1900] Botany. 19 



BOTANY. 

 Manitoba's Wild Flowers. 



There are few countries which can vie with Manitoba in the 

 number of beautiful flowering- plants which from early Spring to 

 late Autumn make her glorious prairies one blaze of magnificent 

 colour. 



At the Conversazione held in the Normal School, Ottawa, on 

 Monday evening, February 6th, was exhibited a beautiful collec- 

 tion of 100 water colour drawings of Manitoban plants, all 

 collected and painted by Mr. Norman Criddle, at Aweme, Mani- 

 toba. This collec:ion w.is very much admired by everyone. The 

 drawings were particularly characterised by their botanical 

 accuracy and the artistic taste with which each species was 

 delineated. The facies of each plant was well shown and the 

 colouring of the flowers was admirable. 



Aweme is situated about twenty miles south-east of Brandon, 

 thirteen miles south of Sewell, and six miles north of Treesbank, 

 among the sand hills, and in the vicinity of a large swamp. 

 Among the paintings were several rare plants, and many others 

 were of interest for their beauty or for their occurrence at the 

 locality where they were found. Perhaps the most admired of all 

 these paintings was a white-flowered form of the truly magnificent 

 Drummond's Thistle [Cmcus Druniniondii), a g-iant species calcu- 

 lated to charm the heart of every Scotchman with its enormous 

 flowers between three and fcmr inches across. There are two 

 forms of this Thistle, one with many heads arranged up a stout 

 stem over two feet high, and an entirely acaulescent form with 

 one large flower lying close to the ground, in the centre of a mat- 

 like rosette of acanthus-like leaves, every prickle of which is 

 tipped with purple. 



The very rare yellow-flowered variety lutescens of Aster ptarmi- 

 coides was well represented. I have had this variety growing 

 vigorously for four years ; the root was collected at Virden, Man., 

 and since the first year after transplanting has borne each year 

 three or four strong stems, the flowers retaining their yellow 

 tinge as well in the East as on its native prairies. A specimen of 



