74 WILD FLOWERS 



shaped, and with bluntly serrate margins : the stem is 1 to 2 ft. 

 high, with the red-purple flowers mostly gathered in short ter- 

 minal spikes : flowers in late summer and autumn. 



161. Betony. 



162. Hedge- Woundwort. 



162. Hedge-Woundwort, Stachys sylvatica, Dead-nettle 

 family. A common plant of woods and thickets : the tall rank 

 stem has pairs of large, stalked, serrate, 

 heart-shaped leaves, with a peculiar soft, 

 hairy surface: the flowers, which are 

 small and dull purple, occur in little 

 groups in the axils of the upper leaves : 

 the plant has an unpleasant foetid odour, 

 and was formerly used as a salve for 

 cuts. 



163. Early Purple Orchis, Orchis mas- 

 cula, Orchis family. A fairly common 

 and very handsome plant of pastures, 

 flowering in early summer : the stem is 

 1 ft. high, and bears a long loose spike 

 of fine purple flowers, each with a spur 

 and a broad 3-lobed lip, the middle 

 lobe notched in the middle : the leaves 

 are long, fleshy, and spotted. 0. lati- 

 folia, the Marsh Orchis, has a denser 

 spike, of deep purple flowers, the lips of 

 which are only very slightly lobed: it is common on moist 

 pastures, flowering in summer. 



163. Early Purple Orchis. 



