68 
The Ohio Naturalist. 
[Vol. XIII, No. 4, 
There is one prickly-pear, Opuntia sp., with fragrant flowers 
and edible fruit which ripens in late autumn. It is quite common 
especially in patches of buffalo-grass or in gumbo patches where 
it does not have to meet the competition of the Andropogons. 
On the very highest hills Cactus missouriensis (Sweet.) Ktz., the 
Missouri cactus, grows although it is quite rare. 
Besides the grasses, the most characteristic plants of the prairie, 
as stated above are perennial geophytes, mostly crowm-formcrs 
with deep taproots. Of special prominence are Psoralea floribunda 
Nutt., many-flowered Psoralea, and Psoralea argophylla Pursh, 
silver-leaf Psoralea. Both species are tumbleweeds, being sepa¬ 
rated from the perennial base by means of cleavage planes devel¬ 
oped in the stems near the ground. Psoralea esculenta Pursh, 
prairie-apple, w T ith its thickened root is also common. In the 
spring and early summer, three species of wild-indigo are found 
here and there as conspicuous members of the flora, namely, 
Baptisia australis (L.) R. Br., Baptisia bracteata Ell., and Baptisia 
leucantha T. & G. having blue, cream-colored, and white flowers 
respectively. 
Other large and conspicuous species are as follows: 
Verbena stricta Vent. Hoary Vervain. 
Verbena hastata L. Blue Vervain. 
Vernonia baldwini Torr. Baldwin’s Ironweed. 
Euphorbia marginata Pursh. Snow-on-the-mountain. 
Carduus undulatus Nutt. Wavy-leaf Thistle. 
Artemisia gnaphalodes Nutt. Prairie Mugwort. 
Artemisia ludoviciana Nutt. Lobed Mugwort. 
Glycyrrhiza lepidota Pursh. Wild Liquorice. 
Helianthus maximiliani Schrad. Maximilian’s Sunflower. 
Helianthus subrhomboideus Rydb. Rhombic-leaf Sunflower. 
Heliopsis scabra Dun. Rough Oxeye. 
Lespedeza capitata Mx. Round-headed Bush-clover. 
Allionia linearis Pursh. Narrow-leaf Umbrella-wort. 
Ambrosia psilostachya DC. Western Ragweed. 
Acuan illinoensis (Mx.) Ktz. Illinois Acuan. 
Salvia pitcheri Torr. Pitcher’s Sage. 
Meibomia—several species. 
Lactuca—-several species. 
Hieracium longipilum Torr. Long-bearded Hawkweed. 
Nabalus asper (Mx.) T. & G. Rough Rattlesnake-root. 
Onagra biennis (L.) Scop. Common Evening-primrose. 
Gaura parviflora Dougl. Small-flowered Gaura. 
Gaura biennis L. Biennial Gaura. 
Onosmodium carolinianum (Lam.) DC. Slaggy False-gromwell. 
Grindelia squarrosa (Pursh) Dun. Broadleaf Gum-plant. 
Cuscuta paradoxa Raf. Glomerata Dodder, a conspicuous parasite mostly 
on the tall herbs of the sunflower family, growing in ravines but occa¬ 
sionally on the upland. 
