14 botanical, gazette. [January, 



the Kiag-Dcvil was. It forms a continuous mat of pale 

 o-reen leaves lying flat on the ground and preventing any 

 other form of vegetation from taking root. In June it sends 

 up a scape, or, more properly, an almost leafless, more or 

 less branching stem, bearing a large number of flowers in a 

 panicle, which quickly ripen and permit the achenia to be 

 scattered by the wind. The stems then die and turn brown, 

 but persist in an erect position, the leaves at the base remain- 

 ing green, thickening and multiplying and the plants spread- 

 ing by suckers as well as by seed. This last I proved by 

 securing specimens with two distinct plants attached by the 

 subterranean rhizome. 



Notw 



" * 



disappointed in my attempts to procure good specimens.^ 



the inhabitants well know, the King-Devil sometimes yifc*~o 



two crops of seed. By this is meant that fresh flowering 



stems will occasionally spring up in late summer, apparently 



always from plants that did not fruit early in the season. 



But, as far as my observation went, this was sporadic and 



comparatively rare. In fields infested with the plant it was 



difficult to find such autumnal bloomers, but they occur in 



considerable numbers standing more or less isolated along 



the roadsides and at other places where there is little or no 



vegetation. In this condition they could be found at the 



time I was there, growing very large and thrifty, in all stages 



from early budding to mature fruiting. My undue zeal led 



me to collect a very large number of fine specimens, and 



this is perhaps the place to say that these specimens are for 



free distribution to any that may desire them. 



I made careful inquiries, first, as to the local origin ot this 

 noxious weed ; secondly, as to the date of its first appear- 

 ance ; and thirdly, as to the exact extent of its present dis- 

 tribution. 



To the first of these inquiries I received the almost unan- 

 imous answer that it was first seen on the farm of Mr. John 

 Evans, and that from this point it had spread only in an east- 

 erly or southerly direction, owing to the prevalence at the 

 time it is in fruit of westerly or northerly winds. As to the 

 second inquiry, while I found those who stated that it had 

 been known near this point of origin for fifteen or twenty 

 years, the consensus of opinion seemed to be that it had not 

 been regarded as a pest for more than seven or eight years. 

 This last is certainly true, for had there been any such nox- 

 ious plant in that vicinity in 1879 I should have heard of it. 



