

SMALL KNAPWEED. 



sj^Centattrea nigra. Nat. Ord., Composite. 



|^-y IIILE the small knapweed has 

 not the showy attractiveness of 

 the greater knapweed, or Cen- 

 taureaScadiosa(a, plant we also in- 

 clude in our series) ,it is one of our 

 most familiar wild flowers, and 

 must certainly not be overlooked 

 by us. It thrives excellently in 

 pastures, and its crimson heads 

 of blossom may be seen spring- 

 ing from the midst of the sur- 

 rounding verdure on almost every 

 hedge -bank. The plant is a 

 perennial, and may be found in 

 flower from early in June until 

 well in September. It has much 

 of the general appearance of the thistle, but the formid- 

 able spines so characteristic of the thistles are absent. 

 Though its crimson heads attract us as they spring up in 

 the meadows, the farmer is conscious of an altogether 

 different feeling, for the small knapweed is a harsh and 

 wiry plant as all who have ever tried to gather a piece 

 can bear us full witness and it is seldom touched by 

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