Part 52

BLUETS.—H. cærulea. ]

The flowers are among those which botanists term “dimorphous.” This word signifies occurring in two forms, and refers to the stamens and pistils, which vary in size, some flowers having a tall pistil and short stamens, others tall stamens and a short pistil. Darwin has proved, not only that one of these flowers can seldom fully fertilize itself, but that usually the blossoms with tall pistils must be fertilized with pollen from the tall stamens, and that the short pistils are only acted upon by the short stamens. With a good magnifier and a needle these two forms can easily be studied. This is one of the many interesting safeguards against close-fertilization.

BLUEBELLS. VIRGINIAN COWSLIP. LUNGWORT. Mertensia Virginica. Borage Family.

One to two feet high. Stem.—Smooth, pale, erect. Leaves.—Oblong, veiny. Flowers.—Blue, pinkish in bud, in raceme-like clusters which are rolled up from the end and straighten as the flowers expand. Calyx.—Five-cleft. Corolla.—Trumpet-shaped, one inch long, spreading. Stamens.—Five. Pistil.—One.

These very lovely blossoms are found in moist places during April and May in parts of New York as well as south and westward. The English naturalist, Mr. Alfred Wallace, seeing them, for the first time, in the vicinity of Cincinnati, writes in the Fortnightly Review: “In a damp river-bottom, the exquisite blue Mertensia Virginica was found. It is called here the ‘Virginian cowslip,’ its drooping porcelain-blue bells being somewhat of the size and form of those of the true cowslip.”

BLUE-EYED MARY. INNOCENCE. Collinsia verna. Figwort Family.

Six to twenty inches high. Stems.—Branching, slender. Leaves.—Opposite, the lower oval, the upper ovate—lance-shaped, clasping by the heart-shaped base. Flowers.—Blue and white, long-stalked, appearing whorled in the axils of the upper leaves. Calyx.—Deeply five-cleft. Corolla.—Deeply two-lipped, the upper lip two-cleft, the lower three-cleft. Stamens.—Four. Pistil.—One.

Unfortunately these dainty flowers are not found farther east than Western New York. From there they spread south and westward, abounding so plentifully in the vicinity of Cincinnati that the moist meadows are blue with their blossoms in spring or early summer.

FORGET-ME-NOT. Myosotis laxa. Borage Family.

Stems.—Slender. Leaves.—Alternate, lance-oblong. Flowers.—Blue, small, growing in a raceme. Calyx.—Five-lobed. Corolla.—Salver-shaped, five-toothed. Stamens.—Five. Pistil.—One.

Along the banks of the stream, and in low wet places, we may look for these exquisite little flowers. This plant is smaller and less luxuriant than the European species, blossoming in early summer.

WILD PHLOX. Phlox divaricata. Polemonium Family.

Nine to eighteen inches high. Stems.—Spreading or ascending. Leaves.—Opposite, oblong or lance-oblong, Flowers.—Pale lilac-purple, in a loose, spreading cluster. Calyx.—With five slender teeth. Corolla.—With a five-parted border, salver-shaped, with a long tube. Stamens.—Five, unequally inserted in the tube of the corolla. Pistil.—One, with a three-lobed style.

We may search for these graceful, delicately tinted flowers in the rocky woods of April and May.

Nearly allied to them is the wild sweet William, P. maculata, the pink-purple blossoms of which are found along the streams and in the rich woods of somewhat southern localities.

The beautiful moss pink, P. subulata, is also a member of this genus. This little evergreen heath-like plant clothes the dry hill-sides with a glowing mantle of purple-pink every spring, Southern New York being probably its most northerly range in our Eastern States. Great masses of these flowers may be seen covering the rocks in the Central Park in May.

The pink or whitish clusters of P. glaberrima are found in the open woods and prairies somewhat westward in July.

ROBIN’S PLANTAIN. BLUE SPRING-DAISY. Erigeron bellidifolius. Composite Family (p. 13).

Stem.—Simple, hairy, producing offsets from the base. Root-leaves.—Somewhat rounded or wedge-shaped. Stem-leaves.—Somewhat oblong, lance-shaped, partly clasping. Flower-heads.—Rather large, on slender flower-stalks, composed of both strap-shaped and tubular flowers, the former (ray-flowers) bluish-purple, the latter (disk-flowers) yellow.

This is one of the earliest members of the Composite family to make its appearance, that great tribe being usually associated with the late summer months. The flower might easily be taken for a purple aster which had mistaken the season, or for a blue daisy, as one of its common names suggests. E. Philadelphicus is a later very similar species with smaller flower-heads.

ONE-FLOWERED CANCER-ROOT. Aphyllon uniflorum. Broom-Rape Family.

Scape.—Slender, fleshy, three to five inches high, one-flowered. Leaves.—None. Flower.—Pale purple, solitary, one inch long, with a delicate fragrance. Calyx.—Five-cleft. Corolla.—Somewhat two-lipped, with two yellow bearded folds in the throat. Stamens.—Four. Pistil.—One.

In April or May the odd pretty flower of the parasitic one-flowered cancer-root is found in the damp woodlands.

VIOLET WOOD SORREL. Oxalis violacea. Geranium Family.

Scape.—Five to nine inches high, several-flowered. Leaves.—Divided into three clover-like leaflets. Flowers.—Violet-colored, clustered on the scape. Calyx.—Of five sepals. Corolla.—Of five petals. Stamens.—Ten. Pistil.—One, with five styles.

This little plant is found in somewhat open or rocky woods, its lovely delicate flower-clusters appearing in May or June. This species is more common southward, while the pink-veined wood sorrel (Pl. XVII.) abounds in the cool woods of the North.

PITCHER-PLANT. SIDE-SADDLE FLOWER. HUNTSMAN’S CUP. Sarracenia purpurea. Pitcher-plant Family.

Scape.—Naked, one-flowered, about one foot high. Leaves.—Pitcher-shaped, broadly winged, hooded. Flower.—Red-purple, large, nodding. Calyx.—Of five colored sepals, with three bractlets at the base. Corolla.—Of five fiddle-shaped petals which are arched over the greenish-yellow style. Stamens.—Numerous. Pistil.—One, with a short style which expands at the summit into a petal-like umbrella-shaped body, with five small hooked stigmas.