Xil? Jfamil^. 



False Hellebore. VeraPi'um viride. 



Indian Poke. 

 Poor Annie. 



Fouud blossoming in June, in wet hollows, and along the borders 

 of upland streams. 



Its simple, erect stalk, growing from 2 to 4 feet high, is very leafy ; 

 it is round, and stout, an inch or more in diameter at the base ; smooth, 

 and green. 



The very large leaf, from 10 to 12 inches long, is broadly oval, 

 tapering at the tip, and deeply pleated on its many parallel ribs ; the 

 surface is finely downy, especially beneath; in color a bright grass 

 green. 



The flower is about three fourths of an inch across ; th'e 6 spread- 

 ing petal-like parts are leaf-like in texture, and of a yellowish-green 

 color. The flowers, growing on very short foot-stems, with a narrow 

 leaf (or bract) to each one, are thickly set in a pyramidal cluster, on 

 the top of the leafy stalk. 



The juice, particularly that of the root, is said to be a strong acrid 

 poison. It is a plant of splendid vigor, and curves ; in early spring, 

 before the twiggery shows any green, it pushes up from the dark earth 

 a large, lush, green bud, charged to the full with the impulse of growth ; 

 later its leafage becomes more or less mingled with that of its neighbors, 

 and so does not receive the recognition it deserves for its striking 

 qualities. 



S86 



