82 
WILD FLOWERS OF THE BRITISH ISLES 
2. Clove-scented Broom-rape. (Oroban'ehe earyophyll&cea. Smith.)— A some- 
what similar species to the last, with rather longer and narrower flowers, fewer and not so crowded ; 
shorter bracts ; the upper lip of the corolla erect and lobed, and the lower with 3 equal lobes, all 
wavy and sharply toothed ; the stamens are inserted above the base of the corolla-tube, their 
filaments and the style are clothed throughout with gland-tipped hairs, and the stigma is of 2 
widely diverging purple lobes ; the stem, though stout and thick and swollen at the base, is not 
so tall as the Greater Broom-rape, being scarcely a foot high. 
Very rare, local. A parasite on the roots of the Hedge Bedstraw (Galium Mollugo), but only 
found in Kent. June — July. Perennial. 
3. Red Broom-rape. (Oroban'ehe rtibra. Smith.)— A smaller species, with smaller, 
dull red sweet-scented flowers, only about § inch long ; with the corolla-tube, as in the last species, 
narrower and less open at the top, and the upper lip distinctly cleft, but with the central lobe of the 
lower lip longer than the side ones, all being sharply toothed and wavy ; the stamens inserted near 
the base of the corolla, hairy, with gland-tipped hairs at the top ; the style also with gland-tipped 
hairs at the top, and the stigma 2-lobed, the lobes touching one another, and of a pale pink 
colour ; the stem 3-9 inches high, stout and fleshy, with numerous scale-like bracts ; the whole 
plant is of a brown- or purple-red. 
Rare. A parasite on the roots of Wild Thyme, on magnesian rock in Cornwall, and on basaltic 
rock in Scotland and Ireland. June — August. Perennial. 
4. Tall Broom-rape. (Oroban'ehe elatior. Sutton.) — A species very similar to the 
first — the Greater Broom-rape (Orobanche major) — but differing in having bracts shorter than the 
flowers ; a narrower and more curved corolla, narrower and more curved indeed than in any 
of the three preceding species, in the upper lip being deeply lobed, and the lower lip with more 
equal pointed lobes, more distinctly toothed ; in the stamens being inserted above the base of the 
corolla, the filaments hairy towards the base and nearly smooth at the top ; and in the style being 
nearly smooth and the stigma of 2 yellow lobes touching one another. In size this species 
resembles the Greater Broom-rape, the two being the largest of our species. The stem is from 6 
inches to 2 feet high, thick, and fleshy with numerous bracts ; the whole plant is of a yellowish hue 
tinged with purple-brown. \Plate 28. 
Rare. A parasite on the roots of the Great Knapweed (Centaurea Scabiosa), distributed throughout 
the southern and eastern counties of England. June — August. Perennial. 
5. Lesser Broom-rape. (Oroban'ehe minor. Smith.) — A more slender species than any 
of the preceding ones. The flowers are f-f inch long, white or yellowish and often tinged with 
purple, in a loose spike. The bracts are as long as or longer than the flowers ; the sepals 
very pointed ; the corolla-tube narrow and slightly curved throughout, the upper lip more or less 
2-lobed, and the lower lip with 3 nearly equal lobes, all wavy and sharply toothed ; the stamens 
inserted a little below the middle of the corolla-tube, with the filaments hairy below and smooth 
above ; the style smooth and the stigma of 2 slightly diverging purple lobes ; and the 
capsule with valves united at the top and at the base. [As described in the genus Broom-rape 
(Orobanche).] The stem is slender, about 1 foot high, covered with scale-like bracts, and the 
whole plant is yellowish with a little purple. 
Not uncommon. A parasite on the roots of Clover and many other plants; not uncommon 
in the south of England, more rare in west and central England, not found in the north or in 
Scotland, introduced with Clover seeds into Ireland. June- — July. Annual. 
6. Ox-tongue or Picris Broom-rape. (Oroban'ehe Plcridis. F. Schultz.)— A species 
very similar to the Lesser Broom-rape (Orobanche minor), and by some botanists considered only 
