SAXIFRAGE FAMILY 



Corolla. — Of five delicate white petals, deeply cut. 



Stamens. — Ten; filaments short. 



Pistil. — One; ovary one-celled; styles two. 



Fruit.— Capsule flattish, one-celled, two-valved at the 

 apex, many-seeded. 



Pollinated by bees. 



"At Pentecost which brings 

 The Spring, clothed like a bride, 

 When nestling buds unfold their 



wings, 

 And Bishop's Caps have golden 



rings,— 

 Musing upon many things, 

 I sought the woodlands wide." 



— Longfellow. 



Under a glass the starry 

 blossoms of the Mitella become 

 objects of wonderful beauty; in 

 fact they suggest the 

 delicate crystals of snow. 

 They appear early, but 

 as the flowers are borne 

 in a long raceme the 

 period of bloom extends 

 over nearly a month. 

 Gray gives the Mitella 

 to May, but in north- 

 ern Ohio it is very sure 

 to appear in April. The 

 name Bishop's-Cap refers to the shape of the pods 

 and is simply a translation of the Latin name. Mitella 

 nuda is rare in northern Ohio; its flowers are greenish 

 and the stem leafless; the basal leaves heart-shaped 

 with margins crenate rather than serrate. 



ii6 



Mitella. Mitella diphylla 



