68 



FLOWERS OI- LAKES, RIVERS, ETC. 



Tlic- anthers opc-n in the snn, closinij^ in wet wcitlier. The plant is 



autochorous, that is to say the achenes are dispersed 1)\- the plant's 



own agency. 1 he achenes or fruit tall immediately around the parent 



stems. 



This graceful plant is a santl-loving plant, growing on sandy soil, 



derived from sandy or silty beds, rarely mixed with clay or marl, chietly 



allu\aum. 



Two species of cluster- 

 cup fungus, or Puccinia, 

 P. pcrsislciis and P. tlia- 

 licti'i, grow on this plant, 

 and it is galled by Ccci- 

 doviyia llialictri. Cater- 

 pillars of the moths, the 

 Setaceous Hebrew char- 

 acter A^ociua c-ni<^rui)i, 

 and Red Sword - grass 

 {Calocainpa vetusta), feed 

 on it. 



The name Tlialictnim 

 is derived from the Greek 

 thallos, a shoot, and was 

 bestowed by 1 )ioscorides. 

 The specific name fiaviim 

 is Latin for yellow. The 

 English name Meadow 

 Rue refers to its rue-like 

 leaves. 



This fine species is 



called False Rhubarb, Fen Rue, Meadow Rue, and Meadow Rhubarb. 



The last name is bestowed because of its laxative properties, so Lyte 



says, and because the roots are yellow, like rhubarb. 



\\ hen used with honey the leaves were said by Plinv to cure ulcers. 



A dye has been made from the roots for dyeing wool, of a yellow colour. 



The shoots have been used by country people in Bucks to boil in ale. 

 Essential Specific Cii.^r.^cters : — 

 2. Thalicti'Hm flavitvi, L. — Leaves radical, alternate, no in\()lucre, 



panicle corymbose, flowers erect, sepals imbricate, 4-5, achenes with 



I pendulous seed, carpels awnless. 



Photo. Dr. So^ierville HnsWiji 



JIk.\do\v Rue (Thidiclniin flaviiiii, L.) 



