132 



FIELD AND WOODLAND PLANTS 



ovary that ripens to a capsule with many seeds. No less than 

 four species of the genus [Hypericum) come within the province of 

 the present chapter. They are : — 



1. The Tutsan [H. Androscemum). — An erect, shrubby plant, 

 from one to three feet high, flowering from June to August, common 



in the thickets of most of 

 the western and southern 

 counties of Britain. It has 

 several erect, slightly- 

 flattened stems ; and large, 

 blunt, ovate leaves, two or 

 three inches long, with very 

 small, transparent dots that 

 are easily seen when the 

 leaves are held up to the 

 light. The flowers are 

 yellow, about three-quarters 

 of an inch in diameter, and 

 form a compact, terminal 

 corymb. The sepals are 

 broad, about a third of an 

 inch long ; the petals a little 

 longer, and oblique ; and 

 the stamens are in five sets, 

 connected at the base. 



2. The Large-flowered 

 St. John's-Wort or Rose 

 of Sharon [H. cahjcinum). 

 — A slu-ubby plant, from 

 ten to eighteen inches high, 

 with a creeping, woody 

 stock, flowering from July 

 to September. It is not 

 indigenous, but has been largely introduced into parks and 

 gardens, and now grows wild in many parts. This species may be 

 distinguished from all other members of the genus by its large, 

 yellow flowers, from one and a half to three inches in diameter. 



3. The Common St. John's-Wort {H. perforatum). — A very 

 common plant in woods and thickets, growing from one to two feet 

 high, and flowering from July to September. It has short, under- 

 ground stems, or barren shoots that Ue on the ground and root at 



Thjc Common St. John's Woht. 



