  to  recognize  in  this  dainty  and  graceful  plant  a  member  of 
that  odorous  tribe.  And  yet  its  narrow,  long-necked  bulbs 
possess  the  characteristic  odor  in  such  concentrated  power  as 
to  render  them  highly  objectionable  to  some  people.  Still,  since 
the  bulbs  are  deep  in  the  soil,  they  need  not  interfere  with  our 
admiration  for  the  pretty  flowers. 

The  leaves  of  the  Nodding  Wild  Onion  are  not  hollow  tubes 
like  those  of  the  garden  onion,  but  are  flat  and  grass-like,  and  pale 
jrrcen  in  color  by  reason  of  a  whitening  bloom.  The  flower- 
stalks,  growing  one  or  two  feet  high,  over-top  the  leaves.  Each 
stalk  bears  many  nodding  flowers  in  an  umbel.  At  first  each 
luicl  cluster  is  enclosed  in 'a  thin,  semi-transparent  membrane, 
as  shown  in  the  upper  left-hand  corner  of  our  picture.  Soon  the 
expanding  buds  burst  this  fragile  covering,  and  one  after  another 
open  like  tiny  bells  with  six  projecting  stamens.  In  texture  the 
(lowers  are  thin  and  delicate,  and  in  color  they  vary  from  white 
to  rose,  and  purple,  the  more  delicate  shades  being  common. 

The  sheathed  buds,  rising  upon  a  slender  stalk  and  bursting 
into  downward-pointed  'blossoms,  suggest  a  rocket,  which,  rising 
high  into  the  air,  curves  gracefully  earthward  and  then,  explod- 
ing, casts  down  a  shower  of  gaily-colored  stars. 

The  Nodding  Wild  Onion  is  a  typical  flower  of  tin-  prairie 
country  and  in  midsummer  may  often  be  found  blooming  on 
wooded  banks  among  thickets,  and  in  meadows. 


NODDING  WILD  ONION 


TALL  OR  GLAUCOUS  ZYGADENUS;  WHITE 

CAMAS 

Zygadenus  elegans  Pursh 
LILY  FAMILY 

This  beautiful  Zygadenus  may  frequently  be  found  in  wet 
meadows  throughout  the  Western  Provinces.  However  it  may 
occur,  in  scattered  groups  or  in  greater  profusion,  it  is  always  in 
a  quiet  and  elegant  way  an  attractive  feature  of  the  landscape. 

Springing  from  bulbous  roots,  the  stems  rise  to  a  height  of 
one  to  three  feet.  Both  stems  and  leaves  are  smooth  and  glaucous 
—whitened  with  a  bloom.  The  smaller  stems  bear  their  flowers 
in  a  simple  raceme,  but  the  stronger  ones  may  carry  a  large,  open 
panicle  of  bloom  a  foot  in  length.  Each  flower,  about  three- 
quarters  of  an  inch  in  diameter,  is  white  or  greenish-white  with  a 
large  green  gland,  shining  with  a  moist  secretion,  near  the  base 
of  each  of  its  six  divisions.  The  three-parted  pistil  with  the 
six  surrounding  stamens  adds  much  to  the  beauty  of  the  flower. 

This  White  Camas,  to  use  another  of  its  names,  is  unfortunat  e 
in  its  relatives.  Several  related  species,  known  as  Death  Camas, 
are  so  poisonous  that  numerous  animals,  especially  sheep,  die 
each  year  from  having  eaten  of  them.  The  White  Camas  is  said 
to  have  in  some  degree  the  same  poisonous  principle,  but  to  be 
very  seldom  eaten  by  stock.  With  the  descriptions  here  given 
and  the  picture  shown  opposite  as  guides  to  identification  no 
one  need  make  a  mistake.  The  deadly  species  are  smaller  in 
size,  with  narrower  leaves  which  are  rather  rough  to  the  touch. 
Moreover,  the  gland,  so  distinctive  of  the  White  Camas,  is  not 
much  in  evidence  in  the  smaller  and  more  crowded  yellow  or 
yellowish  flowers  of  the  Death  Camas. 


90 


TALL  OR  GLAUCOUS  ZYGAOENUS;  WHITE  CAMAS 
01 


UVAL-EEAVED  MILKWEED 
Asclepias  ovatifolia  Dec. 

MILKWEED  FAMILY 

A  flower  of  such  marked  individuality  as  the  milkweed,  once 
seen  in  life  or  in  picture,  is  easily  recognized  thereafter.  For 
although  several  species  occur  in  Western  Canada,  differing  in 
color  and  in  many  details,  the  unique  flower-form  common  to 
all,  sots  them  apart  from  other  plants. 

The  Oval-leaved  Milkweed  is  probably  the  commonest  western 
species,  growing  in  rich,  well-drained  soil,  either  in  full  sunshine 
or  among  bushes,  from  Manitoba  to  Alberta.  Its  stalks  are 
from  six  to  eighteen  inches  high,  its  leaves,  especially  on  the 
underside,  are  soft-downy,  and  its  greenish-white  flowers,  some- 
times tinted  with  purple,  are  borne  in  soft  umbelled  clusters. 

And  now  to  a  closer  study  of  these  prettily  and  curiously 
formed  flowers.  In  addition  to  the  calyx,  and  a  corolla  with  five 
reflexed  lobes,  there  is  in  the  centre  of  the  flower  a  five-lobed 
structure  happily  named  the  crown.  But  when  the  botanist  speaks 
of  each  lobe  of  the  crown  as  a  hood,  and  the  hood  as  bearing  a 
horn,  and  the  horn  as  having  a  tooth  on  either  side,  it  begins  to 
grow  confusing.  Still,  these  features  may  be  seen  fairly  well  in 
our  picture.  But  to  study  the  inner  structure  of  the  flower  in  de- 
tail is  impossible  here.  Suffice  it  to  say  that  the  pollen  is  produced 
in  minute  paired  masses,  each  pair  connected  by  a  kind  of  clip, 
having  a  catch  in  the  centre,  and  that  the  two  pistils  are  em- 
bedded in  a  fleshy  column.  The  problem  of  the  plant  is  to  bring 
the  pollen  masses  of  one  flower  into  contact  with  the  stigmas  of 
another  flower,  and  this  can  only  be  done  by  insect  agency. 
Accordingly,  the  flowers  secrete  nector,  and  then  advertise  it 
by  a  heavy  sweet  odor  which  attracts  bees  and  butterflies  in 
large  numbers. 

Alighting  upon  one  of  the  yielding  flower  clusters,  the  heavy 
bumble  bee  finds  himself  suddenly  swinging  head  downward. 
( i  rasping  frantically  for  a  foothold,  his  legs  are  likely  to  slip 
into  the  catches  on  the  pollen  clips,  and  as  he  jerks  himself  free 
the  pollen  is  torn  from  the  flower  and  remains  attached  to  his 
legs.  Later,  the  same  kind  of  a  scramble  for  foothold  while  sip- 
ping nectar  results  in  some  of  the  pollen  being  rubbed  off  upon 
the  stigmas  of  other  flowers. 

To  the  human  observer  this  may  seem  a  rough  way  of  per- 
forming a  delicate  operation.  It  may  also  seem  to  be  a  highly 
complicated  mechanism  for  producing  tl»o  apparently  small 
n'siilts  attained,  for  of  the  thirty  of  forty  flowers  in  a  cluster. 
usually  only  one  or  two  become  fruitful  and  develop  into  big, 
soft  pods  of  silky-tufted  seeds.  But  although  we  may  wonder 
at  Nature's  methods,  they  are  here  amply  justified  in  the  final 
result,  for  the  milkweeds  are  a  numerous,  vigorous,  widely 
distributed,  highly  successful  tribe  of  plants. 

92 


OVAL-LEAVED  MILKWEED 


ROUGH  FLEABANE  DAISY 

Erigeron  glabellus  Nutt. 
THISTLE  FAMILY 

Fleabane  daisies  are  extremely  common  in  Western  America. 
In  Rydberg's  Flora  one  hundred  species  are  described,  of  which 
probably  one-third  are  found  in  Canada.  A  number  of  these, 
however,  grow  only  in  the  mountains. 

The  Erigerons  are  often  mistaken  for  Asters.  Without  going 
into  botanical  details,  it  may  be  said  that  the  former  bloom  in 
June  and  July,  the  latter  in  August  and  September.  Also,  the 
Erigerons  have  smaller  and  much  more  numerous  disk  florets, 
and  narrower  and  more  numerous  ray  florets  than  the  Asters. 
This  may  be  seen  in  the  picture  opposite,  where  the  close  firm 
disk,  made  up  of  a  multitude  of  tiny  florets,  is  encircled  by  a  thick 
fringe  of  fine  rays  numbering  one  hundred  or  one  hundred  and 
fifty. 

The  Rough  Fleabane  grows  in  dry  soil  and  is  common  on  the 
prairie.  Its  stems  are  from  five  to  fifteen  inches  high.  They 
and  the  leaves  are  usually  somewhat  rough  to  the  touch,  although 
hardly  rough  enough  to  justify  the  common  name  of  the  species. 
The  flower-heads  on  each  stem  are  few  in  number,  but,  as  the 
stems  are  clustered,  the  flowers  make  a  pretty  show  among  the 
grass.  Their  disks  are  yellow,  and  their  rays  blue,  purple,  mauve, 
or  occasionally  nearly  white. 

An  earlier-flowering  species  is  so  abundant  and  showy  that  it 
must  have  at  least  a  few  words  of  description.  It  is  the  Phila- 
delphia Fleabane,  with  upright  stems,  usually  from  two  feet  to 
three  and  one-half  feet  high,  each  carrying  many  pink  or  lavender 
flowers.  Unlike  the  Rough  Fleabane,  this  species  loves  wet 
ground.  One  may  often  see  stretches  of  low  land  brightened 
by  its  myriad  blossoms,  or  with  even  greater  pleasure  one's  eye 
may  trace  the  winding  course  of  a  brook  through  a  meadow, 
by  the  bands  of  these  gay  flowers  along  its  margins. 


94 


ROUGH  FLEABANE  DAISY 
95 


WILD  BERGAMOT 

Monarda  mollis  L. 
MINT  FAMILY 

This  is  a  handsome  member  of  the  aromatic  Mint  family, 
growing  in  abundance  on  the  prairie,  along  roadsides,  and  among 
open  thickets.  The  stems  are  one  to  two-and-a-half  feet  high, 
bear  gray-green,  soft-hairy  leaves,  and  are  crowned  in  midsummer 
by  rosy-pink  or  lilac  flowers  in  dense  clusters.  These  open  from 
the  centre  outward.  The  long,  narrow,  upper  lip  of  the  corolla 
stands  erect,  the  lower  and  broader  lip  is  curved  downward,  as 
are  also  the  buds,  both  being  covered  with  soft  hairs  and  showing 
delicate  gradation  in  color  from  nearly  white  to  purple.  The 
combination  of  form,  texture,  and  color  throughout  the  entire 
plant  is  in  quiet,  but  elegant,  taste. 

Unlike  the  eastern  Bergamot  many  flowers  are  open  at  once, 
so  that  the  head  is  full  and  fluffy.  This  fulness  of  flower-head, 
or  length  of  spike,  is  noticeable  in  many  plants  of  Western  Canada. 
The  phenomenon  is  due  to  the  coolness  of  the  nights,  to  frequent 
summer  showers,  and  to  the  moisture-holding  power  of  the  black 
prairie  soil.  In  an  unusually  hot  and  dry  season,  the  individual 
flowers  fade  more  quickly  and  the  richness  of  the  floral  display 
is  diminished. 


96 


WILD  BERGAMOT 
97 


A  FERNY  DELL 

A  CONGENIAL  PLANT  SOCIETY 

To  discover  such  a  fern-filled  woodland  as  this  would  be 
delightful  anywhere,  but  especially  is  it  so  in  the  Prairie  Prov- 
inces, where,  owing  to  the  moderate  rainfall  and  dry  air,  ferns 
are  not  as  much  in  evidence  as  in  the  moister  parts  of  Eastern 
Canada  and  British  Columbia.  It  has  been  stated  that  ferns  are 
not  found  anywhere  in  the  prairie  region  even  where  trees  and 
brush  abound.  Such  a  statement  overstates  a  tendency,  since  our 
picture,  taken  in  prairie  country,  is  evidence  that  luxuriant  beds 
of  ferns  do  so  occur,  further,  they  are  more  numerous  than  is 
commonly  believed. 

They  do  not  of  course  occur  on  the  dry,  open  plains.  Shade 
and  moisture  are  necessary  for  this  Ostrich  Fern,  as  it  is  called, 
with  its  great  fronds  three  to  six  feet  high.  But  such  favorable 
conditions  are  found  in  wet  woods  and  thickets,  especially  along 
streams,  and  from  Newfoundland  to  British  Columbia,  one 
occasionally  meets  with  it.  As  will  be  noticed,  the  fronds  grow 
in  clusters  or  crowns.  These  spring  from  underground  runners 
sent  out  the  previous  season  by  the  older  rootstocks.  Hence, 
when  the  plant  finds  a  suitable  habitation,  an  extensive  mass 
of  lovely  foliage  is  soon  formed. 

Ferns  do  not,  like  the  flowering  plants,  produce  seeds,  but 
rather  great  quantities  of  spores,  minute  and  dust-like.  These 
spores  are  often  borne  in  cases  011  the  backs  of  the  ordinary  leaves, 
but  in  other  species,  the  one  before  us  for  example,  special  con- 
tracted leaves,  called  fertile  fronds  are  produced. 

Ferns  are  an  ancient  race.  Before  the  coming  of  any  bright- 
colored  flowers,  even  before  the  grasses,  they  appeared  on  the 
earth.  They  flourished  in  great  splendor  during  the  Carboni- 
ferous age,  reaching  the  size  of  great  trees.  Along  with  «/nml 
club-mosses  and  horsetails,  they  covered  the  interminable 
marshes  of  that  time,  ;m<l  from  the  tropical  luxuriance  of  their 
growth  resulted  most  of  the  coal  beds  of  the  world.  Although 
appearing  so  early,  perhaps  millions  of  years  before  man,  the 
grace  and  elegance  of  fern  foliage,  even  as  known  to  us  in  the 
smaller  forms  descended  from  that  distant  age,  has  never  been 
surpassed.  The  Fern  still  delights  us  by  its  charming  form  and 
restful  green,  and  the  strength  of  its  appeal  is  measured  by  the 
certainty  with  which  it  is  assured  a  place  in  our  schemes  of  home 
and  garden  decoration. 

98 


99 


GREAT  WILLOW-HERB ;  FIRE-WEED 
Epilobium  angusti folium  L. 

EVENING-PRIMROSE    FAMILY 

"A  goodly  and  stately  plant,  having  leaves  like  the  greatest 

\cillnw garnished  with  brave  flowers  of  great  beautie, 

consisting  of  four  leaves  apiece  of  an  orient  purple  color." 

John  Gerard,  1545-1612. 

Growing  to  a  height  of  three  to  eight  feet,  its  steins  thickly 
set  with  long,  narrow,  willow-like  leaves,  each  stem  topped  by 
a  big  spike-like  raceme  of  bright  purple  blossoms,  the  Great 
Willow-herb  is  a  striking  and  handsome  feature  of  any  landscape 
where  it  occurs.  And  its  occurrence  is  extremely  common, 
for  the  Great  Willow-herb  is  one  of  the  eminent^  successful 
plants  of  the  Northern  Hemisphere.  It  succeeds  by  endowing 
its  numerous  seed-children  with  almost  unequalled  means  for 
rapid  and  distant  travel.  Hence  they  are  always  first,  or  amongsl 
the  first,  to  reach  land  newly  cleared  by  axe  or  fire,  where  they 
quickly  cover  the  charred  desolation  with  the  beauty  of  their 
fine  foliage  and  brilliant  flowers. 

The  lower  flowers  on  the  stalk  open  first,  and  in  the  early 
period  of  bloom  the  anthers  ripen  and  shed  most  of  their  pollen. 
During  this  time  the  style  is  bent  down  out  of  the  way  and  the 
lobes  of  the  still  immature  stigma  are  not  yet  opened.  After 
the  pollen  is  gone  the  style  straightens,  and  the  four  branches 
of  the  stigma  expand  to  form  a  cross  directly  in  front  of  the 
centre  of  the  flower.  Now  this  arrangement  obviously  prevents 
self-fertilization.  It  also  ensures  cross-fertilization  by  the  bees 
For  the  bees  are  co-workers  with  the  flowers  in  this  matter. 
Bees  always  begin  at  the  bottom  of  a  flower-spike  and  work 
upward,  hence  when  they  leave  the  newly-opened  blossoms 
at  the  top  they  are  well  dusted  with  pollen.  Ftying  to  another 
plant,  most  of  this  pollen  is  rubbed  off  on  the  ripe  stigmas  of 
the  lower  flowers,  and  so  the  process  is  repeated  throughout  the 
bright  hours  of  the  midsummer  day.  That  the  bees  and  the 
flowers  work  together  effectively  is  shown  by  the  heavy  spike 
of  long,  well-filled  seed  pods  that  almost  invariably  results. 

For  a  picture  of-  the  seed  pods  and  some  facts  regarding  the 
great  buoyancy  of  the  tiny,  down-tufted  seeds,  the  reader  is 
referred  to  page  128. 

100 


GREAT  WILLOW-HERB;  FIRE  WEED 
101 


GRASS  OF  PARNASSUS 
Parnassia  palustris  L. 

SAXIFRAGE  FAMILY 

For  a  plant  with  short,  broad  leaves  and  showy  white  flowers 
"Grass  of  Parnassus"  seems  a  strange  name.  It  has,  however, 
the  sanction  of  distinguished  origin  and  ancient  usage,  having 
been  applied  to  this  very  species  by  Dioscorides,  a  learned  Greek 
physician  of  the  first  and  second  centuries,  who  has  been  called 
the  founder  of  botany. 

The  entire-margined,  heart-shaped  leaves  of  the  Grass  of 
Parnassus  all  spring  from  the  rootstock,  with  the  exception  of 
a  single  one,  which  clasps  the  stem  one-third  of  the  way  to  the 
flower.  Each  stem,  four  to  twelve  inches  high,  terminates  in  a 
single  white  blossom  an  inch  or  so  in  diameter  always  facing 
the  sky.  Although  of  a  very  common  form — open,  regular,  and 
five  parted — these  flowers  have  such  individuality  of  detail  that 
once  attentively  observed  they  are  not  afterwards  forgotten  or 
confused  with  others.  The  broad  petals  are  clearly  and  hand- 
somely veined  with  light  green.  In  front  of  each  stands  a  fan- 
shaped  group  of  nine  to  fifteen  slender  white  filaments  each  top- 
ped, not  by  an  anther,  but  by  a  small  yellow  knob.  Together  the 
five  groups  form  a  kind  of  grille  surrounding  the  inner  parts  of 
the  flower.  Since  even  minute  details  of  structure  are  not  with- 
out use  and  meaning  in  the  life  of  a  flower,  it  will  be  an  interest- 
ing problem  for  readers  to  discover  what  purpose  is  served  by  this 
unusual  and  prominent  floral  accessory.  The  centre  of  the  flower 
is,  of  course,  occupied  by  the  ovary — the  immature  seed  capsule — 
which  is  short  and  round,  and  bears  on  top  three  or  four  stigmas. 
These  stigmas,  however,  do  not  ripen  until  late  in  the  blooming 
period.  Surrounding  the  capsule  and  alternate  with  the  petals 
are  five  stamens  whose  method  of  development  is  worth  watching. 
When  the  petals  first  expand  each  stamen  is  close-folded  against 
the  capsule.  Soon  one  of  them  straightens  up,  elongates  its 
filament,  and  takes  a  place  in  the  centre  of  the  flower  directly 
in  the  way 'of  alighting  insects.  Later,  probably  the  next  day, 
a  second  stamen,  ripening  its  pollen,  acts  in  the  same  manner. 
The  other  three  follow  suit,  the  anthers  of  the  earlier  ones  having 
meanwhile  shed  their  pollen  and  fallen  off.  This  deliberate 
development  gives  insects  ample  time  in  which  to  accomplish 
their  mission  of  cross-fertilizaton,  and  full  seed-pods  usually 
result. 

In  midsummer,  throughout  Canada  to  the  Arctic  Circle,  the 
starry  blossoms  of  the  Grass  of  Parnassus  form  constellations 
in  many  wet  meadows,  and  a  Milky  Way  around  many  a  grassy 
pool. 

102 


GRASS  OF  PARNASSUS 
103 


Apocynum  androsaemi folium  L. 
DOGBANE  FAMILY 

Although  placed  by  botanists  in  a  separate  family,  the  dogbanes 
are  allied  to  the  milkweeds.  The  same  kind  of  milky  juice 
promptly  oozes  from  the  slightest  abrasion  of  their  delicate 
skin.  Both  have  simple  leaves  with  entire  margins,  and  both 
bear  pods  filled  with  down-tufted  seeds;  but,  whereas  the  pods 
of  the  milkweeds  are  fat,  spindle-shaped,  and  upright,  those  of 
the  dogbanes  are  long,  slender,  and  drooping.  In  bloom  also  they 
differ,  the  umbelled,  complex  flowers  of  the  milkweeds  being 
replaced  in  the  dogbanes  by  open  clusters  of  simple  bell-shaped 
flowers. 

The  Spreading  Dogbane,  a  common  plant  throughout  Canada, 
grows  on  wooded  banks,  among  thickets,  in  fields,  and  along 
roadsides.  Studied  in  these  different  situations,  it  exemplifies 
very  nicely  the  influence  of  illumination  on  plant  form  and  growth. 
In  woodlands  the  plant  is  tall,  and  the  leaves  on  each  branch  are 
arranged  in  one  plane  in  order  to  take  full  advantage  of  the 
overhead  light;  the  flower  clusters  terminating  the  branches  are 
comparatively  small,  and  the  whole  effect  is  that  of  a  richly- 
leaved  plant  sparingly  adorned  with  pretty  pink  blossoms.  In 
full  sunlight  the  plant  is  lower  and  more  spreading,  the  leaves  are 
smaller,  relatively  fewer  in  number,  and  more  or  less  twisted 
out  of  the  horizontal  plane.  The  flowers  on  the  other  hand  are 
much  more  abundant,  and  often  the  large  open  clusters  on  the 
more  numerous  branches  unite  to  form  a  floral  hemisphere,  or 
sometimes  almost  a  sphere  within  which  the  leaves  seem  of  quite 
secondary  importance. 

As  might  be  expected,  the  plants  growing  in  the  open  bear 
the  greater  number  of  seed  pods,  for  insects  love  the  sunshine, 
and,  like  the  milkweeds,  the  Spreading  Dogbane  is  dependent 
upon  their  good  offices  for  the  fertilization  of  its  flowers.  It 
has,  however,  a  terrible  way  of  punishing  certain  small  flies 
who  apparenty  are  unable  to  be  of  service  in  this  matter  and 
yet  desire  the  flower's  nectar.  As  the  unwelcome  visitor  eagerly 
reaches  for  the  honey,  it  frequently  happens  that  his  tongue  is 
caught  in  a  notch  in  the  centre  of  the  flower,  and,  unable  to  free 
himself,  the  unhappy  creature  slowly  dies  of  starvation.  In  the 
shade  this  tragedy  is  seldom  seen,  but  in  sunshine  it  is  so  common 
that  the  plant  is  sometimes  called  Fly-trap. 

104 


SPREADING  DOGBANE;  FLY-TRAP 
105 


GIANT  HYSSOP 

Agastache  Foeniculum  (Pursh)  Kuntze 
MINT  FAMILY 

In  midsummer  the  breath  of  the  prairie  is  fragrant  with  the 
spicy  odors  of  the  mints.  In  midwinter,  if  one  shake  up  the  hay 
in  the  farmer's  mow,  the  air  at  once  becomes  redolent  with  the 
same  perfumes  which  recall  to  memory  the  warmth  and  color 
of  the  sunlit  plains. 

Certain  members  of  the  family  are  low-set  plants  with  small 
flowers  clustered  in  the  axils  of  the  leaves;  others,  like  the  Wild 
Bergamot  described  on  a  previous  page,  are  taller  with  showy 
terminal  flower-heads;  still  others  are  coarse  and  weedy. 

This  Giant  Hyssop,  a  tall  and  handsome  mint,  may  frequently 
be  seen  on  the  plains,  along  fence  rows,  and  among  bushes  from 
Manitoba  to  Alberta.  Its  smooth,  sharply  angled  stems  grow 
from  two  to  four  feet  high.  Its  anise-scented  leaves  are  of  marked 
beauty,  being  firm  in  texture,  triangular-ovate  in  outline,  sharply 
and  evenly  toothed,  dark  green  and  strongly  veined  above,  and 
a  clean  white  beneath.  The  flowers,  produced  over  a  long  season, 
are  borne  in  terminal  spikes  two  to  five  inches  in  length.  Fre- 
quently these  spikes  are  compact  throughout,  but  the  larger 
ones  may  be  interrupted  by  pairs  of  small  leaves  and  short  lengths 
of  stem.  The  bright  blue  corollas,  about  two-fifths  of  an  inch 
long,  project  almost  at  right  angles  to  the  stem.  The  calyces 
are  also  tinted  blue,  and  after  the  corollas  wither  and  fall  off  this 
blue  shade  deepens,  leaving  the  tall,  leafy  wands  still  conspicuous 
and  decorative  through  the  rest  of  the  Summer. 

It  is  interesting  to  notice  that,  whereas,  in  a  simple  flowi 
spike  the  blossoms  open  in  a  regular,  easily  recognized  ordc 
here,  in  the  spike  of  the  Giant  Hyssop,  they  seem  to  appe* 
at  random  up  and  down  its  length.  Yet  for  each  plant  there  is 
a  master  design,  and  it  cannot  be  doubted  that  these  flowers  also 
open  in  a  definite,  predetermined  order.  But  in  these  dense 
spikes  the  scheme  is  not  readily  apparent,  for  we  have  here  a 
double  geometrical  design,  first  in  the  arrangement  of  clusl 
on  the  stem,  and  second  in  the  arrangement  of  flowers  in  th< 
cluster. 


106 


GIANT  HYSSOP 
107 


WILD  MORNING  GLORY;  HEDGE  BINDWEED 

Convolvulus  sepium  L. 
MORNING  GLORY  FAMILY 

11 And  starred  with  a  myriad  blossom  the 

long  convolvulus  hung}" — Tennyson. 

Draping  banks,  bushes,  and  fences  with  handsome  foliage 
and  beautiful  trumpet-shaped  flowers,  the  Wild  Morning  Glory 
twines  its  graceful  way  from  Newfoundland  to  British  Columbia. 
Its  trumpets  are  sometimes  pink  with  white  stripes,  but  in  Western 
Canada  they  seem  to  be  usually  white,  and  since  we  have  here 
the  unusual  phenomenon  of  both  pollen  and  pistil  being  white, 
the  flower  is  arrayed  in  bridal  purity.  In  the  throat  of  the 
flower  are  fine  tubes  in  a  circle  (they  may  be  readily  seen  in  the 
picture  opposite),  each  with  a  honey  gland.  Occasionally  a  big 
sphynx,  or  humming  bird  moth  may  be  seen  hovering  over 
these  wells  of  nectar,  but  in  Western  Canada  certain  species  of 
bees  are  the  usual  insect  visitors. 

The  Morning  Glory  climbs  by  twining  its  stems  around  any 
support  within  reach.  When,  in  the  Spring,  from  the  perennial 
root  a  new  shoot  starts  growth,  its  tip  begins  to  revolve.  Des- 
cribing, as  it  lengthens,  ever-widening  circles,  it  seeks  something 
on  which  to  ascend.  If  fortunate  in  touching  anything,  it  at 
once  begins  to  entwine  the  support  and  seems  by  such  contact 
to  be  stimulated  to  greater  growth.  If  nothing  be  found,  the 
shoot  at  length  becomes  so  heavy  that  it  falls  prostrate,  but  the 
growing  tip,  like  Antaeus  touching  the  ground,  finds  new  strength 
from  the  contact  to  again  raise  itself  and  swing  in  circles  from 
this  advanced  point.  If  several  shoots  chance  to  come  together 
they  entwine  each  other,  forming  a  living  cable.  Such  cables 
may  often  be  seen  writhing  up  from  the  ground  as  if  in  an  agony 
of  endeavor  to  reach  some  support.  Being  stiffer  than  a  single 
strand,  they  rise  higher  and  may  sometimes  attain  to  an  overhead 
branch  that  would  be  beyond  the  reach  of  a  single  shoot.  The 
claim  has  been  made  that  climbing  plants  can  sense  in  some  way 
the  proximity  of  a  suitable  support.  Wonderful  stories  in  support 
of  such  a  claim  have  been  told.  But,  on  the  whole,  facts  seem 
to  discredit  such  a  theory.  The  reader  may  easily  try  some 
simple  experiments  which  might  help  to  decide  this  interesting 
point. 


108 


WILD  MORNING  GLORY;  HEDGE  BINDWEED 
109 


BLAZING  STAR;  BUTTON  SNAKEROOT 

Liatris  scariosa  Willd. 
THISTLE  FAMILY 

Common  names  of  plants  are  oft-times  curious  and  sometim< 
inappropriate,  but  whoever  called  this  one  Blazing  Star  had  a 
pretty  fancy.  The  plant  grows  on  dry  plains  and  hills  amonj 
short  grasses  above  which  the  flowers  shine  brilliantly.  On 
nearer  view,  the  overlapping  bracts  of  the  involucre — the  scale 
surrounding  the  flower-head — are  seen  to  be  dark  red  in  color. 
As  the  florets  open,  long  style-branches  of  a  vivid  rose-purpk 
are  thrust  out,  as  if  from  the  dull  smoldering  glow  of  the  bud 
had  erupted  darting  tongues  of  flame. 

As  to  its  other  name,  Button  Snakeroot,  the  button  is  th< 
globular  corm,  or  rootstock,  an  inch  or  so  in  diameter,  at  the 
of  the  stem,  and  it  is  reputed  to  be  a  remedy  for  snake  bites. 

The  plants  vary  in  height  from  six  to  eighteen  inches,  depending 
upon  the  fertility  of  the  soil  and  the  amount  of  moisture  it  contains. 
They  are  in  bloom  about  the  first  of  August.  The  flowers  are 
interesting  and  unusual  for  this  reason: — In  most  flowers  the 
style  is  rather  inconspicuous,  its  function  being  to  connect  the 
stigma  and  ovary,  and  to  hold  the  stigma  in  the  proper  position 
to  receive  pollen  according  to  the  special  method  adopted  by  each 
plant.  But  in  the  case  of  the  Blazing  Star,  although  the  style- 
branches  are  stigmatose  only  at  the  base,  there  is  a  remarkable 
development  carried  to  such  a  degree  that  it  is  the  styles  that  make 
the  flowers  showy,  not  the  usual  gaily-colored  corollas. 


110 


BLAZING  STAR;  BUTTON  SNAKEROOT 
111 


PAINTED  CUP;  INDIAN  PAINT  BRUSH 

Castilleja  miniata  Dougl. 
FIGWORT  FAMILY 

That  the  Figwort  family  contains  many  floral  oddities  is 
evidenced  by  the  common  names  of  some  of  its  members,  such  as 
snapdragon,  turtle-head,  monkey-flower,  owFs  clover,  elephant's 
head  and  so  on.  Nor  are  these  names  so  wildly  fanciful,  since 
the  resemblances  are  sometimes  very  real.  In  the  elephant's 
head  for  instance,  each  tiny  flower  on  the  long,  slender  spike 
imitates  the  broad  spreading  ears  and  the  upturned  trunk  of  the 
elephant  in  a  remarkable  manner. 

The  Painted  Cup,  a  familiar  plant  from  Manitoba  to  the 
Rockies,  is  curious  in  a  different  way.  The  flowers  are  borne 
in  dense  leafy  spikes  at  the  top  of  a  leafy  stem,  but,  being  greenish- 
yellow  in  color,  they  are  scarcely  noticeable  among  the  longer 
and  more  brilliantly  colored  bracts,  which  look  as  if  they  had 
been  dipped  in  a  pot  of  scarlet  paint.  Its  other  common  name — 
Indian  Paint  Brush — is  therefore  more  appropriate  than  Painted 
Cup.  Still,  the  color  of  the  bracts  varies  greatly,  not  only  in 
the  several  species  found  in  Western  Canada,  but  also  among 
different  individuals  of  the  same  species,  ranging  from  scarlet 
and  brick-red  to  rose,  pink,  and  even  to  white.  Individually, 
the  plants  are  rather  coarse  but  in  the  mass  their  effect  is  beautiful, 
and  many  a  hillside  and  prairie  seems  aflame  with  them. 

Not  the  least  interesting  fact  in  the  life  of  the  paint  brush 
is  its  deviation  from  what  one  might  call  the  standards  of  common 
honesty  in  plant  life.  For  frequently  this  plant  attaches  itself 
to  the  roots  of  other  plants  and  steals  from  them  their  life  juices. 
In  short,  it  seems  to  be  by  instinct,  if  not  always  by  opportunity, 
a  parasite.  Still  its  moral  declension  is  not  complete.  For  in 
the  case  of  those  plants  which  are  wholly  parasitic  in  nature  their 
low  character  is  usually  revealed  by  the  absence  of  green  color 
in  their  leaves.  But  where,  as  with  the  paint  brush,  the  theft 
is  incidental,  as  it  were,  where  the  plant  can,  and  to  a  certain  extent 
does,  live  by  its  own  exertions  there  is  usually  little  outward 
sign  of  this  brand  of  degeneracy. 


112 


PAINTED  CUP;  INDIAN  PAINT  BRUSH 
113 


A  WESTERN  RIVER  SCENE 

"But  there  is  one  thing  a  large  river  does  for  one  that  is  beyond 
the  scope  of  the  companionable  stream, — it  idealizes  the  landscape, 
it  multiplies  and  heightens  the  beauty  of  the  day  and  of  the  season. 
A  fair  day  it  makes  more  fair,  and  a  wild  and  tempestuous  day  it 
makes  more  wild  and  tempestuous.  It  takes  on  so  quickly  and 
completely  the  mood  and  temper  of  the  sky  above  _  _  _  .  How  it 
enhances  and  emphasizes  the  beauty  of  those  calm  motionless 
days  of  Summer  or  Fall, — the  broad  glassy  surface  perfectly  dupli- 
cating the  opposite  shore,  sometimes  so  smooth  that  the  finer  floating 
matter  here  and  there  looks  like  dust  upon  a  mirror; — 

— John  Burroughs. 

Not  always  is  the  river  so  placid  as  in  our  picture.  When 
summer  heat  melts  the  snow  on  the  mountains,  and  summer 
rains  along  its  great  length  swell  the  flood,  the  water  rises  rapidly 
and  sweeps  along  in  swelling  strength  chafing  at  its  steep  ^clay 
banks  and  carrying  away  soil  and  plants  that  are  not  firmly 
anchored.  Hence,  we  find  that  the  perennial  plants  that  grow 
on  these  steep  river  banks  are  either  grasses  with  numerous 
intertwining  rootstocks  firmly  binding  together  the  soil/ or  else 
plants  that  have  deep  and  strong  roots,  like  Hooker's  mugwort, 
shown  in  the  foreground  of  our  picture,  Mackenzie's  hedysarum, 
the  deflexed  oxytrope,  and  other  herbs  of  like  habit.  Sometimes 
several  inches  of  surface  soil  will  be  carried  away  from  the  tap 
roots  of  these  plants  and  the  roots  with  their  tufted  stems  hang 
down,  dirty  and  forlorn.  But  abatement  of  the  flood  brings 
restoration  to  air  and  sunshine.  The  leaves  quickly  resume 
their  interrupted  functions,  the  stems  bend  upward  hopefully. 
and  soon  the  bank  is  again  clothed  with  clean,  fresh  verdure. 


114 


A  WESTERN  RIVER  SCENE 
115 


GIANT  SUNFLOWER 

Helianthus  giganteus  L. 
THISTLE  FAMILY 

The  Giant  Sunflower  is  so  called  because  of  its  tall  stems 
which  sometimes  grow  ten  feet  high,  although  half  that  height 
or  less  is  commoner.  As  compared  with  the  thick  stems,  broad 
leaves,  and  massive  heads  of  the  cultivated  Russian  sunflower, 
it  is  not  at  all  gigantic,  for  its  stem  is  usually  much  branched  and, 
except  at  the  base,  rather  slender,  its  leaves  narrow  and  taper- 
pointed,  and  its  flower-heads  only  two  or  two-and-a-half  inches 
across.  Still  it  is  a  big,  vigorous  plant  and  with  such  a  capacity 
for  spreading  and  massing  that  it  may  often  become  a  troublesome 
weed  in  low  ground.  From  the  Lake  of  the  Woods  to  the  Rockies, 
the  Giant  Sunflower  is  abundant  and  furnishes  in  many,  a  mid- 
summer landscape  great  expanses  of  radiant  color. 

If  a  stem  of  this  big  herb  be  dug  up  in  Autumn  it  will  bring 
with  it  a  great  cluster  of  roots.  Some  are  ordinary  feeding  and 
anchoring  roots,  others  are  so  thickened  as  to  look  like  small 
sweet  potatoes.  From  among  these,  spreading  out  in  all  directions, 
are  stout  creeping  rootstocks.  In  these  spindle-shaped  tubers 
is  stored  concentrated  building  material  upon  which  the  runners 
draw  in  early  Spring,  so  getting  a  good  start  in  their  work  of 
extending  the  sunflower  colony. 


116 


GIANT  SUNFLOWER 
117 


BROAD-LEAVED  ARROW-HEAD 

Sagittaria  latifolia  Willd. 
WATER-PLANTAIN  FAMILY 

A  handsome  plant  is  the  Arrow-head  with  distinctive  and 
decorative  leaves  and  flowers.  Growing  in  shallow  water  or  mud, 
along  the  margins  of  ponds  and  streams,  it  occurs  commonly 
and  often  abundantly  throughout  most  of  the  North  American 
continent.  Since  aquatic  plants  are  subject  to  sudden  changes 
in  their  surrounding  conditions — floods  may  increase  the  current 
of  the  streams  and  raise  the  water  in  the  ponds,  or  drought  may 
dry  up  both — it  is  not  strange  to  find  that  this  plant  exhibits  great 
variation  in  size  and  form.  Its  height  may  be  six  inches  or  two  feet. 
Its  leaves  may  be  broad  or  narrow,  but,  unless  submerged  during 
growth,  they  retain  their  arrow-head  shape.  The  plants  are 
occasionally  dioecious  but  usually  monoecious,  that  is,  bearing 
both  male  and  female  flowers  on  the  same  plant  but  separately. 
As  may  be  seen  by  referring  to  the  picture  opposite,  both  kinds 
grow  in  clusters  of  three  around  the  common  flower-stalk.  Both- 
kinds  also  have  three  glistening  white  petals  more  delicate 
than  the  most  gauzy  fabric  ever  spun  by  man.  But  in  the  centre 
of  the  male  flower  is  a  beautiful  cluster  of  golden  stamens,  while 
in  the  female  flower  is  a  dull  green,  rounded  mass  of  pistils. 

The  superior  beauty  of  the  male  over  the  female  blossom, 
although  not  fully  apparent  in  our  picture,  is  quite  pronounced, 
and  follows  a  general  rule  among  plants.  Many  other  examples 
of  this  might  be  mentioned — for  instance,  the  long  drooping 
male  tassels  of  the  birch  and  alder  as  compared  with  their  small 
inconspicuous  female  catkins,  or  the  golden  dress  of  the  male 
willow  as  compared  with  the  quieter  silver  of  the  female.  Again, 
in  the  case  of  the  cultivated  squash  or  pumpkin,  both  sexes  have 
great  orange-yellow  trumpets,  but  the  female,  close-seated  upon 
the  embryo  fruit,  is  partly  hidden  by  the  leaves,  while  the  male 
rises  up  on  a  long  stalk  to  better  display  his  splendor.  Yet  these 
decorative  distinctions  of  male  and  female  dress  and  form  are 
not  motived  by  anything  corresponding  to  human  vanity;  rather 
they  spring  from  vital  necessities  in  the  life,  not  of  the  individual, 
but  of  the  species. 


118 


119 


MARSH  FELWORT 

Pleurogyne  fontana  A .  Nels. 
GENTIAN  FAMILY 

This  plant  is  probably  an  unfamiliar  one  to  many  of  our 
readers.  It  is  said  by  the  late  Mr.  J.  M.  Macoun  to  be  character- 
istic of  alkali  flats  in  the  southern  part  of  the  prairie  country, 
and  Rydberg's  Flora  gives  its  habitat  as  mountain  bogs.  The 
plants  pictured  on  the  opposite  page  grew  hundreds  of  miles 
from  the  international  boundary  and  far  from  the  mountains, 
and  it  probably  occurs  on  brackish  shores  and  in  salt  marshes 
over  a  wide  range. 

One  reason  why  it  is  little  known  is  its  habit  of  opening  its 
flowers  in  bright  sunshine  only,  and  then  for  but  a  short  time. 
Another  is  that  its  usual  rather  desolate  surroundings  do  not 
promise  the  flower  lover  much  in  the  way  of  floral  beauty,  and  he 
is  likely  to  turn  to  more  fertile  fields.  Finally,  it  is  a  capricious 
annual  and  may  appear  in  a  neighborhood  one  season  and  then 
not  to  be  seen  again  for  several  succeeding  years.  In  this  latter 
elusive  quality  it  resembles  its  beautiful  relative  the  fringed 
gentian  whose  flowers  of  heavenly  blue  have  captivated  alike 
the  poet  and  the  artist. 

Individual  plants  of  the  Marsh  Felwort,  even  when  growing 
together,  differ  curiously  in  size.  Some  are  three  or  four  inches 
high  bearing  but  one  or  two  blossoms,  each  slender  stem  bending 
to  the  lightest  breeze.  Others  grow  to  a  height  of  fifteen  inches 
and  are  stiffly  erect  with  a  dozen  or  more  close-set  flowers.  The 
white  corolla  is  so  deeply  cleft  into  four  or  five  lobes,  that  each 
seems  to  be  a  separate  petal.  At  first  sight,  also,  the  flower 
seems  to  have  neither  style  nor  stigmas.  The  style  is  indeed 
lacking,  but  closer  examination  will  revel  the  latter  as  stigmatose 
lines  on  the  sides  of  the  ovary — quite  an  unusual  arrangement. 

The  flowers  open  in  late  Summer  and  it  is  always  a  pleasant 
surprise  to  find  such  pure  and  delicate  beauty  amid  the  usual 
coarse  vegetation  of  its  environment. 


120 


MARSH  FELWORT 
121 


LESSER  PASTURE  SAGE  BRUSH;  WORMWOOD 

SAGE 

Artemisia  frigida  Willd. 
THISTLE  FAMILY' 

In  Western  Canada  grow  many  species  of  Artemisia,  kuo\ 
variously  as  wormwoods,  sage  brushes,  or  mugworts.  Most 
them  are  dry  ground  plants,  a  few  are  found  in  moist  valleys, 
and  one  at  least  (A .  biennis)  has  become  in  many  places  a  common 
and  unsightly  weed.  Certain  kinds,  especially  the  European 
wormwood  (^4.  Absinthium)  grown  in  many  gardens  and  escaped 
from  them  to  the  roadside,  are  so  widely  used  as  domestic  medicine 
that  "wormwood  tea  is  an  odorous  memory  with  every  persoi 
who  was  reared  in  the  country."* 

Those  species  of  Artemisia  commonly  called  sage  brushes 
are  characteristic  of  arid  regions,  where  over  large  tracts  they 
sometimes  constitute  almost  the  entire  vegetation.  We  have  all 
heard  of,  even  if  we  have  not  seen,  the  sage  brush  desert  whose 
gray  monotony  impresses  travellers  as  they  cross  the  continent 
by  southern  railway  lines.  Such  universal  grayness  of  tone  is 
due  to  the  fact  that  stems,  leaves,  and  flower-heads  of  these  plants 
are  all  densely  coated  with  white  hair  or  wool.  The  protection 
thus  afforded  is  two-fold:  first,  transpiration  is  greatly  diminished; 
and,  second,  the  chlorophyll — the  green  coloring  matter  of  plants 
in  the  tissue  beneath  the  hairs — is  shaded  as  by  an  awning  from 
the  destructive  action  of  too  intense  sunshine. 

The  Lesser  Pasture  Sage  Brush  pictured  on  the  opposite  page 
is  one  of  the  smaller  of  these  desert  sages.  It  has,  however,  a 
range  extending  far  beyond  the  desert,  being  found  northward  as 
far  as  Hudson's  Bay  and  Alaska.  Over  much  of  this  great 
expanse  it  occurs  sparingly  in  small  colonies  on  particularly  dry 
banks  or  hillsides,  but  in  the  arid  part  of  the  Canadian  plains  it 
sometimes  covers  the  ground  over  considerable  areas. 

Considered,  not  as  a  hundred  or  a  thousand  acre  carpet, 
but  individually  in  detail,  it  is  a  pretty  plant  with  soft  masses  of 
finely-cut,  silvery  foliage  above  which  in  late  Summer  rise  silvery 
plumes  eight  to  twenty  inches  high.  Along  the  slender  branches 
of  these  stems  are  strung  round  and  nodding  flower-heads,  pearly 
gray  on  the  outside,  but  soon  opening  to  emit  the  tiny  yellow 
florets. 


'Liberty  Hyde  Bailey. 


122 


LESSER  PASTURE  SAGE  BRUSH;  WORMWOOD  SAGE 
123 


WHITE  PRAIRIE  ASTER 

Aster  com  mutatis  T.  and  G. 

THISTI.E  FAMILY 

In  the  floral  pageantry  of  early  summer  the  Asters  take  no 
part,  but  from  midsummer  onward  they  demand  increasing 
notice  until  in  the  climax  of  splendor  with  which  the  season 
closes  they  occupy  the  premier  place.  Other  handsome  flowers 
in  great  number  and  variety  join  in  the  display,  but  many  of 
them  furnish  only  here  and  there  outstanding  points  of  color, 
valuable  additions  to  the  general  effect,  but  still  merely  inci- 
dental. Not  so  the  Asters !  Vast  plains,  unending  miles  of  road- 
way, and  innumerable  swamps,  thickets,  and  forest  glades  are 
beautified  by  their  mj-riad  blossoms. 

Asters  respond  kindly  to  human  care,  and  in  England  these 
Michaelmas  daisies,  as  they  are  called,  are  highly  esteemed  and 
generally  cultivated.  In  Canada  little  attention  of  this  kind 
has  yet  been  paid  to  them.  But,  although  neglected  by  human 
gardeners,  Nature  here  uses  them  lavishly,  and  many  a  lonely 
settler's  simple  home  is  transformed  and  glorified  by  the  blue 
and  white  of  asters  and  the  yellow  of  goldenrods. 

This  White  Prairie  Aster  is  common  in  dry  and  sandy  soil 
from  Manitoba  to  British  Columbia.  Its  stem,  somewhat 
branched,  grows  one  or  two  feet  high,  its  leaves  are  small  and 
narrow,  both  stem  and  leaves  are  hairy,  but  one  notices  little 
such  details,  as  attention  is  centred  upon  the  splendid  panicle 
of  white  flowers,  a  particularly  fine  specimen  of  which  is  shown 
on  the  opposite  page. 

A  closely  allied  species,  the  White  Wreath  Aster  (A.  wiilti- 
florus)  with  smaller  flower-heads  and  a  more  branched  stem, 
grows  in  similar  soil  over  an  even  wider  territory. 

The  Smooth-leaved  Aster  (A.  laevis)  with  rather  compact 
panicles  of  sky-blue  flowers  is  one  of  the  most  abundant  and 
elegant  forms  in  open  woods,  on  the  edge  of  thickets,  ami  along 
fence  rows. 

In  swamps  we  frequently  find  a  stout,  rough-hairy,  purple- 
stemmed  Aster  (A.  puniceus)  bearing  aloft  above  the  tallest 
sedges  a  great  pyramid  of  large  lilac-blue  flowers. 

Scattered  along  hilly  roads  and  on  openly  wooded  hillsides  is 
the  Showy  Western  Aster '(A.  conspicuus)  whose  broad  leaves 
and  flat-topped  clusters  of  large  violet  or  pink-purple  flowers 
quite  justify  its  name. 

Many  other  kinds  merit  mention.  The  ambitious  young 
student  may  find  some  difficulty  in  the  exact  determination 
of  species,  but  both  he  and  the  amateur  lover  of  flowers  will 
find  interest  and  pleasure  in  their  great  variety  and  beauty. 

124 


WHITE  PRAIRIE  ASTER 
125 


DRUMMOND'S  DRYAS  FRUITING  ON  A 
GRAVEL-BAR 

Dryas  Drummondii  Richards 
ROSE  FAMILY 

Having  now  considered  many  flowers,  it  seems  fitting  that, 
before  bringing  this  series  to  a  close,  we  should  glance  at  a  few 
of  the  seeds,  or  fruits  as  a  botanist  calls  them,  the  production 
of  which  is  the  object  of  all  blossoms. 

Our  photograph  of  Drummond's  Dryas,  fruiting  on  a  gravel- 
bar  of  a  great  northern  river,  was  chosen  because  it  illustrates 
so  well  the  frequent  beauty  of  this  final  stage  in  plant  growth, 
and  also  the  lavish  manner  in  which  seeds  are  usually  produced. 

This  plant  forms  dense  mats  of  foliage  above  which  in  early 
Summer  rise  small,  short-stemmed  flowers.  The  petals  wither, 
and  the  numerous  styles  afterwards  elongate  into  twisted  awns, 
fringed  throughout  their  length  with  fine  hairs.  While  still 
immature  these  styles  are  tightly  twisted  together,  but  when 
ripe  they  fluff  out  into  a  downy  ball  two  inches  or  more  in  diameter. 
The  seed-stems  lengthen  to  eight  or  ten  inches,  thus  raising  the 
seed-heads  well  above  the  leaves. 

As  to  the  beauty  of  such  a  Dryas  bed  there  can  be  no  question. 
The  soft,  feathery  expanse  of  plumose  seeds  gleaming  in  the 
sunshine  quite  surpasses  in  attractiveness  the  same  bed  when 
dotted  with  small  yellow  flowers.  And  since  this  one  colony  shows 
thousands  of  seed-heads,  and  each  head  has  about  one  hundred 
and  fifty  seeds,  some  idea  of  the  great  quantity  of  seed  produced 
is  readily  formed. 

But,  when  the  individual  plant  has  ripened  a  good  crop  of  seed, 
the  achievement  will  be  of  little  benefit  to  the  race  unless  the  seeds 
reach  a  place  where  they  can  grow  successfully.  If  they  fall 
directly  to  the  ground,  then,  in  the  case  of  all  perennials,  the  parent 
itself  becomes  the  chief  danger  to  its  offspring.  Plants,  therefore, 
have  developed  many  devices  to  scatter  their  seeds  abroad. 

As  is  fitting,  these  Dryas  seeds,  born  beside  the  water,  are  good 
swimmers.  They  are  also  able  to  fly,  although  not  with  the 
buoyancy  of  thistle-down.  Using  both  modes  of  travel,  they 
quickly  reach  and  triumphantly  occupy  the  gravel-bars  on 
thousands  of  miles  of  northern  waterways. 


126 


DRUMMOND'S  DRYAS  FRUITING  ON  A  GRAVEL-BAR 
127 


A  GROUP  OF  AIRSHIP  SEEDS 

Ready  to  start  on  the  great  adventure 

Of  the  many  methods  of  seed  dispersion  that  of  using  the 
wind  as  carrier  is  one  of  the  most  common  and  most  effective. 

In  the  picture  opposite  we  have  an  interesting  group  of  such 
airship  seeds.  The  centre  is  occupied  by  a  spike  of  the  great 
willow-herb,  or  fireweed,  whose  forty  long  pods  conta'ned  about 
twelve  thousand  seeds  On  a  dry  day  it  is  a  pretty  sight  to  see 
these  pods  splitting  open,  their  four  slender  divisions  cui 
quickly  but  gently  outward  into  the  form  of  a  cross,  and  the 
imprisoned  down  instantly  fluffing  out  as  if  delighted  to  find 
freedom.  The  seeds  lose  no  time  in  starting  on  their  momentous 
journey,  but  eagerly  commit  themselves  to  the  first  passing  breeze. 
The  launching  of  these  tiny,  crowded  airships  is  in  open  situations 
usually  attended  by  few  mishaps,  and  away  they  sail,  each  freighted 
with  a  potential  fireweed  that  may  by  and  by  bloom  in  splendor 
on  some  distant  clearing.  These  seeds  are  extremely  light  and 
buoyant.  Twelve  hundred  of  them  weigh  less  than  one  grain, 
and  in  a  still  room,  experiment  showed  that  on  the  average  the 
seeds  took  forty  seconds  to  fall  eight  feet.  The  slightest  upward 
breath  of  air  sent  them  soaring,  and  in  the  open  there  is  no  doubt 
that  they  rise  to  great  heights  and  travel  long  distances. 

On  the  left  of  our  picture  are  opened  milkweed  pods.  Each 
held  about  fifty  large,  brown  seeds.  These  pods  split  open  along 
one  side  only,  and  at  first  no  silk  is  seen,  for  the  flat  seeds  overlap 
one  another  like  the  scales  of  a  spruce  cone,  but  as  drying  pro- 
gresses the  elasticity  of  the  compressed  hairs  pushes  up  and  out 
seed  after  seed  to  be  whirled  away  by  the  wind.  The  weight  of 
each  is  more  than  one  hundred  times  that  of  a  fireweed  seed,  yet 
the  sustaining  power  of  its  large  and  beautiful  parachute  is  such 
that  it  has  one-fifth  the  buoyancy  of  the  lighter  seed. 

To  the  right  are  five  disintegrating  cylinders  of  the  long- 
fruited  anemone.  While  still  intact,  all  the  seeds — about  two 
hundred  and  forty  to  each — are  on  the  outside,  arranged  in  well- 
ordered  spirals  with  the  wool  tightly  packed  within.  When  the 
expansive  pressure  of  this  drying  wool  finally  bursts  the  neat 
cylinder,  the  crinkly  wool  separates  into  little  tufts  with  a  seed 


128 


A  GROUP  OF  AIRSHIP  Si -\  \^ 
129 


in  the  centre  of  each.  These  weigh  fifteen  times  as  much  as, 
and  have  one-eighth  the  bouyancy  of  the  fireweed  seeds. 

In  the  lower  right  hand  corner  are  two  heads  of  Troximon, 
an  artistic  ally  of  the  dandelion.  At  the  bottom  are  three  globes 
of  the  dandelion  itself,  and  above  them  the  half-dozen  small 
heads  are  those  of  the  golden  aster.  These  three  plants  belong 
to  the  Thistle  family  and  serve  to  illustrate  the  fruiting  method 
of  many  of  their  kindred.  As  the  dandelion,  especially,  is  so  well- 
known  it  is  unnecessary  to  describe  this  method  in  detail.  Every 
child  has  played  with  dandelion  " clocks"  and  watched  the  seeds 
sail  away  before  his  vigorous  puffs.  The  dandelion  seeds  are 
quite  light — about  four  hundred  of  them  weigh  one  grain — 
and  yet  in  a  quiet  room  their  buoyancy  is  only  about  one-tenth 
that  of  the  fireweed  seeds. 

This  comparison  suggests  that  other  factors  play  a  part  in 
the  successful  spread  of  a  species.  From  a  close,  hard  fight  the 
fireweed  flies  far  away  to  seek  easier  conditions  elsewhere,  but  the 
dandelion  stays  and  fights  it  out,  successfully  competing  with 
even  blue-grass  sod,  and  dodging  serious  lawn-mower  injury  by 
spreading  its  leaves  flat  and  bearing  its  flowers  on  very  short 
stems.  Then,  just  when  the  seeds  are  ripe,,  the  stems  shoot  up 
and  lift  the  seed-heads  well  above  the  grass.  The  dandelion 
seed  may  not  travel  so  far  as  that  of  the  fireweed,  but  it  will 
germinate  and  thrive  where  the  latter  would  perish. 

Here  we  must  leave  this  interesting  subject.  The  reader, 
however,  may  by  observation  and  simple  experiment  easily 
continue  its  investigation. 


130 


INDEX 


Agastache  Foeniculum 

Airship  Seeds 

Allium  cernuum. 

Anemone,  Long-fruited 

Apocynum  androsaemifolium 

Aquilegia  flavescens 


106 
128 

88 
128 
104 

50 


Aralia  nudicaulis 14 

Arctic  Raspberry 26 

Arrow-head,  Broad-leaved 118 

Artemisia  frigida 122 

Asclepias  ovalifolia 92,  128 

Aster  commutatis 124 

"    Golden 130 

"    Showy  Western 124 

"    Smooth-leaved 124 

"    White  Prairie 124 

"    White  Wreath 124 

Astragalus  hypoglottis 20 

Baked-apple  Berry 24 

Beard-tongue,  Blue 34 

Bedstraw,  Northern 52 

"          Sweet-scented 52 

Bergamot 96 

Blazing  Star 110 

Bluebells 42 

Bunchberry 48 

Butterfly  Weed 72 

Butterwort 26 

Button  Snakeroot 110 

Calla  palustris 28 

Camas,  Death 90 

"      White 90 

Caslilleja  miniata 112 

Cinquefoil,  Tall  White 66 

Cloud-berry 24 

Columbine,  Small-flowered 50 

M         Wild 50 

Yellow 50 

Convolvulus  scpiuin 108 

Coral-root 58 

Cornus  canadensis .  .  48 


Page 

Cow  Parsnip : . . .         ...  68 

Cowslip,  American 18 

"      Virginian 42 

Cranberry 26 

Crane's-bill ; 64 

Cypripedium  parviflorum 44 

Dandelion 130 

Disporum  trachycarpum 12 

Dodecatheon  pauciflorum 18 

Dogbane,  Spreading 104 

Dogwood,  Flowering 48 

Dryas  Drummondii 126 

Dwarf  Cornel 48 

Epilobium  angustifolium 100,  128 

Erigeron  glabellus 94 

Fairy  Bells ...  12 

Felwort,  Marsh 120 

Fern,  Oak 58 

"     Ostrich 98 

Ferny  Dell,  A 98 

Fire-weed 100 

Fleabane  Daisy,  Philadelphia 94 

Rough 94 

Flower-bordered  Road,  A 78 

Fly-trap 104 

Forest  Invading  a  Peat  Bog .  .  22 

Gaillardia  aristata 82 

Galium  boreale 52 

Gaura  coccinea 72 

Geranium  incisum 64 

Purple 64 

"        Richardson's 64 

"        Spotted 64 

Giant  Hyssop 106 

Golden  Pea 10 

Grass  of  Parnassus 102 

Great-flowered  Gaillardia 82 

Hedge  Bindweed ...  106 


131 


INDEX 


Page 

Hedge  Nettle 80 

Hedysarum  boreale 76 

Mackenzie 76,114 

Helianthus  giganteus 116 

Heracleum  lanatum .  .  68 


Page 

Primula  farinosa 36 

Pyrola  asarifolia 60 

Ragwort,  Marsh 38,  40 

Round-leaved  Orchis 32 

Rubus  arcticus .  .  26 


Indian  Paint  Brush. .  112      Rubus  Chamaemorus 


24 


Labrador  Tea 26 

Lady's  Slipper,  Yellow 44 

Liatris  scariosa 110 

Lilium  montanum 56 

Lily,  Red  or  Wood 56 

Linnaea  borealis 46 

Loco-weed 86 

Lungwort,  Tall 42 

Lygodesmia  juncea 70 

Meadow  Rue,  Tall 84 

Mertensia  paniculata 42 

"        virginica 42 

Milk  Vetch,  Purple 20 

Milkweed,  Oval-leaved 92,  128 

Monarda  mollis 96 

Moneses  uniflora 62 

Morning  Glory 108 

Northern  Hedysarum 76 

Orchis  rotundifolia 32 

Oxytrope,  Showy 86 

Oxytropis  Lamberti 86 

Painted  Cup 112 

Pamassia  palustris 102 

Pentstemon  procerus 34 

Petalostemon  purpureus 74 

Pitcher-plant 26 

Pleurogyne  fonlana 120 

Polentilla  anserina 30 

"        arguta 66 

Polygala  Senega 54 

Prairie  Bean 10 

Prairie  Clover,  Purple 74 

Prairie  Pink 70 

Primrose,  Bird's-eye 36 


Brush,  Lesser  Pasture 122 

Sarsaparilla,  Wild 14 

Sagittaria  latifolia 118 

Scarlet  Gaura 72 

Seneca  Snakeroot 54 

Senecio  palustris 38 

Shooting  Star 18,  36 

Silver-feather 30 

Silver-weed 30 

Single  Beauty 62 

Skeleton  Weed 70 

Solomon's  Seal 26 

Stachys  palustris 80 

Sundew 26 

Sunflower,  Giant 116 


Thalictrum  purpurascens .... 

Thermopsis  rhombifolia 

Troximon 

Twin-flower .  . 


Viola  nephrophylla 

Violet,  Early  Purple 

Water  Arum 

Water-Crowfoot 

Western  River  Scene,  A. . 
Western  Woodland,  In  a . 


84 

10 

130 

46 

16 

id 

28 

78 

114 

58 


WildCalla 

Wild  Onion,  Nodding 88 

Willow-herb,  Great 100.  PJs 

Wintergf  een,  One-flowered 62 

Wintergreen,  Pink 60 

Wormwood  Sage 1  -'- 


Zones  of  Vegetation 

Zygadenus  elegans 


40 
90 


132 


1C  C«.  LIMITED.  TORONTO 


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