THE POPPY FAMILY. 



197 



sprays from which these dainty flowers nod enchantingly. Strongly sugges- 

 tive they are of the fumitory group and their beauty is also enhanced by a 

 spreading background of fine lace-like foliage. The punctured ones that 

 occur among the blossoms are those in which ruthless bumblebees have 

 made for themselves a more convenient opening to reach the nectar than 

 the mysterious one which nature has provided. 



C. fidvidum, pale corydalis, is rather a low and spreading plant. Its 

 yellow flowers which grow in racemes are small and have short, rounded 

 spurs. The capsules they bear droop, and the seeds are finely wrinkled. 

 In rocky woods the finely dissected leaves call us closely to the plant where 

 long it holds the attention through its delicate charm. 



C. micrantJium, small-flowered corydalis, is another one which grows in 

 well shaded woods ; those not further northward than North Carolina, 

 \'ery like it is to the pale corydalis, but distinguished by its ascending pods 

 and shiny smooth seeds. In its home in the far south it blooms as early 

 as February. 



BLOODROOT. RED INDIAN PAINT. 



Sangia'?idria Caiiadcnsis. 



FAMILY COLOUR ODOUR RANGE TIME OF BLOOM 



Poppy. Wkiie, or pinkish. Disagreeable. Florida northivard. April. .May. 



Flowers: usually solitary, terminal at the end of a naked scape wliich is en- 

 wrapped at the base by a membraneous sheath. Sepals : two; falling early. Petals : 

 eight to twelve; oblong or spatulate; arranged in two or three row^s. Stamens: 

 numerous. Leaf: one from the base, long petioled; reniform, or ori)icular; 

 broadly cordate and palmately five to nine lobed, they being cleft or crenate. 

 Rootstock: horizontal and as the stalks containing a blood-red juice. 



This white wilding with its centre of gold breathes out so freely a greeting 

 to the early spring that it seems not to be especially petted by dame 

 Nature, in spite of its fragility. Very bravely it shows a bold front to the 

 weather. Neither has it been ruthlessly thrust on the world. Its protection 

 is found in the way the young leaf is wrapped about the tender blossom 

 which does not unfold and allow its stalk to stretch upward until after it 

 has gained some confidence in its strength. And then almost as soon as it 

 has fully blown, it perishes. One must be out with the early birds to catcli 

 a glimpse of it as the warm sun blows it open and before its sepals 

 have been carried away by a lively wind. It lives, it would seem, 

 only long enough to perish. To the Indians the plant was known as the 

 "red puccoon." They used its highly coloured juice in wartimes to paint 

 their faces and also to dye many materials for their baskets. In medicine it 

 is still employed domestically as an e.xpectorant. It grows in rich woods 

 often on hillsides, — a most lovely wild flower. Those who carry it away 

 find that it is easy to transplant and does well in cultivation. 



