8 4 



THE BOOK OF NATURE STUDY 



Indies know so well, are made. The Croton plants and the 

 Castor-oil plant belong to the same order, the Euphorbiaceae. 



In walking by the edge of an oat-field one of the most conspicu- 

 ous plants in the month of June is the Bladder Campion ; its white 

 blossoms stand out strikingly against the yellow Corn. It resembles 

 the White Campion, but differs from it in the swollen bladder-like 

 calyx, and its flowers are open during the day, whilst the White 



Campion (Lychnis vesper- 

 tina) does not open until 

 the evening. 



The Penny cress (Thlaspi 

 arvense) is also a denizen of 

 cornfields. The fruits are 

 massed together in a long 

 raceme, each capsule has a 

 very broad wing, reminding 

 one a little of the garden 

 Honesty. The wing is deeply 

 notched at the top, and there 

 is a minute style in the 

 notch. (See Fig. 39.) 



On clay soils the Corn 

 Buttercup (Ranunculus ar- 

 vensis) is very common in 

 cornfields ; it is also found 

 abundantly on calcareous 

 soils. The special feature 

 of this plant is its fruit, 

 which distinguishes it from 



:orn Buttercup (Ranunculus ar^ensis}. ^ Qther spedes Qf Ramm _ 



culus. The carpels are prickly. The Field Mint (Mentha arvensis) 

 is also troublesome on clay soils. As a rule weeds are not so 

 numerous on clay soils as on many others, owing to the close 

 texture of the soil. In good seasons, that is, when there is a 

 certain amount of rain, so that the clay does not get hard and 

 dry, some crops, especially Beans, Mangolds, and Wheat, do very 

 well. If the season, however, is very dry the plants are in danger 

 of not getting enough water from the subsoil, and then their 



