RED 



plant is worthy of cultivation and is easily transplanted, as the 

 fleshy roots when broken in pieces form new plants. Oddly 

 enough, at the Centennial Exhibition much attention was at- 

 tracted by a "bed of these beautiful plants which were brought 

 from Holland. Truly, flowers, like prophets, are not without 

 honor save in their own country. 



OSWEGO TEA. BEE BALM. 



Monarda didyma. Mint Family. 



Stem. Square ; erect ; about two feet high. Leaves. Opposite ; ovate, 

 pointed; aromatic; those near the flowers tinged with red. Flowers.- 

 Bright red; clustered in a close round head. Calyx. Reddish; five- 

 toothed. Corolla. Elongated; tubular; two-lipped. Stamens. Two; 

 elongated; protruding. Pistil. One, with a two-lobed style ; protruding. 



We have so few red flowers that when one flashes suddenly 

 upon us it gives us a pleasant thrill of wonder and surprise. 

 The red flowers know so well how to enhance their beauty by 

 seeking an appropriate setting. They select the rich green back- 

 grounds only found in moist, shady places, and are peculiarly 

 charming when associated with a lonely marsh or a mountain- 

 brook. The bee balm especially haunts these cool nooks, and 

 its rounded flower-clusters touch with warmth the shadows of 

 the damp woods of midsummer. The Indians named the flower 

 O-gee-chee flaming flower, and are said to have made a tea- 

 like decoction from the blossoms. 



HOUND'S TONGUE. 



Cyntgtossum officinale. Borage Family. 



Stem. Clothed with soft hairs. Leaves. Alternate; hairy; the upper 

 ones lance-shaped ; clasping somewhat by a rounded or heart-shaped base. 

 Flowers. Purplish-red ; growing in a curved raceme-like cluster which 

 straightens as the blossoms expand. Calyx. Five-parted. Corolla. 

 Funnel-form; five-lobed. Stamens. Five. Pistil. One. Fruit. A 

 large nutlet roughened with barbed or hooked prickles. 



This coarse plant, whose disagreeable odor strongly suggests 

 mice, is not only a troublesome weed in pasture-land but a 



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