772 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



golden-rods on the Pacific coast are few in number, less than one tenth 

 of the United States species being represented in California. The most 

 striking composite is the Senecio sccmdenc, L., or German ivy, which in 

 many places has escaped from cultivation and grows rampant in the 

 low grouhds, where it climbs to the tops of medium-sized trees, and 

 embowers them in a perfect profusion of bright-yellow blossoms. A 

 few specimens of a helianthus, probably H. Californicus, D. C, were 

 found, but a dry winter is not favorable for the sunflowers, especially 

 the annual sorts. 



Only one species of the Cucurhitaceoe was in bloom — namely, Me- 

 garrhiza CaUfornica, Torn This was running over the dry soil like 

 an aristocratic cucumber-vine, with its white male flowers in slender 

 racemes, while here and there a forming fruit exhibited its green cov- 

 ering of sharp, stout spines. We were anxious to secure some of the 

 large seeds to illustrate the remarkable manner in which the cotyledons 

 find their way to the surface of the soil in germination, but were un- 

 successful. This " big root," as its generic term indicates, is probably 

 able to obtain more moisture than most other plants growing in similar 

 situations, and which do not strike their roots so deeply into the soil 

 or utilize them as storehouses for accumulated nourishment. This 

 megarrhiza is exceedingly provident, and is, therefore, able to grow 

 where shallow plants succumb to the drought. In the same soil flour- 

 ished the Z,i(pinns rivularis, Doug., and the Californian peony [Pceonia 

 Hreiceri, Doug.). The lupine is a short-stemmed plant, bearing large, 

 palmately compound leaves of seven to ten leaflets, and terminating in 

 a raceme often two feet long, bearing a large number of beautiful 

 purple flowers. The peony is a ternately compound-leaved perennial, 

 with but a few large blossoms, which assert at sight the close alliance 

 of this species with the peonies of the garden. These last three species 

 were objects of rejoicing as the eye wandered over the otherwise almost 

 flowerless tracts in the broad, bowlder-scattered canon. Xot far from 

 the above locality it was a surprise to run upon Nicotiana tahacum, L., 

 our common tobacco, growing wild and in full bloom. These plants 

 had escaped from some Mexican garden, or perhaps the old garden had 

 escaped from the slack and profitless culture of the IMexican. 



The species that seemed the most at home of all the dust-bloomers 

 was the old vervain ( Verbena officinalis, L.) of P]uro])e. This species 

 grows in nearly all parts of the globe, and is very likely naturalized in 

 many countries, including California. From out of the heavy covering 

 of dust which is held by the minute pubescence, the purple corollas are 

 spread along the lengthy spikes. Nearly all of the specimens have the 

 older spikes much swollen and otherwise distorted by infesting insects. 



Phacella is a large genus in California, numbering thirty-five 

 species. A few of these members of the order Jlijdroj^hi/lldrfU' were 

 in bloom, among which the P. ramosissima, Doug., was the most 

 common. It would seem as if earth could not get too dry for this 



