Part 35

From May to August is the best season to study the Holly (Ilex aquifolium--order Aquifoliaceæ). We are all acquainted with this tree in its winter condition, with its bright red or yellow 'berries,' but during the months above named the less familiar flowers are in bloom. The tree is common in the woods of all parts of Britain, and is easily distinguished at all times by its smooth, grey bark, as well as by its thick, glossy, spiny, evergreen leaves, which are placed alternately on the branches, attached by very short stalks. As a rule the leaves have waved margins, and are armed with several very strong spines; but commonly the spines of the upper leaves are much fewer, and are sometimes reduced to a single one at the apex. The little white flowers form dense clusters in the axils of the leaves. Generally they contain both stamens and pistil, but often they are imperfect, the pistillate flowers predominating on some trees and the staminate ones on others. Their parts are arranged in fours, the calyx having four small teeth, and the corolla four spreading lobes, while four stamens are attached to the latter, and the ovary has the same number of cells, and the style terminates in an equal number of small stigmas. The fruits are not really berries, but little, poisonous drupes containing four one-seeded stones.

The Privet (Ligustrum vulgare), which forms, together with the Ash, the whole of the order Oleaceæ, as far as British species are concerned, is very common in the southern counties, where it is often an escape from gardens, the bush being so largely employed in the formation of hedges; but it is truly wild, and very plentiful on the chalky soils of the south and east of England. Except during very severe winters the old leaves remain until the early spring leaves are well formed, so that the bush is always green. The flowers are white, with a very characteristic odour, and are arranged in dense, terminal, conical panicles. The calyx forms a little cup with four teeth, but soon falls; and the corolla is funnel-shaped, with four spreading lobes at the top of its tube. The stamens are short, attached to the corolla; and the superior ovary ripens to a black, globular berry containing two or four seeds. The bushes are in bloom during June and July.

Three species of Cow Wheat (Melampyrum) are to be found in copses and woods during the summer. They belong to the order Scrophulariaceæ; and, like other allied plants of this group, are partial parasites (See page 349), deriving a portion of their food from the roots of grasses by means of suckers. They have the following features in common:--Leaves opposite. Calyx tubular, with four narrow teeth. Corolla much longer than the calyx, consisting of a very long tube and two lips, the upper lip undivided, with its sides turned back, and the lower with three spreading lobes. A kind of 'palate' also closes the mouth of the tube. The fruit is an ovate capsule, containing from one to four seeds. The three species referred to are:--

1. The Common Cow Wheat (M. pratense).--A smooth, erect plant, from six to eighteen inches high, with spreading, opposite branches; and sessile, narrow leaves, often coarsely toothed at the base. The flowers are pale yellow, over half an inch long, arranged in pairs in the axils of the upper leaves, and all turned towards one side of the stem. The corolla is three or four times the length of the calyx. This plant is very common in moist copses and thickets, and flowers from June to August.

2. The Crested Cow Wheat (M. cristatum).--A widely-distributed plant, found principally in the copses and thickets of the eastern and southern counties. Its stem is from six to twenty inches in height; and the leaves are very narrow, and generally entire except in the case of a few of the upper ones, which are slightly toothed at the base. The flowers are yellow, more or less variegated with purple, about half an inch long, and they closely overlap one another in a dense, four-sided spike over an inch in length. Under each flower is a broad, heart-shaped, strongly-toothed, rose-coloured bract. The plant blooms during July.

3. The Wood or Yellow Cow Wheat (M. sylvaticum), sometimes known as the Small-flowered Cow Wheat. This is a much rarer plant, and seems to be found only in the hilly woods of Scotland and North England. It is very much like the Common Cow Wheat, but its flowers are of a deep yellow colour, less than half an inch long, with entire bracts, and equal, open lips. The corolla is only twice the length of the calyx, and the lanceolate leaves are very seldom toothed.

The same order (Scrophulariaceæ) contains the handsome and favourite Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea), which grows abundantly in most dry woods and shady wastes, flowering from June to August. Its stout, unbranched stem varies from two to six feet in height, a large proportion being the axis of a long one-sided raceme of beautiful, drooping, purple or, occasionally, white flowers. The fruit is an ovate, pointed capsule that splits into two valves and contains many seeds. It is remarkable that this plant does not grow freely on chalk and limestone soils, yet it will often make a sudden appearance in great profusion as we pass over the edge of a calcareous district. The flower is shown on Plate II, Fig. 2.

Of the order Labiatæ we shall note one species only, and that is the pretty Wood Betony (Stachys Betonica), a very common plant in the woods and thickets of the south of Britain. It is a hairy species, with a slender, simple or slightly-branched stem from one to two feet high; and deeply-crenate, oblong leaves. The lower leaves have long stalks, and are heart-shaped at the base; but those of the stem are narrower, sessile or shortly stalked, tapering at the base. The flowers, which bloom from June to August, vary much in colour, ranging from a deep purple or crimson to a rose-pink or (rarely) white; and they form a dense oblong, terminal spike, consisting of whorls of six or more, with a bract at the base of each calyx, and a pair of sessile leaves just below the lowest whorl. The calyx is ribbed, with five very sharp teeth; and the corolla, which is much longer than the sepals, has an erect, oval, upper lip, and a spreading, three-lobed, lower lip. The stamens are in two pairs, immediately under the upper lip; and the fruit consists of four little rounded nuts.

In the dry woods of South Britain we occasionally meet with the Wood Scorpion-grass or Wood Forget-me-not (Myosotis sylvatica), of the order Boraginaceæ. This plant is very much like the favourite Water Forget-me-not, and has equally large flowers, but it is much more hairy. Its stem is erect, without runners; and the blue flowers form a one-sided raceme without bracts. As the flowers expand the stalk lengthens considerably, with the result that the fruits are very distant. Among other features by which we may distinguish between the Wood Forget-me-not and the commoner Water Forget-me-not we may mention that the corolla of the former is flatter; and the calyx, cleft to its base into narrow segments, is very rounded below, and covered with stiff, hooked bristles. The plant flowers from June to August.

We conclude this chapter with the names of four species of Grasses that are partial to wooded districts, and which flower during the summer months. They are the Millet Grass (Milium effusum), the Bearded Wheat (Triticum caninum), the Slender False Brome (Brachypodium sylvaticum), and the Hairy Brome Grass (Bromus asper). The first three of these are represented on pages 148 and 149, and the fourth is shown on Plate II.

WASTES AND WAYSIDES IN SUMMER

It will probably have been noticed that several of the spring flowers of our waysides and waste places continue to bloom into the summer. Descriptions of these will, of course, not be repeated here, but, for the convenience of those who are endeavouring to identify flowers which have been gathered during the summer months, we append a list of the species referred to:

PLANTS OF THE WAYSIDE AND WASTE GROUND THAT BLOOM DURING BOTH SPRING AND SUMMER

Greater Celandine. Shepherd's Purse. Yellow Rocket. Early Winter Cress. Thale Cress. Wild Turnip. Procumbent Pearlwort. Lesser Stitchwort. Mouse-ear Chickweed. Dove's-foot Crane's-bill. Jagged-leaved Crane's-bill. Herb Robert. Black Medick. Bird's-foot. Bush Vetch. Chervil. Mouse-ear Hawkweed. Groundsel. Common Speedwell. Wall Speedwell. Field Speedwell. Gray Field Speedwell. White Dead Nettle. Red Dead Nettle. Cut-leaved Dead Nettle. Yellow Pimpernel. Annual Meadow Grass.

The flowers described in the present chapter are those which do not, as a rule, bloom before the month of June.

Our first example is the Wild Clematis, Traveller's Joy, or Old Man's Beard (Clematis Vitalba), of the order Ranunculaceæ--a climbing shrub, very common in the hedgerows of the south and centre of England, producing a profusion of white, scented flowers during July and August, and rendered even more conspicuous in the autumn and winter by the dense clusters of feathered fruits. Its stem is woody and often very thick at the base; and the annual branches climb over the neighbouring plants, clinging by means of the twisted leafstalks. The leaves are opposite, pinnate, with three or five stalked, ovate or cordate leaflets; and the flowers are in loose, axillary or terminal panicles. The latter have four greenish-white sepals; no petals; numerous stamens; and many one-seeded carpels, each of which, when ripe, is tipped by the persistent style that has become very long and feathered.

The Common Hedge Mustard (Sisymbrium officinale--order Cruciferæ) is a very common roadside plant, with stems and leaves so closely set with hairs that they effectually hold the dust. It bears small, yellow flowers, which appear during June and July; and it may be easily distinguished from allied plants by its long and narrow, downy, tapering pods, which lie close against the stem. Its stem grows from one to two feet high, and is freely branched.

The Felix Weed (S. Sophia) of the same genus is moderately common, grows to about the same height, and bears small, greenish-yellow flowers from June to August. The stem of this plant is only slightly hairy, slender, erect, and branched; and the leaves are divided in a pinnate manner, with long, narrow segments similarly cut. In this genus the sepals are longer than the petals; and the narrow, tapering fruits are constricted between the numerous seeds.

The Dyer's Weed, also known as the Dyer's Rocket and the Yellow Weed (Reseda luteola), is a plant of a habit similar to that of the Wild Mignonette, and belongs to the same order (Resedaceæ), but may be distinguished from the latter by its four sepals and four petals. It owes its popular names to the fact that it was formerly employed for the purpose of dyeing woollen fabrics. This is a common wayside plant, especially in calcareous districts, and often reaches a height of three feet, flowering during July and August.

Passing to the order Caryophyllaceæ, we note the Deptford Pink (Dianthus Armeria)--a downy plant, a foot or more in height, with an erect, slightly-branched stem; and very narrow, opposite leaves, from one to three inches long, joined together at the base, and mostly acute at the tip. The flowers, which bloom in July and August, are rose-coloured with white spots, and are grouped in terminal clusters, with a very narrow, pointed bract below each calyx, usually as long as the calyx itself. This plant is to be found principally on dry banks and on waste ground, but it is not common.

The Red Campion (Lychnis diurna) is common on the banks of wayside ditches, as well as in copses and other moist and shady places. It has a hairy stem, from one to two feet high; hairy, ovate leaves in pairs; and red (rarely white), unisexual flowers which close at night. The male and female flowers are on separate plants. The former have ten stamens; and the latter a superior ovary which ripens to a globular capsule with five teeth that spread horizontally or even curve downwards. In both the calyx is tubular, with five triangular teeth; and the petals have spreading, deeply-notched limbs. The plant flowers during June and July.

Three species of Mallow (order Malvaceæ) are more or less common by waysides and on waste ground. They are all interesting plants, with large, regular, attractive flowers; and stipuled leaves which are palmately lobed and veined. The flowers have five sepals and five petals, the latter being very curiously twisted in the bud. The stamens, five in number, are freely branched, and are also raised on a tubular structure as the flower matures, so that they appear like a large number of stamens with united filaments. The ovary consists of many carpels, with as many styles; and the fruit splits into a number of one-seeded parts arranged radially.

The Common Mallow (Malva sylvestris) is a strong, erect, downy plant, from two to three feet high, with branched stem. The flowers are axillary, large and showy, of a pale purple or a lilac colour, marked with crimson veins; and the fruit is smooth.

The Dwarf Mallow (M. rotundifolia) is about as common, and grows in similar situations, but it is a smaller plant, with prostrate stems from six inches to a foot long. The leaves are cordate or almost round, divided into five or seven shallow, crenate lobes. The flowers are smaller than those of M. sylvestris, being generally less than an inch in diameter, of a pale lilac colour; and the fruit is hairy. Both species flower from June to September.

It is interesting to note that these two flowers, which frequently grow together on the same waste ground, and consequently have to compete with one another in the general struggle for existence, are pollinated in totally different ways, the one (M. sylvestris) by the aid of insects, and the other (M. rotundifolia) probably almost always self-pollinated. In both these flowers the stamens are mounted on the top of a tube as above described; and in both the stamens are crowded round the numerous styles while the flower is yet young, so that insects which visit the flower for nectar can hardly fail to dust themselves with pollen. In M. sylvestris, however, the stamens are mature before the stigmas, and the former droop, thus bringing the anthers below the level of the stigmas, so that the flower could hardly fertilise itself even if anthers and stigmas matured simultaneously. But later the styles bend downwards, thus bringing the stigmas to the position of the withered stamens in order to catch the pollen brought by insects from other flowers. Further, the pollen cells of this species are covered with minute hooks by means of which they attach themselves to the hairy legs of bees.

The anthers and stigmas of M. rotundifolia are both matured together; and the styles lengthen, and bend downwards, causing the stigmas to twine themselves among the numerous stamens in such a manner that the flower can hardly fail to fertilise itself. Further, if we watch the flowers of these two species on a sunny day, we find that insects visit the flowers of M. sylvestris freely, while they are seldom attracted to the smaller and less conspicuous blooms of M. rotundifolia.

The third species referred to is the Musk Mallow (M. moschata), so called from the musky odour given off from all parts of the plant, especially when rubbed or crushed. It is often seen in hedgerows, but is not so common as the other two just described, and seems to be rather partial to gravelly soils. The plant is hairy, of a pale green colour, with an erect stem from two to three feet high. The flowers are large and beautiful, of a rich rose colour, and crowded towards the top of the stem. The fruit is hairy. A white variety is occasionally seen, and this is not uncommonly grown as a garden flower. The time of flowering is July and August.

Some three species of Geranium (order Geraniaceæ) have already been described among the spring wayside flowers, and these were listed at the commencement of the present chapter as continuing to bloom during the summer; but now we have to note other interesting flowers of this and an allied genus as essentially summer bloomers.