YELLOW AND ORANGE WILD FLOWERS 
patches along streams and in swamps, and flowering 
from May to July. The flower stem resembles the 
leaves, but is larger, and from one side, near the 
middle, it sends out a thick, fleshy, tapering spike, 
which is densely crowded with minute, greenish 
yellow florets. This spike is tender and edible when 
about half developed. The root which has a strong, 
aromatic fragrance, is used by country people: when 
dried or candied, as a remedy for dyspepsia, and as a 
stimulant and tonic for feeble digestion. Calamus 
appears to have been known to the ancient Babylonians, 
and also by the Greeks. It is used in India to some 
extent, and the powdered root is an esteemed insecticide 
in Ceylon and India. It also produces a volatile oil 
that is largely used in perfumery. Calamus. can 
always, be identified by the fragrance emitted by the 
roots, and for edible purposes similar. roots should 
be avoided. The interior of the stalk is sweet: It 
ranges from Nova Scotia to Ontario and Minnesota, 
south to Kansas and the Gulf of Mexico. - Also in 
‘ Europe and Asia. This species: grows from: two 
to six. feet high. a 
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PERFOLIATE BELLWORT. STRAW BELL 
Uvularia perfoliata. Lily Family. 
The inconspicuous, straw-coloured, _ bell-shaped 
flowers of the graceful Bellwort, blossom during May 
and June in rich, moist woods and thickets. The 
slender, pale green stalk grows from six to twenty 
inches high, from a perennial rootstock, and is smooth 
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