GERANIUM FAMILY 155 



If you find some flowers which have gone by 

 and which are maturing the long seed pods you 

 will readily see why the plant is called the Crane's- 

 bill, and if you touch some of the seed pods that 

 are brown and ripe you will see an interesting 

 way in which a plant may scatter its seeds. 



HERB ROBERT. The Herb Robert or Red 

 Robin is a species of Wild Geranium which is 

 often found in rocky woods throughout the East- 

 ern States. It is an annual or biennial plant, with 

 flowers much smaller than those of the Wild 

 Geranium, and it is not nearly so attractive as a 

 wild flower as is the more common species. In 

 various parts of the country there are also several 

 other species of Crane's-bills, most of which have 

 rather small blossoms. One of the most interest- 

 ing of these is the Siberian Crane's-bill, which 

 has been introduced from Asia and which is found 

 abundantly in the outskirts of New York City. 



OBSERVATIONS FOR NOTEBOOK 



WILD GERANIUM : 



(A) i. Does the Wild Geranium grow most abun- 

 dantly in the woods or in the fields? 



2. What sort of a root system has it? 



3. How early have you found the blossoms? 



4. How may sepals are there? 



5. How many petals? 



6. How many stamens? 



