WILD FLOWERS yellow and orange 



are two reddish dots. The flowers are gathered on 

 short, hairlike stems, in a long, terminal spike, and 

 open gradually as they ascend the stalk. Long ago, 

 so it is said, sprays of Loosestrife were placed on the 

 yoke of unruly oxen, with the belief that it would 

 quiet and pacify them. This species ranges from 

 Georgia and Arkansas, northward into Canada. 



BUTTERFLY-WEED. PLEURISY-ROOT. 

 WIND-ROOT. ORANGE-ROOT 



Asclepias tuberosa. Milkweed Family. 



I A vivid, penetrating flash of brightest glowing 

 orange suddenly greets us as we cross the grassy fields 

 during July, and we stop immediately to express 

 our admiration for this most stunning and handsome 

 of the Milkweeds. It is always so refreshing and 

 invigorating, that we never seem to tire of its presence. 

 It is a lively bloomer from June to September, and 

 loves the surroundings of dry fields and pastures 

 where it abounds, to the everlasting joy of hosts of 

 butterflies and flying insects that are invariably asso- 

 ciated with it. Surely, it should have been called the 

 Butterflies' Mecca! This magnificent herb has sev- 

 eral medicinal virtues attributed to it. It was held in 

 high esteem by the Indians, who extracted a crude, 

 sugar-like substance from the flowers. Its roots sup- 

 plied their medicine man with material to allay various 

 physical ailments, and their squaws used the young 

 green pods extensively for food, cooking them in a sort 

 of meat stew. The Delaware Indians are said to have 



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