118 THE AMERICAN BOTANIST 



perhaps misapplied, but botanically the word pear is nearer 

 the truth than is berry. 



Those unfamiHar with matters botanical are often 

 puzzled by the apearance of extensive colonies of a plant ;ike 

 the strawberry in appearance but which never bears the familiar 

 fruits. Overlooking the fact that strawbe'-r;.- ilowers are 

 white they have, of course, mistaken the yellov, -flowered 

 species of Potentilla for the more desirable plant. Our com- 

 monest species, Potentilla Canadansis, is frequently known 

 from this circumstance as "barren strawberry," l)ut its more 

 familiar and appropriate names are "cinciuefoil" Jind "Ave 

 Hnj^er." Both allude to the fact that the leaves consist of 

 five leaflets. The name first mentioned is simply the French 

 for five leaves. "Sink-field" is an appellation which could 

 onlv have been made by one unfamiliar with the French. 

 The name of "nmning buttercui)" if of course misapi)lied. 

 thoumii somewhat justified from the appearance of the flowers 

 wliic are mucli like those of buttercups and are not distantly 

 related to such plants. "Star flower" loses any special appli- 

 cation from the fact that most Dicotyletlon flowers are star- 

 sha])ed. or at least |)ossess li\e petals. PotcutUla Moiis/^clicii- 

 sis, a weed of no i)articidar l)eauty. shares the name ot "barren 

 strawberrv" and i> also known as "roui^ii cincjuetoil." l\>lcu- 

 tillo (ir(/i'i!fc(i is well known as "siKery cin(|uetoil." a name 

 that the specific term emphasizes, thouj^h one may not discoxer 

 where the "sih'erv" comes in luitil the plant is turned over. 

 X'iewed from above, the leaves are dark i^reen. "Iloary 

 cin(|uefoir' is less poetic name alhuhni; to tlic sihery under 

 surface of the leaves. An allied species, /'. aiiscrimi, hxrgi^v 

 and coarser in ai)pearancc', is known as "siher weed" and 

 "siher feather" from a similar whitened under siu-face of the 

 leaves. The leaves are also somewhat more (leej)ly cut than 

 is common in the ^enus, in this respect resembling the "tansy" 



