372 THE STORY OF PLANT LIFE 



flowers from June to August, and is a herbaceous 

 perennial. 



The honey is half-concealed in the honey-gland in 

 a ring at the base of the stamens. The anthers and 

 stigma ripen together. As the anthers open outwards 

 the flowers may avoid self-pollination, and, being 

 fairly conspicuous, be cross-pollinated by the insect- 

 visitors, which are chiefly flies. 



The achenes when ripe fall in the water. 



There are few vernacular names, as De'il's Spoons, 

 Great Thrumwort. 



This is a plant which might well be cultivated as 

 an ornamental garden flower for the lake garden. 



Alisma Plantago-aquatica. — In the illustration 

 {Fig. T03) the aquatic habitat is depicted, and the leaves, 

 which are lance-shaped, are half submerged, as is also 

 the long pyramidal panicle. 



Arrow- Head {Sagittaria sagittifolia). 



The scientific names of the Arrow-head are together 

 pleonastic, as both together refer to the same thing, 

 the shape of the leaves — as indicated by the English 

 name. This nomenclature is not so bad as the 

 modern system of bird nomenclature, where the same 

 name recurs three times (in trinomials) with some- 

 times, however, onomatopaeic significance. 



Like the last plant described the Arrow-head is 

 more or less universal in the British Isles in the 

 lowlands where aquatic vegetation is most extensive. 



