166 WILD TLOWEBB OF SUMMEB. 



quality of the hay. On the battle-field of Naseby I 

 first found the Hoary Plantain (Plantago media), 

 whose spike is lighter and brighter coloured than 

 either of its kindred. It is really pretty when the 

 purple anthers hang from its silvery surface, and its 

 scent is not unpleasant. The leaves are without foot- 

 stalks, and hence it lies closer to the ground than even 

 the larger plantains. On old pastures it may easily be 

 found, and its presence on grassplots is not to be de- 

 sired, as it destroys the grass in the neighbourhood of 

 the root. 



In July, on dry chalky pastures, the dull purplish- 

 red flowers of the Salad Burnet (Poterium sanguisorba) 

 mav be found. The flowers grow on a stem some two 

 feet high. The egg-shaped serrated leaflets are nu- 

 merous, and have the taste and scent of cucumber, and 

 are frequently eaten in salads, though the flavour is 

 somewhat hot. When the anthers appear the flower 

 becomes conspicuous, as they are very numerous, and 

 hairy around the head. 



The Great Burnet (Sanguisorla officinalis) is more 

 frequent in the Northern counties in moist meadows. 

 The stem is from one to three feet in height. The 

 dark purple flowers are much crowded on its oval head 



