THE BIKD'S-FOOT 

 TKEFOIL. 



Lotus cornicidatus. Nat. Ord. , Leguminosce. 



MONGST the many species of tre- 

 foils which adorn our meadows 

 and hedgerows there are few, if 

 any, more strikingly beautiful 

 than the bird's -foot trefoil, the 

 subject of our present illustration. 

 The pure rich yellow of its cluster- 

 ing blossoms, the beautiful curves 

 and proportions of the leaflets 

 composing its foliage, the quaint 

 form assumed by the head of pods, 

 and the general grace and delicacy 

 of the whole, combine to render 

 it one of our most attractive 

 plants : one that the eye always 

 welcomes in the early summer 

 and rests on with pleasure. It is 

 the Lotus cornicnlatits of botanical 

 science. 



The bird's-foot trefoil is ordinarily met with in flower 

 by the middle of May, and may be found until the 

 beginning of October, though it may be considered at 

 its best only in May and June, as later on it is not 



