Daisies and Thistles 187 
yellow rays, except that instead of there being but 
one series of rays as in the Daisy there are several 
in Coltsfoot. The arms of the style do not separate 
in this species, but form a rough-headed brush to 
sweep out the pollen. The seed is crowned with a 
number of long slender white hairs (pappus), which 
act as a parachute to float it away from the parent 
plant. Although so beautifully soft to the touch 
and in appearance, if the individual pappus-hair is 
examined with a lens it will be found to be rough, 
with many teeth along its edges. The cobwebby 
leaves, almost a foot across, make their appearance 
after the flowers have passed. Large as these are, 
they are but small by comparison with those of the 
Butterbur, which are often a yard across. This plant, 
which affects wetter situations than Coltsfoot, instead 
of sending up its flower-heads singly, has them all 
attached to a stout leafy stem. These differ in 
different plants, one producing flower-heads that are 
mainly made up of stamen-bearing florets, another 
consisting of heads that are composed almost entirely 
of pistillate florets. The staminate heads, however, 
bear a few pistils, and the pistillate a few stamens. 
The flowers in this species are flesh-coloured or pale- 
purple. 
The Ragworts (Senecio) comprise nine native 
species, of which several are quite rare. Two of the 
commonest will serve our purpose just now. The 
Common Ragwort, or St. James’ - wort (Senecio 
jacobeea), grows abundantly in pastures and by 
country roads, its corymbs of showy golden heads 
making it very conspicuous. Its leaves are beautiful 
in form—cut pinnately into lobes, and these more or 
