286 PLANTS GROWING IN DRY SOIL. 



G. cer?iua is perhaps the commonest little orchis that we 

 have. The stem is more twisted and flowered than that of G. 

 gracilis and the low stem leaves are almost linear. The spiral 

 growth of the flowers about the stem is very pretty, and the 

 blossoms are fragrant. It seldom grows over eight inches tall 

 and blossoms in September and October. In low grounds 

 throughout the east and south it is most common. 



BLUE WAX=WEED. CLAMMY CUPHEA. 



Par sons ia petiolaia. 



FAMILY COLOUR ODOUR RANGE TIME OF BLOOM 



Loosestrife. Purplish pink. Scentless. Conn, to Illinois July-October. 



and south-ward. 



Flowers : small ; growing in loose racemes along the branches. Calyx : tu- 

 bular; six-toothed, extending into a spur on the upper side; purplish; sticky. 

 Corolla : of six unequal ovate petals, having short claws. Stametis : about 

 twelve ; irregular ; in two sets. Pistil : one ; stigma, two-lobed. Leaves : op- 

 posite ; lanceolate ; disagreeable to the touch. Sle?n : branching ; reddish ; 

 clammy. 



In the autumn, when we wander through the pastures or by 

 the roadsides, it is the turn of this flower to claim our atten- 

 tion. The petals have a wrinkled look, and the pods, from the 

 position of the seed-bearing part of the ovary, appear to have a 

 little handle. These points, and remembering that it is a loose- 

 strife, serve readily to identify the plant. 



STRIPED GENTIAN. {P/ale CXLFII.) 



GeJitichia villbsa. 



FAMILY COLOUR ODOUR RANGE TIME OF BLOOM 



Gentian. Greenish ivhite, striped Scentless. Southern New Septe7i!ber-Novei>iber. 

 inside ^vith purple. Jersey to Florida. 



Flowers : solitary, or clustered; sessile; axillary along the stem and terminal. 

 Calyx : of unequal linear lobes. Corolla: short ; funnel-form. Leaves : oppo- 

 site ; obovate ; long ; narrowed at the base. Stetn : six to eighteen inches high. 



These tender blossoms, with their silky stripes, are as deli- 

 cate and misty in colouring as many graceful cups of Venetian 

 glass. They grow in dry, shady places, and although they en- 

 tertain royally their insect friends, they are shy of welcoming 

 more mundane mortals. Those that are fortunate enough to 

 find them appreciate them as a rare floral treasure. 



