COLTSFOO T 



words. Its fairy ball of seeds is one of the most ex- 

 quisite of floral forms, and each seed, equipped with 

 silvery wings, intrusts its fortune to the wind and 

 sails away, east of the sun and west of the moon, in 

 search of a home. Early to bed and early to rise is 

 the family law of the Dandelions. Glowing in the 

 sunlight, at nightfall they vanish; each involucre 

 draws its protecting cover over its own yellow florets. 

 It is one of the sights of the morning to see a field of 

 Dandelions wake up under the rays of bright spring 

 sunshine. They fairly twinkle out, like stars. Wor- 

 shippers of the sun, if it becomes cloudy or dark they 

 close again. 



The struggle of lawn-owners to keep the Dandelion 

 out of their enclosure is pathetic as well as ineffectual. 

 It can only be accomplished by eternal vigilance, and 

 then success is brief. Personally, I would pardon 

 much if only the blossoms would remain open after 

 they are picked. 



The Dandelion gets its name not from the golden 

 blossom but from the foliage. The word is a corrup- 

 tion of the French dent-de-lion (lion's tooth) and refers 

 to the jagged edges of the leaves. 



COLTSFOOT 



Tussildgo far far a 



Named from tussis, cough, for which the plant is a 

 reputed remedy. 



Perennial. Naturalized from Europe. Wet places and 

 along brooks, in New England, New York, and Pennsyl- 

 vania; rare in the Middle West. Rare in northern Ohio. 

 April, May. 



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