PARSLEY FAMILY. Umbelliferse. 



nals. Socrates died by this means. The dark green 

 leaves are deeply dissected and toothed ; the leaf -stems 

 are sheathed at the base, and the dull white flower-clus- 

 ters are slender-branched. The ovate seeds are flat and 

 irregularly ribbed. The stem is also spotted or marked 

 with ruddy color like that of Cicuta. 2-5 feet high. In 

 * waste places, Me. and Vt., south to Del., west to Minn, 

 and Iowa ; also in Cal. Naturalized from Europe. 



The round, slightly silkv hairy stem (es- 

 Sweet Cicely ' o ./ .- j \ 



Osmorrhiza pecially when young) of this familiar per- 

 brevisfylis ennial herb is dull green often much stained 



Dull white with dull madder purple — a brownish pur- 



May-June pjg_ rpj^g compound leaf is cut and toothed 



similar to that of Poison Hemlock ; when young it is distin- 

 guished by its fine-hairiness ; later that characteristic is 

 less evident ; it is mostly three-divided, appears fernlike, 

 deep green, and thin. The lower leaves are large, some- 

 times considerably over a foot long. The stems of the 

 dull white flower-clusters are slender and few, conse- 

 quently there is no appearance of an aggregate flat- 

 topped cluster such as generally distinguishes tne family 

 Uvibelliferce. The flowers are staminate and perfect, 

 the latter maturing the anthers first ; cross-fertilized by 

 many flies and bees. The tiny blossom has five cloven 

 white petals and a very short style, scarcely -^j inch long, 

 which distinguishes it from the next species. 16-34 

 inches high. In moist rich woodlands, from Me., south 

 through the mountains to N. Car., west to Minn, and 

 Neb. The large aromatic roots are anise-flavored and 

 edible, but the similar general appearance of the Poison 

 Hemlock often leads to dangerous if not fatal results. 



This is so similar to the preceding that 

 Os7norrhiza ^y^q differences are not obvious to tlie 

 ongts I casual observer. The leaves and stem ai-e 



either very slightly hairy or smooth. The stjde under 

 the magnifying glass shows a greatly superior length; it 

 is fully yV iJ^ch long or more. The seeds of both species 

 are nearly alike, linear, compressed, and bristly on the 

 ribs. The roots of O. longistylis are more spicy than 

 those of O. brevistylis. Me., south to Ala., and west to 

 the Dakotas, 



314 



