PEATPINK 



Silene caroliniana Walter 



The bright flowers of the peatpink are larger than the blossoms 

 of most of our wild members of the Pink Family, and always at- 

 tract notice among the spring flowers. The plants grow in clumps, 

 and prefer dry, sandy or rocky, usually rather acid soil. The flowers 

 have two sets of stamens, one set maturing before the other. The 

 styles do not mature until the stamens have unloaded their pollen 

 on visiting insects, which transfer it to the older flowers, thus en- 

 suring cross-pollination. The flower stalks are sticky, so that small 

 insects, endeavoring to reach the flowers by crawling up the stem, 

 are trapped. 



This species, termed in some books Silene pennsyhanica, ranges from 

 Georgia to Massachusetts. A closely related species, differing in that 

 the stems and calyx of the flowers are not sticky, grows from Ala- 

 bama to Kentucky and has recently been named by Dr. J. K. Small, 



Silene wherryi. 



The specimen painted was obtained at Washington, District of 

 Columbia. 



PLATE 148 



