THE AMERICAN BOTANIST. 
27 
appearance of the plot all season was that of a barnyard, 
with a few patches of green scattered about. Neverthe- 
less, the green was there and its character was very 
interesting. 
Naturally, mat plants predominated as soil cover, 
the most prevalent one being white clover. This covered 
probably one-tenth of the whole area, and its presence in 
the manure is hard to explain. White clover is not cut 
for hay and is not commonly a pasture plant in regions 
from which cattle are shipped. Red clover was present, 
but not in any quantity. The other plants of the rosette 
form, or approaching it, were mullein, catmint, teasel, 
evening primrose, sweet-clover and plantain. Among 
these were several surprises. Mullein, a biennial, was 
found flowering, four plants, and many of the first year 
form. There was also one plant in flower of the bull 
thistle. These were a puzzle until pulled up. It was then 
evident that the plants came in the manure; and this 
explains the number of species of annuals common to the 
Joliet-Chicago regions found the first season. The manure 
must have been taken from a pile which had been undis- 
turbed for at least one season. 
Another surprise was the scarcity of sweet-clover. 
This is the most prevalent weed of the region. It lines all 
roadsides and railroads through the vicinity and was 
the first plant to gain a foothold on the immense piles of 
limestone along the Chicago drainage channel. Yet the 
bunches of sweet-clover on this particular area could be 
counted on the fingers of one hand, and all were the first 
year form. 
There were three rosette plants not belonging to the 
region. Verbena bracteosa appeared in several places, 
covering the ground like a mat, one plant in a place. 
Another spreading mat with small white flowers and 
loaded with little green tomatoes, was Solanum trWorum. 
One of the most noticeable clumps was a plant as large 
as a bushel basket, with yellow flowers and prickly fruits, 
stems and leaves— >So7a/3i//23 rostratum. This was really 
