The Hairy St. John's Wort 



the individual flowers of a St, John's Wort are 

 remarkable in that, to a large extent, their beauty 

 lies in their stamens. The first thing that strikes 

 one about them is the large number of golden spikes, 

 each tipped with a golden knob, that form so great 

 a part of each flower and are so lovely a feature. 

 They make aU the greater show because they are 

 not all the same length and are gathered into bunches. 

 In some species they are in five bunches, in some 

 they are in three, as in the plant illustrated. Every- 

 one is familiar with the Large-flowered H5^ericum 

 {H. calycinum) of our gardens, and with the charm 

 that lies in its multitude of graceful golden stamens. 

 These are the attracting force in a St. John's Wort ; 

 the plant says unmistakably to the insect world, 

 " Though I do not provide any honey for you yet 

 here is abundance of pollen for your food." And 

 the insects respond by visiting in large numbers ; 

 over forty different kinds have been counted by 

 one observer. The little they eat of that abundance 



is as nothing to that which they carry away on 



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