124 THE STORY OF PLANT LIFE 



fields, roadsides, hedges, and cultivated ground gene- 

 rally, where it is associated with Charlock, Shepherd's 

 Purse, Poppies, various types of Speedwell amongst 

 the corn, and other agrestal species. 



The habit is that of the twining plant, trailing on 

 the ground, or climbing by some support. The cir- 

 cumnutation or revolution is from right to left, takes 

 two hours and is against the sun. The plant is 

 hairless or downy. The rootstock is slender, creep- 

 ing and largely subterranean, with long roots. The 

 stems are slender, angular, leafy, twining, often pros- 

 trate, numerous, branched and interlacing. The leaves 

 are stalked, arrow-shaped, or spear-shaped, or strap- 

 shaped, entire or wavy, with acute lobes, spreading, 

 or angular. 



The flowers are borne on stalks in the axils, two 

 on each stalk, and are white or pink, and variegated, 

 or pink with white bands on four-angled stalks, bent 

 back in fruit. There are two small, linear bracts, 

 low down on the stalk. In the other species these 

 bracts are much larger. The sepals are unequ 

 small, broad, oblong, blunt. The corolla is i in. in 

 diameter. The style has narrow to linear lobes. 

 The capsule is two-celled, rounded, with a minute 

 point. The stigma is slender. 



The plant is 6-24 in. in height, flowers from June 

 to September, and is a herbaceous perennial. 



The flowers are conspicuous, and open from 7 a.m. 

 to 10 p.m. They are sweet-scented. There is honey 

 at the base of the ovary, and five stamens. The 



