NOTES ON THE FLORA OF AMERICA. 
273 
NOTES ON THE FLORA OF AMERICA,* 
MADE DURING A TOUR IN THE NORTH-EASTERN STATES 
IN APRIL, MAY, AND JUNE, 1882. 
BY W. H. WILKINSON, 
HON. SEC. BIRMINGHAM NATURAL HISTORY AND MICROSCOPICAL SOCIETY. 
On landing in New York City in the middle of April, we 
were surprised at the beautiful weather, for the sky was 
almost without a cloud, and the deep blue contrasted with 
the red brick buildings most vividly ; the clearness of the 
atmosphere was perhaps partly due to climatic causes and partly 
to the use of anthracite coal, which makes no smoke; the result 
being very favourable to the cleanliness of the buildings and 
to the purity of the atmosphere. 
New York is built on a tongue of land some eleven miles 
long, the southern portion of which is covered to a con¬ 
siderable depth with sand, thus causing much trouble and 
expense in getting good foundations for their buildings ; and 
also is not favourable for the growth of the ornamental trees 
and flowers in the southern and busiest portion of this great 
city, but as you advance further north the schistose rock can 
be seen cropping up, so that in Central Park there is a fine 
state of cultivation attained and many rare plants and trees 
are grown ; the Park is laid out with great skill, some parts 
being depressed and filled with ornamental lakes, and others 
raised and embellished with statuary and rockeries, the 
National museums being situated in isolated blocks within 
the park enclosure. 
Our first introduction to the flowers of America was in 
one of their most appropriate places, viz., in the adornment 
of the ladies’ dresses, it being the fashion in New York City 
to wear eight to ten full-blown roses grouped on the front or 
side of the dress, as they walked “ on Broadway” or Fifth 
Avenue. It must have been a costly luxury then, as there 
DESCRIPTION OF PLATES. 
Plate YI .—Bicentra cucullaria (White Ear-drop). Flowers white, 
with velvety maroon tips. A beautiful and delicate woodland plant, 
growing on islands, Niagara Falls, (a), Plant, half natural size; 
(b), section of Rower with six stamens; (c), scale-stem. 
Plate YII .—Trillium grandijlorum. Flowers usually white, some¬ 
times pink. Frequent in shady woods, Niagara Falls, &c. (a), Centre 
of flower; (b), stamens, tripartite stigma; (c), part of leaf, showing 
the palmi-net-veined structure. 
* Transactions of the Birmingham Natural History and Micro¬ 
scopical Society. Read March 31st, 1885. 
