54 THE AMERICAN BOTANIST 



'heavy on its roots this March day, but the level branches 

 spreading in tiers from the ground to the summit of what is 

 now a small tree contrast most charmingly with the stiff 

 syringa bushes near by. I think the Indian must have called 

 this the look up tree because the small twigs that bear the 

 flowers and shining pointed leaves all rise from the upper sur- 

 face of the slender boughs. It is the peculiar delicacy of its 

 spray that makes this cornel a joy in winter, the abundant 

 level-top clusters of creamy flowers a delight in June while 

 in late summer the berries — ^blue on white stalks — will vary 

 the color scheme and attract bids of different species. Indeed 

 the fruit seems to be very palatable to "our little brothers." 

 The range of Cormis alfcrnifolia is wide, extending from 

 Canada to Georgia and from the Atlantic Coast through the 

 middle west. — Sarah F. Sanborn, Concord, N. H. [In the 

 region where this magazine is published the only cornel ever 

 seen wild is Corniis stolonifcra. The flowering dogwood, the 

 little bunch berry and the kinnikinik are as unknown as the 

 cocoanut or guava. Whether other species can thrive in this 

 climate can only be discovered by trial and this the editor hopes 

 to make when he next gets to a region in which such things 

 may be obtained. — Ed.] 



The California Thistle. — A certain pestiferous 

 European weed, no less a plant than our old and familiar ac- 

 quaintance, Cardiiiis arvensis has migrated to New Zealand 

 and there, as in other parts of the world, has received a new 

 name and is known as California thistle. Why this well- 

 known European plant should be called Canada thistle in 

 America is something of a mystery but it is no more puzzling 

 than it is to account for its New Zealand name especially as 

 this particular weed has not yet gained a foothold in California. 

 In Europe the plant has many common names most of which 

 allude to its weedy nature. Among those may be mentioned 

 cursed thistle, corn thistle, creeping thistle and hard thistle. 



