WILD FLOWERS BLUE AND PURPLE 



our troubled and aching stomachs with Catnip tea. 

 We relished its flavour for it tasted so good. First it 

 was green apples or green grapes then Catnip tea. 

 Again wet feet and snuffles then, more Catnip tea. 

 And ofttimes it was just Catnip tea for the sake of drink- 

 ing it. Grandmother will tell you that it is the safest 

 remedy for quieting little babies when they are in pain. 

 Cats display an exceedingly strong liking for this plant, 

 and will eat it and roll into it almost as easily and 

 naturally as they will take to a bird or a mouse. You 

 can always distinguish a member of the Mint family by 

 its usually four-sided or square stem, and its simple 

 opposite leaves. The pleasing, aromatic odour, 

 peculiar to the Catnip is familiar to most everyone 

 wherever it grows. The large, leafy, hollow, branching 

 stalk is distinctly square and grooved. It rises from 

 two to three feet high, and the downy branches are 

 straight and ascending. The fragrant, short-stemmed, 

 grayish green leaves are generally heart-shaped, with 

 large, sharp-pointed, saw-toothed margins. They are 

 greener above than beneath, and the surface is velvety, 

 and they occur at right angles on the stalk. The dark- 

 spotted, pale purple or nearly white tubular flowers are 

 rather small and inconspicuous. They are gathered 

 in whorled clusters, which are set in short, dense termi- 

 nal spikes. They are strongly two-lipped. The 

 erect upper lip is two-lobed, and the spreading lower 

 lip is three-lobed, with the central lobe largest. The 

 small, hairy, green calyx is five-parted. Catnip is 

 frequently found near dwellings and barns, and along 



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