622 JUNCACE^. 



garden plant, with large broad leaves, which wither away 

 in summer and are succeeded by several light purple, 

 or sometimes white flowers, resembling Crocuses in all 

 respects except that they have 6 instead of 3 stamens. 

 At the time of flowering the seed-vessels are concealed 

 beneath the ground, where they remain until the fol- 

 lowing spring, when they rise above the surface and are 

 ripened. When grown in gardens, the bulbs are often 

 taken up when the leaves have withered, and placed 

 in a window, where they will flower without earth or 

 water. FL September, October. Perennial. 



2. TOFIELDIA (Scottish Asphodel). 



1. T. palustris (Mountain Scottish Asphodel). The 

 only British species. Boggy ground in the north. A 

 small plant, 4 6 inches high, with tufts of narrow, 

 sword-shaped leaves, and egg-shaped, almost stalkless 

 spikes of small, yellowish flowers. FL July, August. 

 Perennial. 



ORD. XC. JUNCACE^E. BUSH TRIBE. 



Calyx and corolla alike, of 6 usually chaffy pieces 

 (sometimes coloured, as in Asphodel) ; stamens 6, inserted 

 into the base of the petals and sepals, or sometimes 3, 

 inserted into the sepals ; anthers turned inwards ; 'ovary 

 superior ; style 1 ; stigmas 3 (in Asphodel 1 ) ; capsule 

 3-valved, usually many-seeded. A tribe of marsh or 

 bog plants, with cylindrical, or flat leaves sometimes 

 filled with pith ; the flowers are usually small, and of a 

 brownish green hue, but in Asphodel they are bright 

 yellow, and the leaves are sword-shaped, like those of 

 the Iris. 



The true Eushes (Juncus) are, for the most part, 

 social plants, and are often of considerable use in fixing 

 the soil of marshes and bogs. The stems of the common 

 species are used for making mats and the wicks of 

 candles. The tall aquatic plant usually called the 



