196 MINT FAMILY 



These are elongated and irregularly cylindrical in shape, 

 and may be eaten raw or cooked. A Chinese species of 

 this genus has long been cultivated for its edible tubers. 



Stachys floridana. Flowers pale purple, barely V2 in. long, 

 whorled, in terminal inflorescence, lower lip larger than 

 upper, 3-lobed. Stamens 4. Stems 6-18 in. tall. Leaves 

 stalked, oblong or broadest near base, about 1 in. long, round- 

 toothed. Sandy soil. Blooming in spring and summer. Fla. 



Sage (Genus Salvia) 



Among the many cross-pollination devices, by means of 

 which flowers burden visiting insects with pollen, sages 

 have a most interesting method. Several species of sage 

 are common in Florida, and this device is easily seen by 

 examining a flower. The two stamen filaments bear anthers 

 like delicate hammers, whose curved handles are swung, 

 each by the middle, over the entrance to the nectar. An 

 insect alights on the platform offered by the lower lip of 

 the corolla, puts his head inside the flower, pushes against 

 the handle of the hammer, and down comes the pollen- 

 loaded head of the hammer on his back, sprinkling the 

 pollen exactly where it will be brought against the stigma 

 of the next flower visited. 



The brilliant S. coccinea follows the season northward 

 from South Florida, where its red flowers begin to bloom in 

 midwinter. It is most abundant near the coast, as is also 

 the bluish purple, S. lyrata, whose leaves are often blotched 

 with darker color. The tall 8. azurea, bluest of our 

 autumn flowers, lingers into early winter. 



Salvia coccinea. Flowers red, about 1 in. long, in terminal 

 inflorescence 4-9 in. long. Stamens 2. Plants 1-2 ft. tall. 

 Leaves stalked, broadest at base, 1-2 in. long, toothed. Sandy 

 soil. Blooming from midwinter to fall. Fla. to S. C. and 

 Texas. 



Salvia azurea. Flowers blue or white, about l^ in. long, 

 lower lip broad, notched. Stems 2-4 ft. tall. Leaves narrow. 



