THE FLOWER AND THE BEE 



yellow-flowered shrubs under cultivation are the Forsythia, 

 golden currant, and yellow rose. The yellow hue of the wil- 

 lows is due to their anthers, for they have no perianths. 

 Most plants with yellow flowers are herbaceous. When the 

 blossoms are of small size they are usually assembled, like small 

 white flowers, in clusters, as in the mustard, saxifrage, carrot, 

 and thistle families. (Fig. 108.) 



In the pink family, although there are 56 white flowers, there 

 are no indigenous yellow species; and in the aquatic water- 

 plantain family the entire 19 species are white; but, on the 

 other hand, in the St.-John's-wort family there are 22 yellow and 

 2 red flowers, while white fails entirely. Yellow is very com- 

 mon among the primroses and nightshades, but rare among the 

 heaths and gentians. Irregular, or zygomorphic, yellow flowers 

 are much rarer than regular forms, and are most common in 

 the orchis, pea, violet, figwort, and honeysuckle families, which 

 contain a total of 104 species. 



In the aster or thistle family (Composite) there are 262 yel- 

 low flowers and 134 white. Though this is the highest of plant 

 families, the central florets of each head are very small, and 

 the corolla has been very little modified; consequently the 

 primitive yellow has been largely retained. Some large genera, 

 as golden aster (Chrysopsis) and goldenrod (Solidago) with one 

 exception, and groundsel, or Senecio, have all the flowers of this 

 hue. So abundant are many yellow-flowered species in various 

 localities, as the sunflowers, goldenrods, Coreopsis, Spanish 

 needles (Bidens aristosa), gum-plant (Grindelia), crownbeard 

 (Verbemia), marigolds, and dandelions that yellow is more 

 predominant in the floral landscape of North America than any 

 other color. Yellow might well be our national color, and the 

 goldenrod our national flower. It is the most bright and cheer- 

 ful of colors since it reflects the largest amount of light, and it is 



234 



