POKEWEED FAMILY 
PHYTOLACCACEZ 
PokeEweEeEp. In little clearings of the woods, 
especially if a recent fire has destroyed other herba- 
ceous plants, one is pretty sure to find the Poke- 
weed or Garget growing in abundance. This is 
probably due to the fact that its seeds are largely 
distributed through the agency of the birds that 
eat the berries, and everyone knows that little 
glades along the borders of woods are favorite 
haunts of many sorts of birds. The plant comes 
into flower rather late in summer, the small white 
blossoms being visited by many sorts of bees and 
flies. The berries gradually mature until in Sep- 
tember they form the conspicuous purple clusters 
with which most children are familiar. Then they 
attract the birds in numbers, giving them a rich 
feast to speed them on their southward way. 
The Pokeweed is the only member of its family 
which is commonly found throughout most of the 
United States. It was formerly called Pigeon- 
berry, probably because the fruit was commonly 
eaten by the wild pigeons which were once so 
abundant throughout the United States. 
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