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FIELD AND WOODLAND PLANTJS 



Coming next to the order Cari/ophi/llacecE we have to note two 

 of the Stitchworts or Starworts (Stellaria) — slender plants dis- 

 tinguished by their opposite, pointed leaves ; jointed stems ; and 

 little, white, starhke flowers. They have five sepals ; five petals, 

 deeply divided into two lobes; ten stamens; three styles; and a 

 capsular fruit that splits longitudinally, with many seeds. 



One of these is the 

 Glancous or Marsh Stitch- 

 wort {Stellaria glauca or 

 8. palustris), which is 

 widely distributed though 

 not very common. The 

 whole plant is slender, 

 with a four-angled stem 

 from six to eighteen inches 

 high ; and narrow, sessile, 

 undivided leaves that 

 taper to a point. Its 

 flowers are sohtary on 

 axillary peduncles, from 

 half to three-quarters of 

 an inch in diameter, with 

 petals much longer than 

 the three -veined sepals. 

 They first appear in April, 

 and continue to bloom 

 until August. 



The other is the Bog 

 Stitchwort (S. iiUginosa) 

 — a smooth, slender plant, 

 with a spreading, four- 

 angled stem, and narrow- 

 ovate leaves that terminate in a stiff point. In marshy or boggy 

 ground its stems are straggling, and often near a foot in length ; 

 but on drier soils they are much shorter, and the plant more tufted. 

 The flowers are much smaller — only about a quarter of an inch in 

 diameter, and are arranged in loose, terminal cymes. Their petals 

 are shorter than the sepals, and are very deeply divided into two 

 narrow spreading lobes. This species flowers during May and June. 

 The Rose family {Rosacece) includes the Purple Marsh Cinque- 

 foil or Marsh Potentil {Comarum palustre or Potentilla palustris) — 



The Marsh Potentil. 



