i'ri>;i'i.i'. ORCHIS 77 



Self-heal is also called All-heal, liiow n-wmi, liruiicl, i'uiiilijc-hces. 

 Herb Carpenter, Proud Carpentei", I aipcnur-ujrass, C ;u|Knur's herb, 

 I-'ly b'lowers. Heart of the I'lartli, I bx.k-hial, Loiulmi llniilcs. Pick 

 Pocket, Pimpernel, Prince's I-'eathcr. 



Brunei is a modification of liriiiic//a, from the Cierman die /iraii/ic, 

 which Gerarde describes as "an infn-niitie anions;' soldiers that lie in 

 camj)e ". 



Self-heal is called " 1 Iran of the I^arlh " because it chietlx' ^rows 

 on thin, poor soils, where the fu-mers j^ixc it the credit of eatino- 

 away all the substance of the soil. Because the corolla is shaped 

 .somethino- like a billhook it was suijjjosed to be (b)- I )octrine of 

 Signatures) a vulnerar). 



It was lormerly applied in cases of ([uinsy. lornurl) it was used 

 in gargles, being aromatic and astringent. 



Essential Specific Ci[.\ra( ri;Ks: — 



255. Prunella vulgaris, L. .Stem erect, leaves ovate, entire, 

 stalked, with 2 acute bracts at the base of the flowers, flowers 

 purple, in whorls of 6, in a terminal spike, caly.x llattenetl, tlentate. 



Purple Orchis (()rchis mascula, L.) 



Like other Orchids this is known only from its modern distribution, 

 which is the North Temperate Zone in burope, N. Africa, and W. 

 Siberia. 



h is found in every county in Great Britain, e.xcept Cdamorgan, 

 S. Lines, Isle of Man, Peel)les. E. Sutherland, as far north as the 

 Shetlands. It grows up to a height of 1500 ft. in the Lake District, 

 and in Ireland and the Channel Islands. 



Ihis fine tall Orchid is a regular woodland species growing in 

 clumps beneath the trees in the deepest shade in woods, copses, and 

 plantations, and is strictly a shade lover like Dog's IVIercury and Lords 

 and Ladies, which grow side by side with it. It ma\- also be found in 

 pastures, but less commonly. The usual meadow Orchid taken for 

 small forms of the Purple Orchid is the Green-winged Orchid {O. 

 Morio). Its occurrence in meadows indicates former woodland. 



Prom a tuberous base the stem rises erect, tall and graceful. The 

 leaves are broad, spotted, oblong, narrowly elliptical, blunt. The stem 

 is naked above and purple. The central vein in the leaves projects 

 sharply below. The bracts are as long as the o\ar\-, ])ur])le, narrowly 

 elliptical, membranous, with twisted tips, nerved. 



The Howers are deep-purple, large, in a loose spike. The lip has 



