Wild Flowers East of the Rockies 107 



CORN COCKLE (Agrostemma githago) (EURO- 

 PEAN). The Corn Cockle is very closely related to 

 the Campions (genus Lychnis) ; in fact it was for- 

 merly classed with them and is now by some authors. 

 It is an annual with an erect and rather downy stem; 

 it branches but slightly, each branch being terminat- 

 td by one or two large handsome magenta flowers 

 with an expanse of one to two inches. The calyx is 

 densely hairy, as are also the lanceolate leaves that 

 grow oppositely on the stem. The stem is swollen 

 at the leaf junctions and is weakened at that point 

 so that it breaks quite readily; this is one of the char- 

 acteristics of most of the members of the pink fam- 

 ily. In Europe, this is often called the Corn Flower; 

 it represents one of the typical plants of the harvest 

 fields. In this country we find it as an escape from 

 gardens or in waste places near grain fields. 



RAGGED ROBIN (Lychnis Flos-cuculi) (EURO- 

 PEAN). This species, which is also known as Mea- 

 dow Lychnis, is noteworthy because of the slashed 

 appearance of its five crimson petals. The flower 

 calyx is deeply ribbed and is of a brownish purple 

 color, as is also the upper part of the flower stem; 

 both are sticky and hairy. The name is, of course, 

 from the ragged appearance of the petals and also from 

 their color which approaches that of the breast of 

 the English Robin Red-breast. It is sometimes found 

 in waste land or moist places where it has escaped 

 from cultivation. 



MULLEIN PINK (L. coronaria) (EUROPEAN) is 



a showy plant with bright crimson petals, five in 

 number; the calyx teeth, or sepals, are twisted. The 

 oblong leaves are seated oppositely upon the stem. 

 The whole plant, stem, leaves and calyx, is quite 

 wooly. It has escaped from gardens and is now local- 

 Ip found from Me. to N. Y. and Mich. 



