May and Early June 



It is not easy to forget the moment 

 when, in the depth of the lonely wood, 

 we become suddenly conscious of a de- 

 licious fragrance, and our eyes fall for the 

 first time upon a carpet of tiny, rounded 

 leaves, and thread - like, forking stems 

 which are hung with the pink sister- 

 blossoms. Another May flower whose first 

 finding is a delight, is the little fringed 

 polygala. Its foliage is so delicate, its 

 pink-purple blossoms so butterfly-like in 

 their beauty. 



The discovery of an orchid is always 

 an occasion. The first to appear is the 

 showy orchis, with its two oblong, shin- 

 ing leaves, and loose spike of purple-pink, 

 white-lipped flowers. 



Not much later is the Indian moccason, 

 or lady's slipper. This plant is to me es- 

 pecially suggestive of the wilder woods. 

 When we find its striped pink pouch 

 swinging from a stout stem between two 

 large veiny leaves, it looks as though it 

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