UNE 5, 1895.] 



Garden and Forest. 



223 



spicLiously exposed during; the winter, the female aments 

 being- hidden within scaly buds, and only appearing- with 

 the renewal of growth in spring. In the Arnold Arboretum 

 a Canoe Birch, Betula papyrifera, in its flowering- season in 

 the spring of 1894 produced a female ament two-thirds of 

 the apical portion of which was covered by poorly devel- 

 oped anthers. No other ament was found similarly affected. 

 Dr. Masters refers to androgynous catkins on Alnus fruti- 

 cosa as observed by C. A. Meyer. 



QuERCus iMBRiCARiA. — Our Oaks produce the male flowers 

 in catkins from buds on the twigs of the previous season's 

 growth, and the female flowers in the a.xils of leaves on the 

 new growths in spring. During the flowering season of 

 1894, Professor Sargent found Quercus imbricaria bearing 

 apparently fairly well-developed female flowers among the 

 staminate flowers on male catkins. Of course, these female 

 flowers never developed farther, but fell vv'ith the male cat- 

 kins when the latter had shed pollen and withered. These 

 flowers were found in the Arboretum on a vigorous tree 

 introduced from farther south, as the species is not indige- 

 nous in New England. 



MoRus RUBRA. — The flowers of the Mulberries are pro- 

 duced in catkin-like spikes, the male and female usually 

 described as in separate spikes, often on separate branch- 



Fig. 33. — Some Androgynous Flower 

 Picea Canadensis. 2. Pinus heteroptiylla. 



clusters. 

 3. Be 



etula 



lets or branches of the same tree, or on separate trees. It 

 is not uncommon for both male and female flowers to ap- 

 pear on the sanie spike. This condition has been frequently 

 noticed on the Red Mulberry growing in the Arboretum, 

 also on the introduced Morus alba or White Mulberry. The 

 flowers of both kinds seem well developed, but no observa- 

 tions have been made as to whether such spikes matured 

 fruit, as they may when female flowers predominate. 



The accompanying figures, from drawings by Mr. C. 

 E. Faxon, represent androgynous flowers of Pinus hete- 

 rophylla, from Dr. Mellichamp's specimens, of Picea alba 

 and Betula papyrifera. 



Arnold Arboretum. 



7. G. Jack. 



Two Wild Vegetables of Merit. 



IT is a well-known fact that many of our fruits and vege- 

 tables have been developed froni plants which in their 

 wild state promised little. These wild products, compared 

 with the results of centuries of cultivation, look so unin- 

 viting that we wonder that any attempt to improve them 

 should ever have been made. Naturally, most of our escu- 

 lent plants are of European origin. It may be true 

 that the easten-i hemisphere was favored with a greater 

 variety of food-furnishing plants than the western ; as 



a matter of fact, however, the wild forms found there 

 are in many instances positively inferior to those of the 

 western continent. In many cases, it must be confessed, 

 we are too far behind in the race to make it wise to neglect 

 what our ancestors have gained, and begin with our wild 

 plants where they began with theirs centuries ago. 



Considerable attention has been and is still being given 

 to some of the wild fruits of our country. In fact, we have 

 only to look at the great Black Raspberry and Blackberry 

 fields of New York or the Plum-orchards of the west to see 

 illustrations of fruits which have been ki-iown to cultivation 

 only within comparatively recent years. 



Not much attention seems to have been given to the 

 introduction and improvement of native vegetables, but 

 there are undoubtedly species which are well worthy of 

 trial in our gardens. One of these native plants, which is 

 already gathered from the fields and used to a considerable 

 extent in the west, is the Wild Lettuce or Lettuces, for, 

 probably, more than one species is used indiscriminately. 

 Both Lactuca Canadensis and L. Ludoviciana are comrnon 

 on the plains, but the latter is the more abundant about 

 Lincoli-i. These are gathered and sold in the markets here 

 in very considerable quantities in early spring-time, being 

 chiefly used for greens. They fill an important place for 

 this purpose, for they come in advance 

 of Spinach, and when no other greens are 

 offered in the markets. Whether these 

 Lettuces possess advantages over the 

 Dandelion in cultivation it is not yet pos- 

 sible to say. It seems quite likely, how- 

 ever, that they would better withstand 

 the heat and drought of the summers on 

 the plains. Whether they will take kindly 

 to cultivation, how and when to sow the 

 seed for best results, and other details, 

 must all be learned by trial. It is not 

 likely that either of these species can 

 overtake the cultivated one as a salad- 

 plant, but the leaves are very tender under 

 favorable conditions, though they have a 

 slightly bitter taste. They are sometimes 

 used in combination with potato or other 

 salads, and by some are preferred to ordi- 

 . nary lettuce. Should they withstand the 

 winters in cultivation as well as they do 

 in the wild state, they v^'ould have the ad- 

 vantage of being earlier than ordinary 

 Lettuce grown outside. 



Another plant apparent!}' worthy of 

 attention is the Ground Plum, or Buf- 

 falo Pea of the plains. Astragalus crassi- 

 carpus. This is found abundantly in the draws or low 

 grounds of the unbroken prairie. The plant is a perennial, 

 apparently perfectly hardy and very productive. The fruit 

 resembles gooseberries in size and general appearance. It 

 is borne in numerous clusters very early in the season. 

 It was frequently used by the early settlers when traveling 

 across the plains in wagons in early days, but seems to 

 have largely passed out of use. This could hardly be 

 otherwise, for it is only found in the unbroken prairie. 

 When cooked like string-beans the fruit forms a very ac- 

 ceptable dish. It seems to combine something of the flavor 

 of beans, peas, asparagus and salsify. None of these are 

 very ]5ronounced, however, and it tails in quality rather 

 from a lack of flavor than from any strong or disagreeable 

 taste of its own. Many of our common vegetables, how- 

 ever, have not much in themselves to commend them, and 

 their quality comes rather from the flavor imparted by sub- 

 stances added in their preparation. The fruit requires less 

 time to cook than string-beans, and longer than green peas. 

 If allowed to grow too large the pods soon become tough, 

 and the season, at best, is probably a short one, though it 

 might, through cultivation, reach a larger size before be- 

 coming tough. The chief point which recommends the 

 plant for cultivation is the time at which the fruits are 



papyrifer 



