

THE FORESTRY GUY 



289 



Bugloss buds are of a pink color, but the small, scent- 

 less flowers, when they open, are of a brilliant blue. They 

 are thickly arranged on one side of the stem, which latter 

 is hairy and ornamented with minute, dark-colored specks. 

 The five-lobed corolla is of a conical form, and from it 

 protrude the red, exerted, five unequal stamens. More- 



GOLDEN-KNEE IN FLOWER 



Fig. 6. — We have here a typical flower of the month of May, known as the 

 Golden-Knee {Chrysogonum virginianum), a representative of the great Compo- 

 site family {Composite) . It is found only from southern Pennsylvania to Florida, 

 and this is probably the first published photograph of it, the specimen having 

 been collected at Great Falls, Maryland. Gray's specimen was found at "High 

 Island at the Falls of the Potomac." It is a low-growing plant, rarely attaining 

 a height of a foot and a half, generally less. It is a very striking flower in the 

 woods on account of its brilliant orange, five-petalled involucre, which is silky 

 and fluted. 



over, we may note by the aid of our hand-lens that there 

 are but two styles and one pistil, while the calyx is five 

 parted. The lanceolate leaves are alternate, hairy, and 

 of a rather light green. Bugloss may grow to be over two 

 feet in height — indeed, I have seen some plants fully a 

 yard high. Gray describes the plant as a "rough bristly 

 biennial," the "nutlets roughened or wrinkled, fixed by a 

 flat base." The fertilization of this plant is an interesting 

 story, but too long to recite here; it may be said, however, 

 that, through its evolution, Bugloss has entirely lost the 

 power of fertilizing itself. 



Coining back to the CompositcB for a moment, it is 

 quite surprising how our descriptive botanists will some- 

 times omit a plant, which in some localities is more than 

 abundant. A good example of this is seen in our Golden- 

 KJnee {Chrysogonum virginianum) , which has been over- 

 looked in all the books on flowers at hand, save in Gray's 



last Manual. Why it should be called Golden-Knee is 

 hard to say; and, as a matter of fact, the term is a mere 

 translation of the two Greek words composing its generic 

 name. In early May it is a very common flower along 

 the Potomac river, in Virginia as well as in Maryland and 

 in some sections of the District of Columbia. Even Gray 

 cites it as occurring on "High Island at the Falls of the 

 Potomac" (p. 826), but here he especially refers to a 

 variety of it named by him C. v. dentatmn. This variety is 

 said to have acute leaves that are of a deltoid-ovate form, 

 and coarsely toothed along their margins. As a rule the 

 leaves are as we see them in Figure 6, — that is, ovate for 

 the most part, and very rarely cordate. One cannot miss 

 recognizing this beautiful plant when it is in flower in the 

 woods; its brilliant yellow blossoms and hairy stems will 

 go a long ways towards this; and when we note the long 

 peduncles to the flowers, and the long-petioled leaves — 

 the petioles being hairy as in the case of the stems — we 

 may be pretty certain that a Golden-I<jiee is the plant 

 before us. As with so many other Composite, the true 

 flowers, of which there are a great many, make up the 

 center of the blossom, the five yellow rays (not petals) 

 being pistillate and fertile. This perennial herb presents 

 not a few other diagnostic characters; but, in view of 

 what has just been given, it will not be necessary to enu- 

 merate them at this time. Chrysogonum rarely attains a 

 height to exceed fourteen or fifteen inches, the average 

 plant being about a foot high. 



THE FORESTRY GUY 



By Arthur Chapman 



A knightly figure amid the green, 



In khaki instead of mail, 

 A face of bronze, eyes quick and keen — 



Swift hoofbeats on the trail ; 

 A home in the saddle through summer days, 



A bed 'neath the evening sky ; 

 Who is it that travels the silent ways? 



He's only a forestry guy. 



A camp on the heights, where snowbanks gleam; 



A pack-horse that's grazing near; 

 No sound save the soimd of the mountain stream — 



The town sends no echo here ; 

 A figure bathed in the sunset's fires; 



Who dwells on these peaks so high? 

 Who travels amid these granite spires? 



He's only a forestry guy. 



A tendril of smoke in the valley wide, 



A flame that is fanned by the breeze; 

 A break-neck dash down the mountain side 



And a fight for the living trees ; 

 A fight that is won, though the price is dear; 



There are scars ere the red flames die ; 

 Who is it that dices with death each year? 



He's only a forestry guy. 



— From the April edition oj " The Teepee Book. 



