294 ILLINOIS STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



beneath the rude hands and heavy feet of the white man. He looks upon 

 the land and they melt away. Sometimes, in an unimproved field, they 

 still flourish as of old, but every year I find some species, once common, 

 more difficult to obtain. The parasitic Painted Cup, which was once one 

 of the plentiest of blossoms, is now almost rare. 



The lowlands, and banks of the creeks and rivers, have a somewhat 

 different, but equally fine vegetation. The wild Yam, with its prominent- 

 veined heart-shaped leaves and winged capsules, that do not open to let 

 out the imprisoned winged seeds until almost spring, and the Moonseed, 

 with its roundish peltate leaves and large clusters of fruit with a blue 

 bloom hanging like grapes, are often noted. The fertile vines of the 

 Moonseed are much less common than the sterile ones. Then there is 

 the wild Balsam-apple, which springs up here and there in rich alluvial 

 soils, and starting out on a tour of observation, goes traveling over weeds, 

 bushes, and even trees, until from July to autumn — its season of blossom- 

 ing — great patches are covered with its white bloom. The bees love it, 

 and come thronging from every quarter to these spots. As it comes at a 

 season when bee forage is often scarce, perhaps it might be of some value 

 as a honey plant. Here grows the Virgin's Bower with its plumed clus- 

 ters of seeds, and the Bittersweet with its scarlet fruit. In such localities 

 we shall find the Panicled Dogwood with its white berries and red fruit 

 stems, and the Osier Dogwood with its long red shoots. On these low- 

 lands blooms the unfailing wild Rose in the wildest profusion. I have 

 often seen great pacthes radiant with bloom, and the color varied from 

 deep rose to pure white. In the moist soil, close to water, is found the 

 Meadow-sweet, which puts forth its leaves very early in the spring, and 

 its panicles of tiny white blossoms in June. A little higher up in the 

 sandy banks grows the Nine-Bark, a fine shrub with umbels of white flow- 

 ers which are extremely sensitive. When plucked they usually droop and 

 will not revive though placed in water almost immediately. Here flour- 

 ishes the fine Meadow Lily and the splendid Turk's-cap Lily, though the 

 latter is quite rare. 



In these moist places, the Mints find a congenial home. One of the 

 most beautiful of these, is the False Dragon-head, with its satin-glossed 

 lanceolate leaves, and somewhat bell-shaped purple and rose-tinted flowers 

 in long terminal spikes. Last season I found a plant somewhat resem- 

 bling this in color and general appearance, but both calyx and corolla 

 were very deeply cut ; the leaves were mostly in whorls of three, and 

 more sharply toothed than those of the False Dragon-head. 1 have not 

 found a description of the plant in Gray's or Wood's Botany. 



These lowlands are the place of the Milkweeds. The dark, red- 

 blossomed Swamp Milkweed grows where the soil is quite wet, and the 

 Common and Green Milkweeds where it is drier. I believe all of our 

 Milkweeds prefer lowlands, except the Butterfly-weed, which often grows 

 on the dry uplands. The blue-blossomed Lobelias and the many-colored 

 Figworts are found here. Occassionally one will find the plants of the 

 dioecious Glade Mallow, but it is quite rare. The Pulse family is well re- 

 presented ; Wild Peas, Wild Beans, and Tick-trefoils grow luxuriantly. 



