THE FLORA OF THE DAKOTA GROUP. 9 



THE FLORA OF THE DAKOTA GROUP. 



CHARLES H. STERNBERG. 



If the reader will go with me in imagination, we will visit the shores of the 

 great cretaceous ocean that once beat against the carboniferous hills. We have 

 to roll back the centuries, several thousands of them, when Time was not near so 

 grey as now. We walk along the boundless sea whose western boundaries no 

 scientist has ever traveled. We find the eastern coast-line of this great ocean 

 enters Kansas near the mouth of Cow Creek and taking a northeasterly direction, 

 passes through Dickinson, Cloud, and Washington counties ; and in the same 

 direction through Nebraska, touches Iowa, through Minnesota into British 

 America, and so on to Greenland. Great sand flats are projected above the waves 

 during low water, while here and there, often miles apart, islands lift themselves 

 above the waves. They are covered with luxuriant forests. 



We will visit these islands and study their magnificent flora. We find they 

 closely resemble the trees of our own southern shores. Here the grand Red- 

 wood or Sequoia reaches 300 feet into the air; beside it, the magnificent Catalpa, 

 Protophyllum. Here a grove of elegant Poplars, Popular Elegans, delights the eye; 

 their beautiful leaves waving backward and forward at the slightest breeze. 

 Near by are clumps of Sassafras, Sassafras Mirabile, with leaves that measure a 

 foot across. I am writing as though all these species grew near together, which 

 is not the case, as each island has its own peculiar flora. 



Yonder a stately Menispermites lifts its magnificent head into the air, one of 

 the finest known trees that is now cultivated in our conservatories, on account of 

 its beautiful foliage ; then comes that other grand tree, with numerous species, 

 Ltriodendron, or Tulip tree, with its peculiar anchor shaped leaves. We find 

 also another wonderful tree, with leaves a foot in length. They are thick and 

 leathery, with powerful ribs, the mid-rib being perfoliate, i. e., passing through 

 the leaf near its base ; the margin of the leaf is wavy. This species has no repre- 

 sentative living. The genus and species being both new to science. I discov- 

 ered it in but two localities, one near Fort Harker, the other a few miles from 

 Minneapolis, 100 miles apart; it is called Aspidrophyllum Trilobatum. 



Another beautiful tree that is much sought for now by ornamental gardeners, 

 is the Aralia, or Sweet Gum. Its graceful leaves have from three to five lobes, 

 that are cut down nearly to the mid-rib. One magnificent species, Aralia Sa- 

 porieana, has serrated lobes. 



The Sassafras is the most common of cretaceous plants, represented by 

 numerous species. One, Sassafras -Mudgii, resembles the Sassafras of Ohio. 



On the ground under the trees grow the pretty fern Gleichenia Turriana. 



The Cinnamon and Fig Ficus, are represented by numerous species. 



I discovered a number of figs that were new to science. The Beech, Betula, 

 is also found. 



