AMERICAN WATERLILY 
Castalia odorata (Dryander) Woodville and Wood 
The lure of ponds and shallow streams never seems more insist- 
ent than when the waterlilies open in the early morning. Thoreau, 
speaking of the Merrimac River, says, “I have passed down the river 
before sunrise on a summer morning, between fields of lilies still shut 
in sleep; and when at length, the flakes of sunlight from over the 
bank fell on the surface of the water, whole fields of white blos- 
soms seemed to flash open before me, as I floated along, like the 
unfolding of a banner, so sensible is this flower to the influence of 
the sun’s rays.” 
Shelley also sings of their rare beauty: 
**** floating waterlilies broad and bright, 
Which lit the oak that overhung the ledge 
With moonlit beams of their own light. 
The fresh fragrance of these beautiful flowers is atttactive not 
only to the flower lover but to the host of insects which visit them. 
The stamens and pistils mature at different times, thus cross-pollina- 
tion is accomplished by the insect visitors. 
The flowets may be pute white, or tinged with pink. The leaves, 
shaded with maroon on the under side, are almost as beautiful as 
the flowers. 
The American waterlily is found from Florida to Louisiana and 
Kansas, and northward to Newfoundland and Manitoba. 
The specimen sketched grew neat Washington, District of Co- 
lumbia. 
PLATE 223 
