THE AMERICAN BOTANIST 



143 



the staghorn sumac {Rims typhinia laciniata) was found many 

 years ago at York Beach, Me., by J. W. Manning and all the 

 cut-leaved plants seem to have descended from this single spe- 

 cimen. Many different cut-leaved elders are known. One of 

 the latest to be found was discovered by J. H. Ferriss at 

 Starved Rock, 111., about ten years ago. This is a form of the 

 red-berried elder {Smnhiicus racemosa) , but similar forms of 

 the common elder and of the European elder (S. nigra) are 

 known. The familiar ''golden glow" is a sport of Rudbeckia 

 laciniata which originated on the prairie somewhere in the 

 vicinity of Chicago about 1894. It was introduced to the 

 public by Jens Jensen and C. W. Eagan. All of the finds 

 mentioned have considerable commercial value and there are 

 no doubt many quite as desirable waiting for some discerning 

 collector to discover them. 



Grasses as Weeds. — The quack grass (Ag.ropymm 

 repens) probably fills every requirement in the farmer's defini- 

 tion of a weed, but there are three annual species which are 

 fully as annoying to the gardener. These are the foxtail 

 (Setaria), the crab grass {Panicum sangttinale) , and the witch 

 grass (Panicum capillare) . The efihcient way in which these 

 weeds conduct their annual campaign against the cultivated 

 vegetables and flowers seems little short of intelligent. They 

 do not come up early in spring to- be cut down by the watchful 

 gardener in the full swing of his spring enthusiasm for outdoor 

 exercise; instead they wait so long before appearing that the 

 novice may be deceived into thinking that he has vanquished 

 them. But when the summer sun has baked the ground and the 

 moisture has evaporated to the point where cultivated things 

 begin to wilt at noonday, they appear, fresh, green and thrifty. 

 They luxuriate in soil that is almost dust dry and their ability 

 to get along with the minimum amount of moisture goes far 

 toward making them invincible. How they manage to exist 

 is more or less of a mystery. In all probability they have an 



