CHAPTER VII 



ELEMENTARY BOTANY, FLOWER CALENDARS, WAYSIDE 

 FLOWERS, POISONOUS PLANTS, WEEDS 



Die Blume, die dein Auge heute sieht, 

 Hat vor Aeonen schon in Gottes Geist gebliiht. 



(The flower thine eye beholdest to-day, 

 Hath in God's spirit bloomed eternally.) 



Angelus Silesius, 1650. 



Flowers are thoughts of the Spirit of God, 



Their love is love of his grace, 

 Their fragrance is breath of divinity. 



Their beauty, the light of his face. 



Let us begin by giving a few simple 

 language lessons to find out what the 

 children know and think about the com- 

 mon plants. We may ask them first to 

 describe and name the chief forms of 

 plants that they know. They will prob- 

 ably group them somewhat as indicated 

 for the higher plants, in the table on the following page. 

 To some of the lower groups their attention will have to 

 be called by common specimens and descriptions. Next 

 we may ask them to write the names of all the plants they 

 know. After the lists are handed in, one of the pupils 

 may be asked to write the following table on the black- 

 board and all the children to copy it into their note- 

 books. 



Fig. 42. Bloodroot 



