THE FLOWERS OF THE WOODLANDS 



lOI 



WILD STRAWBERRY 



The Wild Strawberry {Urai^aria vesca) 

 will be found in flower from May to July, 

 and will be readih' recognised from its 

 similarity to the cultivated kinds, but 

 possibly, as was pointed out in the chapter 

 on Wayside Flowers, the Barren 

 Strawberry {Potentilla fragariast- 

 rnm) may be mistaken for it. On 

 examining the fruits of the two 

 plants, the difference will be 

 readily seen, for in the Potentilla 

 the fruit is heavy and dry and 

 very uninviting. In the Straw- 

 berry it is red and luscious ; and 

 the difference will be noticed in 

 even the early stages of fruiting. 

 The leaves are dark green in colour 

 and divided into three leaflets, 

 more or less covered with soft, 

 silky hairs. The plant sends out 

 runners from the rootstock, which 

 creep along the ground, and these 

 at intervals take root, forming at 

 each joint a new, young plant, so 

 that the Strawberry has discovered 

 a way of increasing its own species, 

 apart from its attractive fruit. As 

 to the name, there is some doubt 

 as to wh}' it was adopted. The 

 old spelling was Streowberry, and 

 a local name was Stray berry. It 

 seems likely that both of these 

 have come from the runners being 

 strewn on the ground, enabling the 

 plant to stray from home. 



THE WOOD SPURGE 



The Wood Spurge {Euphorbia 

 amygdaloides) is a curious-looking ]:»lant, 

 very commonly found in the South of Eng- 

 land, but not so frequently in the Midlands, 

 and still rarer in the North. It belongs 

 to a family of plants some of which are 

 very poisonous, and a few possess valuable 

 medicinal properties, such as the Castor 

 Oil plant. The stems are generally of 

 a reddish colour, and most of the green 

 flowers sj)ring from the centre of a rosette 

 of leaves, forming an umbel ; a few single 

 flowers' are also to be found up the stem. 

 Each bloom consists of a pair of yellowish- 

 green floral leaves, which are connected 

 so as to form one large, round leaf ; inside 

 will be seen several stamens, and in the 

 centre a female flower, supported on a 



short stalk, and curving downwards ; 

 in reality, each stamen is a single male 

 flower, so that we have here an instance 

 of many single flowers being collected in 

 one head, a sort of co-operative society ; 

 you will notice also some curious crescent- 



WOOD SANICLE. 



shaped glands with rather long points. 

 The milky juice of this ])lant is extremely 

 acid, and has an ulcerating effect on the 

 skin. It is sometimes used to cure warts, 

 but it has to be applied with great caution, 

 and, in fact, had better be left alone. 



FOXGLOVE 



The stately Foxglove {Digitalis pur- 

 purea) is a well-known denizen of the 

 woodland, and a copse where this jilant 

 is growing in masses is a sight worth seeing. 

 Several facts which have already been 

 noticed with regard to other flowers are 

 also to be observed here. The long stem 

 bears a great many blossoms, so that the 

 insect visitors need waste no time in 



