FIELDBOOK OF ILLINOIS WILD FLOWERS 



on a waste area of sandy soil, we find a little plant with a slender 

 stem, ordinary net-veined leaves, smooth ovary and blue corolla. 

 Each flower has 5 narrow sepals, but the petals are grown to- 

 gether into a labiate and spurred corolla. There are 4 stamens 

 and I pistil. Perhaps if we look about a bit we will notice one 

 or more plants like ours having fruits, for we may need these 

 in the process of identification. 



We begin again with number i in the key, go to 19, 20, 22, 

 23 and 24 as we did before, since as yet the same characteristics 

 belong to this plant as to the other. At 24 we diverge, however, 

 since our second plant has united petals. At 53, to which we 

 have been directed, we choose "Calyx free from the ovary" 

 and go to 54, which, because the corolla is conspicuously irregu- 

 lar, sends us to 65. Here the smooth ovary determines that we 

 must go to 66, and now we must turn to the fruits. These are 

 not reflexed on the stem, consequently we pass to 67, and because 

 we have already seen that our flower is neither heart shaped nor 

 2-spurred, we go to 68. Here the many seeds in the capsule 

 settle the question: our plant is in the Figwort family. 



Now when we turn to page 299 as provided, we find that 

 this large family contains several genera for which a key had 

 to be provided also. In this Key to Genera will be found the 

 Latin or Greek names only. Using this key exactly like the first, 

 the genus to which our plant belongs will soon be discovered, 

 and after that there will be only one or two full-length descrip- 

 tions to choose from to establish the species.* 



Under i in the Key to Genera, we choose between "Herbs" 

 and "Trees," and then going to 2, between "Perfect stamens 2," 

 "Perfect stamens 4," and "Perfect stamens 5." The stamens 

 have anthers and filaments and so are perfect, and since there 

 are 4 of them we proceed to number 3. Here we find "Corolla 

 spurred at the base," and "Corolla not spurred," and since the 

 corolla is spurred it must belong to the genus Linaria. This 

 genus is represented by two species, beginning on page 301, of 

 which the second, or blue toadflax, Linaria canadensis^ page 

 302, is the one that fits this plant. 



*It should be remembered that all the kej'S have been constructed 

 for the particular purpose of running down the plants which this 

 book describes, instead of the families and genera at large. 



27 



