KNOTTED mGANOm^.—ScrofjImlaria 



nodosa. 



Class DiDTNAMiA. Order Angiospermia. Nat. Orel. Scrophu- 



LARINE^.— FiG-WOKT TrIBE. 



This is a frequent plant in woods and moist 

 grounds. Tiie dingy greenish-purple flowers 

 appear in June and July, and the leaves are 

 heart-shaped at the base, and taper to a point, 

 being notched like the teeth of a saw. The 

 upper leaves are small, but loAver down the 

 stem they are two or three inches in length. 

 The stem is square, and rises to the height of 

 three or four feet, so that the loose cluster of 

 small flowers is an inconspicuous part of this 

 tall plant. This species is named from its 

 knotted root ; but another species is equally 

 common, and generally found close by rivers 

 and streams. This is the Water Fig-wort, 

 or Water Betony {Scrophidaria aqicatica). The 

 flowers resemble those of the engraving ; but 

 it is a stouter, more compact plant, and the 

 notches and ends of the leaves are rounder. 

 There is one feature, too, which at once dis- 

 tinguishes it : the stem is square, like that of 

 the knotted kind, but its angles, instead of 

 being blunt, have on them a thin green 

 expansion, which renders it what the botanist 



