From Blue to Purple 



Sea Lavender; Marsh Rosemary; Canker- 

 root ; Ink-root 



{Limonhim Carolinianiim) Plumbago family 

 {Statice Limonium of Gray) 



Flowers — Very tiny, pale, dull lavender, erect, set along upper side 

 of branches. Calyx 5-toothed, tubular, plaited; corolla of 5 

 petals opposite as many stamens; i pistil with 5 thread-like 

 styles. Scape: i to 2 ft, high, slender, leafless, much branched 

 above. Leaves: All from thick, fleshy rootstock, narrov^ly 

 oblong, tapering into margined petioles, thick, the edges 

 slightly waved, not toothed; midrib prominent. 



Preferred Habitat — Salt meadows and marshes. 



Flowering Season — ^J uly — October. 



Disttibution — Atlantic coast from Labrador to Florida, westward 

 along the Gulf to Texas; also in Europe. 



Seen in masses, from a little distance, this tiny flower looks 

 like blue-gray mist blown in over the meadows from sea, and on 

 closer view each plant suggests sea-spray itself. Thrifty house- 

 wives along the coast dry it for winter bouquets, partly for orna- 

 ment and partly because there is an old wives' tradition that it 

 keeps away moths. Statice, from the Greek verb to stop, hence 

 an astringent, was the generic name formerly applied to the 

 plants, with whose roots these same old women believed they 

 cured canker sores. 



Fringed Gentian 



[Gentiana crinita) Gentian family 



Flowers — Deep, bright blue, rarely white, several or many, about 

 2 in. high, stiffly erect, and solitary at ends of very long foot- 

 stalk. Calyx of 4 unequal, acutely pointed lobes. Corolla 

 funnel form, its four lobes spreading, rounded, fringed 

 around ends, but scarcely on sides. Four stamens inserted 

 on corolla tube ; i pistil with 2 stigmas. Stem : i to 3 ft. 

 high, usually branched, leafy. Leaves : Opposite, upper 

 ones acute at tip, broadening to heart-shaped base, seated 

 on stem. Fruit: A spindle-shaped, 2-valved capsule, con- 

 taining numerous scaly, hairy seeds. 



Preferred Habitat — Low, moist meadows and woods. 



Flowering Season — September — November. 



Distribution — Quebec, southward to Georgia, and westward be- 

 yond the Mississippi. 



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