214 FLOWERS OF FIELD, HILL, AND SWAMP 



8i. Thyme-leaved Speedwell 



VerSnica serpyllifhiia. — Family, Figwort. Color, nearly 

 white or light blue, with dark blue lines. Leaves, egg-shaped, 

 the lower petioled and roundish, the upper narrow and bract- 

 like, lime. May to July. 



Calyx and corolla, 4-parted, the latter wheel-shaped, i lobe 

 larger than the others. Small, often dooryard weeds, grow- 

 ing flat and mat-like upon the ground, with the opposite flower 

 branches standing 3 or 4 inches high. Flowers in loose ra- 

 cemes. Stem creeping at base, smooth. 



82. Beard-tongue 



Penstemon pubescens (fifth stamen). — Family, Figwort. 

 Color, lilac or whitish. Leaves, lance-shaped or broad and 

 egg-shaped. Those below somewhat toothed. Time, summer. 



Corolla, tubular, 2 -lipped. The upper lip 2, the lower 3 

 divided. There are 4 fertile stamens, and the fifth, sterile, 

 with a profusely bearded filament, gives the flower its name. 

 Flowers, large (i inch or more long), crowded in a dense pan- 

 icle. Stem, 2 to 3 feet high. 



A showy plant, in sterile or rocky fields, from Maine to Florida 

 and westward. 



83. Slender Gerardia 



Gerardia tenuifolia. — Family, Figwort. Color, rose-pink. 

 Leaves, very narrow, linear, acute. lime, middle and late 

 summer. 



Calyx, bell -shaped, 5 -toothed. Corolla, ^ inch long, bell- 

 shaped. Stamens, 4. Style, i. 



This pretty flower colors the New Jersey fields with bright 

 crimson in August. It can be seen from the railway cars in great 

 profusion. 



The flowers appear on long, slender, often dark-colored stems. 



