MARSH LAND AND OTHER AQUATIC PLANTS 



615 



IN THE HEART OF A MARYLAND SWAMP 

 It is in the water and dtrep mud of such a place as is here shown that our 

 Broad-leaved Arrow-head flourishes in all its glory; it is associated witli 

 Cat-tails, Monkey-tlowers, Pink Milkweed. Cone-flower, Bind-weed, Com- 

 mon Dodder, and many other marsh and aquatic plants. 



aloiiij- the slugg'ish streams and in standing- water gener- 

 ally, the very alnmdant cow Hly or Yellow Water Lily, of 

 which a cut is likewise given. The specimen shown, 

 however, was collected at Warwick, Virginia, where the 

 plant is very abimdant along the shores of the Potomac 

 River. It grows in dense masses, filling up extensive 

 inlets and marshes connected with the stream ; it is as- 

 sociated with species of arum and other aquatic plants. 

 Chester A. Reed, in his very useful little "Flower-Guide," 

 says of it that it "is not unattractive, and is interesting 

 in its makeup. The leaves are thick, rough, ovate, slit 

 or lobed to the stem, which is long and hollow. The 

 flower is raised above the surface of the water on a long 

 hollow steiu. What appears to be six large green and 

 yellow petals, are in reality sepals ; the real petals are 

 numerous, stamen-like, inserted with the very numerous 

 stamens under the golden-yellow rayed disk that forms 

 the stigma." (P. 66.) Some people call them "frog-lilies" 

 because they flourish best in big ponds with muddy bot- 

 toms. (Xu- English friends have named them "brandy- 

 bottles ;" but for what reason it would be hard to say, 

 as there seems to be nothing in their odor, their general 

 appearance, or in the form of their fruit that would sug- 

 gest such an object as a bottle — especially a brandy bot- 

 tle. The country folk in England say, when they smell 

 this lily they are reminded of the odor of an riiipty 



brandy bottle that originally contained that liquor. 

 Strange notions sortie people have ! In any event, the 

 odor is not a very pleasant one ; but this may be forgiven 

 lor the sake of the memory of the many boating-trips 

 on the ponds which it revives. 



In the yellow pond lily cross-fertilization is effected, 

 as in so many other ])Iants, through the agency of in- 

 sects, they being attracted by the highly colored sepals. 

 .Some small beetles {Donacia), and various species of 

 bees and flies are also attracted to these flowers, and as- 

 sist in the ])erpetuation of the species. Besides A'^. ad- 

 vcna, the one here being described, Gray gives two other 

 forms of the plant, namely /. mlcrophyUa and A^. sagitti- 

 folia, with a c[uestionable hybrid, N. rubrodisca, all be- 

 ing found in the eastern part of the United States. 



In their usual poetic vein, Ellen Miller and Margaret 



THE GREEN SPATHES OF THE ARROW ARUM 

 This very ahuiulant and stately plant flourishes in swamps, ponds, and 

 along the hanks of slow-running rivers all over the eastern part of the 

 United States. Many know it as the Green Arrow Arum iPeltandra 

 virginica)y its dark green, glossy leaves heing of enormous size, the plant 

 itself often attaining a height of upwards of live feet or more. Sometimes 

 they occur in masses of several acres, and are generally rooted in soft, 

 deep mud, some of the shorter plants occasionally growing on the adjacent 

 dry short line; they are then less luxuriant. 



