48 THE NATURE-STUDY IDEA 



of them. In every plant society there is one 

 dominant note. It is the individuality of one 

 kind of plant which grov^^s most abundantly or 

 overtops the others. Certain plant-forms come 

 to mind when one thinks of willows, others when 

 he thinks of an apple orchard, still others when he 

 thinks of a beech forest. The farmer may associate 

 " pussly " with cabbages and beets, but not with 

 wheat and oats. He associates cockle with wheat, 

 but not with oats or corn. We all associate 

 dandelions with grassy areas, but not with burdocks 

 or forests. It is impossible to open one's eyes out- 

 of-doors outside the paved streets of cities without 

 seeing a plant society. A lawn is a plant society. 

 It may contain only grass, or it may contain weeds 

 hidden away in the sward. What weeds remain 

 in the lawn? Only those which can withstand 

 the mowing. What are they ? Let a bit of lawn 

 grow as it will for a month and see what there is 

 in it. A swale, a dry hillside, a forest of beech, a 

 forest of oak, a forest of hemlock or pine, a 

 weedy yard, a tangled fence-row, a brook-side, 

 a deep quiet swamp, a lake shore, a railroad, a 

 river bank, a meadow, a pasture, a dusty roadway — 

 each has its characteristic plants. Even in the 

 winter one may find these societies — the tall plants 

 still asserting themselves, others of less aspiring 

 stature, and others snuggling just under the snow. 

 Later, special attributes or forms of plants may 

 be considered — forms of stems, bark, ways of 

 branching, root forms, leaf forms, position and 

 size of leaves with reference to light, flower forms. 



