26 



a.mi«:rka.\ forestry 



C.Whitney — a very good book to have on your botanical 

 bookshelf. When you come across this species, cither in an 

 illustration or in the field — ^it is usually found in July, i,'ro\v- 

 ing on a shady bank or in moist places elsewhere — note its 

 big, oval leaves, sharp-pointed at both ends. Sometimes 

 these leaves are half a foot long by three inches in width, 

 their margins being smooth in outline, and not indented 

 or notched in any 

 manner whatever. 

 The strong mid-rib 

 is always conspic- 

 uously developed, 

 the leaf itself being 

 a beautiful clear 

 green color above 

 and lighter beneath . 

 If you handle one, 

 you will find it is 

 soft to the touch and 

 fine in texture. Oc- 

 casionally you will 

 find the mid-rib 

 pinkish above, and 

 this is sometimes 

 the case with other 

 plants of this group. 

 But we must par- 

 ticularly study the 

 way in which the 

 leaves spring from 

 the main stem. Here 

 in this poke milk- 

 weed, they are in 

 pairs, and as we go 

 up or down the stem , 

 we find each succes- 

 sive pair placed at 

 right angles to the 

 pair above or below 

 it. In one hand- 

 some species of our 

 m i 1 k w e e d s — the 

 four-leaved m i 1 k - 

 weed (A. quadri- 

 folia) — the leaves 

 at the middle of the 

 stalk or stem are 

 arranged in a circle, 

 while above, the 

 leaves are smaller 

 and narrower and 

 arranged only in 

 pairs. The flowers 

 of this species are 

 of a magenta-pink 

 shade and very 

 beautiful. 



Students of this 

 assemblage of plants 

 have paid especial 



PODS OF THE BUTTERFLY WEED MAKING GOOD FOR AXOTHER YEAR 

 Fig. S. — What was said in the legend beneath Figure 4 applies, in large part, to what we see here of 

 the bursting seed-pods of the lovely butterfly-weed {A, ttibcrnsa). In several places the e.xact form in 

 the seeds is well shown here, as well as their arrangement and disposition in the interior of tlie pod. 

 Observe that the latter are supported on tu'ht stems, and in many instances both pods may mature 

 and contain their usual quota of seeds. '1 hese iatierarelightly attached to theirsilken appendages; and 

 I am inclined to believe that some of them at least may be detached before the silk has an opportunity 

 to escape from its prison. An example of this is seen in the open pod facing the front at the upper right 

 hand side of the illustration. We have still much to learn along these lines, and there is beautiful 

 material here for boys and girls to study at home, as well as under their nature instructors in the schools. 



attention to the leaves of the various species, and this is 

 a matter of considerable importance. Leaves of the differ- 

 ent milkweeds vary in the several particulars of size, form, 

 and color; they are also arranged on the stems in divers ways 

 in the case of the several species. As a matter of fact, this 

 variance is so great that the best way to study these vari- 

 ations will be to collect, next summer, as many of the milk- 

 weeds as possible, 

 ( ])rcssing them care- 



fully; you will find 

 that you have a nice 

 lot of material to 

 stiidy during the 

 long winter even- 

 ings of 1917-1918. 

 You should have at 

 hand a copy of the 

 last edition of 

 Gray's New Manual 

 of Botany (illus- 

 trated) ; in it the 

 leaves of most of 

 our milksveeds are 

 briefly described. 

 When collecting 

 these plants, be sure 

 to take home the 

 entire plant, includ- 

 ing the root. This 

 is important in the 

 case of the milk- 

 weeds especially ; 

 for, from one end to 

 the other, the leaves 

 in many species 

 vary in all particu- 

 lars, — that is, with 

 respect to position, 

 number, color, 

 form, structure, and 

 size. 



Many of the 

 species bear scien- 

 tific specific names 

 that invite attention 

 to the leaves, as in 

 the case of ^4 . lanceo- 

 lata, wherein the 

 leaves are some- 

 times almost linear 

 in fonn, or elongo- 

 lanccolatc. Others 

 arc the already 

 nu'iUioiicd four- 

 leaved milkweed 

 (A. qiiadri/olia), the 

 oval-leaved m i 1 k - 

 weed (.4 . ovalijolia) , 

 and so on. 



Mrs. Dana, in 



