THE THISTLK FAMILV. 309 



BLUE-STEMMED, OR WOODLAND GOLDEN-ROD. 



FAMILY COLOUR ODOUR RANGE TIME OF BLOOM 



FUnucr-heads : growing in short, roinulcd and axillary clusters or raceme*. In- 

 volucre: with appressed, obtuse scales. Ravs: three t<i five, nuite lart'c Unx^fs- 

 lanceolate, long pointed at the apex and tapering to a margined petiujc at ilic base* 

 or nearly sessile; distantly serrate, yellow-green above, pale bdow. .snumth' 

 iitem : two to three feet high; slender; branched above; leafy; smooth; bluish. 



One of the most graceful of all the golden-rods is the blue-stemmed one 

 of damp, shady woods. Its short clusters or racemes of Mowers hujj closely 

 into the axils, nestling it would seem among the longer leaves. And in lis 

 often reddish purple, or blue-coloured stem we find, it may be remembered, 

 a good guide for its identification. 



S. bicblor, silver-rod, is, among this great genus remarkable for the strong 

 family resemblance of its members, the only one that bears other than yellow 

 flowers. They are silvery white and grow in short, a.xillary clusters, forming 

 a narrow, compact thyrsus. Its lanceolate, or obovate, leaves, long pointed 

 at the apex, taper at the base into margined petioles, or higher on the litem 

 are sessile. Underneath they are quite pubescent, while on the purplish 

 stems these white hairs are also conspicuous. Early in the season the silver- 

 rod first blooms and until the late autumn is a familiar figure, as it stands tall 

 and straight, a guardian of the woods, or shines through the liiickets of 

 road-banks. 



S. pubcriila, downy golden-rod, as well as occurring in sandy, rocky 

 places on the high mountains, follows the coastal plain from Florida and 

 Mississippi northward. Its inflorescence presents a close, long thyrsus, the 

 individual racemes of which are longer than the lanceolate leaves from the 

 axils of which they are produced, and the bracts of the involucres are very 

 acute. There is usually over the plant a minute pubescence. 



SWEET=SCENTED GOLDEN-ROD. BLUE HOUNTAIN TEA. 



Soliddi^o odor a. 



FAMILY COLOUR ODOUR RANGE TIME OF BLOOM 



Tliistle. Yclioiu. Bruised leaves^ Texas, Floriiia anii Kfntucky Juiy-Seftrmbtr, 



anise scented. northward to Xova Scotia. 



FUnver-heads: growing in one-sided, spreading racemes in a tcrmieial panicle. 

 Involucre: with oblong, pointed bracts. Rays: showy, three to four. Lravfs: 

 lanceolate, long pointed at the aj^ex, narrowed and sessile at the base, entire, thin, 

 glabrous, punctate with ])ellucid dots, scented like anise. Stem : two to four feet; 

 simple; slender; the upper part slightly pubescent. 



Although about the flowers of this golden-rod there is nothing very 



