88 A YEAR OF COSTA RICAN NATURAL HISTORY 



from pinkish white through pale or sky-blue to beautiful 

 lavender, and like the more intensely blue salvia often covers 

 the fields with its exquisite color. On the higher parts of its 

 range, as on the Cerro Jocosal, Carrizal and Poas, the blue 

 tends to become darker. 



In rainy weather we often found the railroad track with 

 its banks and ditches the best or indeed the only available 

 path for pedestrians. East of Cartago the line crossed a 

 number of small streams on low iron trestles, and usually 

 a little footpath led down to the water so that we could get 

 into the pastures easily. Boulders and masses of andesite 

 lavas or tuffs are scattered thickly over these potreros on 

 the slopes of Irazu and the superficial likeness to a granite- 

 strewn New England pasture is striking. A second glance 

 shows that the trees along the stream are melastomes, cro- 

 tons and mimosas, highly characteristic tropical American 

 groups, instead of birches and maples, while the boulders 

 are encircled with sensitive plants, wild roses as double 

 as chrysanthemums, or masses of bryophyllum, and the pas- 

 tures are enclosed with living cerclos of poro, their crimson 

 blossoms flaming against the deep blue sky. No, it was not 

 New England, but a far richer land pulsating with life all 

 the year round! 



On the railroad banks many flowers were abundant. 

 Sometimes a pretty little composite {Zexmenia longipes) 

 studded them. Almost always the delicate lavender flowers 

 and halberd-shaped leaves of the "Churristate" {Anoda 

 hastata) could be seen among the stronger milkweeds, agera- 

 tums, lantanas and coarser composites. Here and there 

 we were sure to see the long graceful panicles of Iresine 

 paniculata, one of the Amarantacese. This plant was com- 

 mon not only near Cartago but also at Juan Viiias, in both 

 places growing on roadside or railway banks. 



On November 30, P. made a list of the conspicuous plants 



