200 WILD FLOWER FAMILIES 
_ Woop Betony. One of the most interesting 
members of the Figwort family is the Wood 
Betony, Pedicularis, Louse-wort, or Beefsteak 
Plant, as it is variously known. This is a low- 
growing plant, generally found in rather dry 
fields, with its blossoms in compact heads which 
come into flower late in spring or early in summer. 
The corollas are bent to one side at the outer end 
and so arranged in spirals that when a bumble- 
bee alights upon the lowest flower it can easily 
and rapidly visit all the others. The structure 
of the flower renders cross-pollination by such 
visitors almost certain. 
‘“Farmers once believed that after their sheep 
fed on the foliage of this group of plants,” writes 
Neltje Blanchan, “a skin disease produced by a 
certain tiny louse (Pediculus) would attack them 
—hence our innocent Betony’s repellant name of 
Louse-wort.” 
Butter-anp-Eces. From the middle of July 
until frost the yellow blossoms of the Butter-and- 
Eggs are much in evidence by roadsides and in 
waste places. Although this plant, which is also 
known as Toadflax, is an importation from abroad, 
it has become very widely distributed in America. 
Its yellow flowers and light green foliage are a 
welcome addition to Nature’s summer decora- 
tions, while the nectar that it holds in the spur 
below the blossom is eagerly sought by bumble- 
