i8 



BRITISH FLORA 



ill June, Jill)', and Aiij;iisl. 1 1 is a hcibaceous 

 untuial, 



Oroer V'alf.rianace/e 



Lamb's L-ettuceiVa/erianel/a eriocnrpn, Dcsv.). 

 — The liabilat of (his plant is (ickls, banks, &c. 

 The habit is erect, branched, with slender spread- 

 infj stems. The flowers are small, pale-lilac, in 

 crowded cymes. The fruit is softly downy or 

 smooth, e>j>f-shaped, and is crowned with the 

 larffe, toothed, nearly rejjiilar, truncate, net-veined 

 calyx. The empty cells are distant and slender, 

 and the fertile cell is not corky. The plant is 6 in. 

 to I ft. hifjh, flowering in June and July, and is 

 a herbaceous annual. 



Lamb's Lettuce (X'alerianella carinala, Lois.). 

 — This species may be found as a weed in corn- 

 ficUls, on e^ardcn walls, where ntany similar weeds 

 occur, and on hedjfebanks. The plant is much- 

 branched, and like the Common Lamb's Lettuce 

 ( V. olitoria), except in the following respects. The 

 radical leaves are spoon-shaped, those on the stem 

 oblong'. The flowers are pale-blue, in a dense 

 cyme, forming a head. The bracts have a fringe 

 of hairs. The fruit is flattened from front to 

 back, boat-shaped, oblong, there being two large 

 barren cells, and the fertile cell is not corky (as 

 in V, olitoria\ the cells being nearl)' equal. It is 

 crowned with a nearly straight tooth. The barren 

 and fertile cells are touching, with a deep furrow 

 between. The plant is 2-8 in. in height. It flowers 

 from April to June, and is a herbaceous annual. 



Corn Salad ( ValerianeUa rimosa, Bast. = Auri- 

 cida, D.C). — The habitat of this species is corn- 

 fields and cultivated ground. The habit is as in 

 the next, but it is more slender. The lower leaves 

 are inversely egg-shaped, narrow below, the upper 

 oblong. The bracts are fringed with hairs. The 

 flowers are distant, in a loose cyme, repeatedly 

 forking, pinkish-blue. The fruit is nearly round, 

 swollen, with an erect, membranous, blunt tooth, 

 the calyx forming a crown, the barren cells larger 

 than the fertile, and swollen, with a narrow furrow 

 in front, touching, the fertile cell not corky. The 

 plant is 2-12 in. high. Flowers are to be found 

 in July and August. The plant is herbaceous and 

 annual. 



Corn Salad ( ValerianeUa dentata. Poll.). — This 

 species is found in cornfields, cultivated ground, 

 and on banks. The habit is similar to that of 

 V. oHloria^ branched, but slender. The flowers 

 are flesh-coloured, borne in a loose, spreading 

 cyme or corymb. The fruit is narrowlj- egg- 

 shaped, flat, crowned with the small calyx, which 

 is unequal, 4-toothcd, .-uid flat in front with a space, 

 smooth, the fertile cells not corky, the empty cells 

 smaller, and in a separate portion of the fruit wall 

 produced at each end. The plant is from 2 in. to 

 a foot high. It flowers in June and July, and is 

 a herbaceous annual. 



Order Composite 



Corn Chamomile (Anihemis arvcnsis^ L.). — The 

 habitat of this plant is borders of cultivated fields. 



fields, and waste pl.iees. The habit is erect or 

 prostrate below. The stem is much-branched, 

 downy, finely furrowed. The leaf segments are 

 downy, linear, meeting. The flowerheads are 

 broad, the flower-stalk long, swollen above. The 

 receptacle is conical. The disk has yellow florets, 

 the ray florets white, with .scales with a blunt 

 point, and exceeding the disk florets, which arc 

 flat. The involucral bracts arc blunt, with a 

 membranous border, the inner ones torn. The 

 achenes are smooth, ribbed, blunt. The plant is 

 6-24 in. high. It flowers from June to August, and 

 is a herbaceous annual. 



Wild Chamomile (Matricaria Chawomilla, I,.). 

 — The habitat of this plant is cultivated and waste 

 ground. The habit is similar to that of the last. 

 The plant is .strong-scented, unlike the latter. The 

 branched stem is erect, and the whole plant is 

 smooth. The leaves have twice-divided leaves, 

 with lobes each side of a common stalk. The 

 lobes are linear, narrow, simple or divided. The 

 flowerheads are solitary or in a corymb, on long 

 stalks. The receptacle is conical, lengthening, 

 and hollow. The involucral bracts have no dark 

 border, and are linear. The disk florets are yellow, 

 the disk oblique, the ray florets whiter. The ligule 

 is turned back in fruit. There are no scales be- 

 tween the florets. The fruit is 5-ribbed, on one 

 side, small and gre)', the ribs white and slender. 

 The plant is 12-18 in. in height, flowering in June 

 and July, and is a herbaceous annual. 



Bristly Hawk's-beard (Crepis selosa. Hall., fil.). 

 — This plant is a casual in clover fields and on cul- 

 tivated ground. Tiie habit is erect. The stem is 

 furrowed and angular, the whole plant erect. The 

 lower leaves have the lobes turned back, arranged 

 each side of the common stalk, toothed, the stem 

 leaves arrow-shaped, strap-shaped, clasping, en- 

 tire, or toothed below. The upper part of the 

 flower-stalk and involucral bracts is covered with 

 stiff bristles, slender, not thickened. The buds 

 are erect. The inner slender, rigid, keeled bracts 

 do not enclose the outer fruits. The outer ;ire 

 awl-like. The flowerheads are yellow, bell-shaped. 

 The fruit is slender with a long beak. The plant 

 is 1--; ft. high, and flowers in July and August, 

 being a herbaceous biennial. 



Order Primulace^ 



Blue Pimpernel {Anagallis femina. Hill). — This 

 plant is a casual, and found on cultivated ground, 

 being local. The habit is nearly erect, the leaves 

 egg-shaped, stalkless. The petals arc blue, and 

 have no glandular hairs or rarely so, the corolla 

 being as long as the calyx. The plant is 6-12 in. 

 in height, and is in flower from June to November, 

 being a herbaceous annual. 



Order Convolvulace^- 



Sraall Bindweed {Convolvulus arvensis, L.). — 

 The habitat of this plant is cornfields, hedges, 

 fields, waste places, and cultivated ground gener- 

 ally. The plant is a trailing or climbing plant, 



