A YEAR IN THE FIELDS 



have escaped from cultivation, as the wild 

 radish, which is troublesome in parts of 

 New England ; the wild carrot, which in- 

 fests the fields in eastern New York ; and 

 live-forever, which thrives and multiplies 

 under the plow and harrow. In my section 

 an annoying weed is abutilon, or velvet-leaf, 

 also called "old maid," which has fallen 

 from the grace of tht garden and followed 

 the plow afield. It will manage to mature 

 its seeds if not allowed to start till mid- 

 summer. 



Of beautiful weeds quite a long list might 

 be made without including any of the so- 

 called wild flowers. A favorite of mine is 

 the little moth mullein that blooms along 

 the highway, and about the fields, and 

 maybe upon the edge of the lawn, from 

 midsummer till frost comes. In winter its 

 slender stalk rises above the snow, bearing 

 its round seed-pods on its pin-like stems, 

 and is pleasing even then. Its flowers are 

 yellow or white, large, wheel-shaped, and 

 are borne vertically with filaments loaded 

 with little tufts of violet wool. The plant 

 has none of the coarse, hairy character of 

 the common mullein. Our coneflower, which 

 one of our poets has called the *' brown- 



154 



