YELLOW 



good example of nectar-bearing flowers. The lower lobe of 

 the corolla is crested and more deeply colored than the others, 

 thus advising the bee of secreted treasure. The hairy filaments 

 of the stamens are so placed as to protect the nectar from injury 

 by rain. When the blossom has been despoiled and at the 

 same time fertilized, for the nectar -seeking bee has probably 

 deposited some pollen upon its pistil, the color of the corolla 

 changes from a pale to a deep yellow, thus giving warning to 

 the insect-world that further attentions would be useless to 

 both parties. 



Cow WHEAT. 



Melampyrum Americanum. Figwort Family. 



Stem. Low, erect, branching. Leaves. Opposite, lance-shaped. 

 Flowers. Small, greenish-yellow, solitary in the axils of the upper leaves. 

 Calyx. Bell-shaped, four-cleft. Corolla. Two-lipped, upper lip arched, 

 lower three-lobed and spreading at the apex. Stamens. Four. Pistil. 

 One. 



In the open woods, from June until September, we encounter 

 the pale yellow flowers of this rather insignificant little plant. 

 The cow wheat was formerly cultivated by the Dutch as food 

 for cattle. The Spanish name, Trigo de Vaca, would seem to 

 indicate a similar custom in Spain. The generic name, Me- 

 lampyrum, is from the Greek, and signifies black wheat, in refer- 

 ence to the appearance of the seeds of some species when mixed 

 with grain. The flower would not be likely to attract one's 

 attention were it not exceedingly common in some parts of the 

 country, flourishing especially in our more eastern woodlands.. 



MEADOW LILY. WILD YELLOW LILY. 



Lilium Canadense. Lily Family. 



Stem. Two to five feet high. Leaves. Whorled, lance-shaped. Flow- 

 ers. Yellow, spotted with reddish-brown, bell-shaped, two to three inches 

 long. Perianth. Of six recurved sepals, with a nectar-bearing furrow at 

 their base. Stamens. Six, with anthers loaded with brown pollen. Pistil. 

 One, with a three-lobed stigma. 



What does the summer bring which is more enchanting than 

 a sequestered wood-bordered meadow hung with a thousand of 

 these delicate, nodding bells which look as though ready to 



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