98 



FIELD AND WOODLAND PLANTS 



inches long ; and soft, downy, elliptical leaves arranged crosswise 

 in whorls of fovu\ Its fragrant little yellow flowers are in whorled, 

 axillary cymes, each cluster having from six to eight blossoms. 

 The lower flowers have stamens and no pistil, and the upper ones 

 pistil only. The fruits are smooth. The time of flowering is from 

 April to June. 



Composite flowers (Order Compositce) are mostly summer- 

 bloomers, but three at least are 

 very common by waysides in 

 spring. One of these is the 

 Mouse-ear Hawkweed {Hieracium 

 Pilosella), a slender plant with 

 leafy runners, rendered silky in 

 appearance by long, soft hairs. 

 The stem is almost leafless, but 

 there are elhptical-lanceolate, 

 entire, radical leaves covered, 

 especially on the under side, 

 by starhke hairs. The yellow 

 heads are solitary, on stalks 

 varying from two to ten inches 

 long. This species flowers from 

 May to August. 



The second species is the Com- 

 mon Groundsel {Senecio vulgaris), 

 which may be seen in bloom 

 throughout the year. Though so 

 well known, we think it advis- 

 able to call attention to one or 

 two of its characteristic featm-es. 

 The leaves are smooth, deeply cut, 

 toothed, and half clasp the stem. The flower-heads have no ray 

 florets ; and the outer bracts are very short, with black tips. 



From March to April almost all damp places are more or less 

 thickly dotted with the bright yellow flowers of the Colt's-foot 

 {Tussilago Farfara) ; and later, after all the flowers have ceased 

 to bloom, the same places are covered with the large, heart-shaped, 

 angular leaves, four or five inches wide, thickly clothed beneath 

 with a loose, cottony down which is also sparingly scattered over 

 the upper surface. The early flowering stems are rather thick and 

 fleshy, about six inches high, and downy. They bear a number of 



THE Garden Beaked Tausley. 



