Am.  J  our.  Phnrin. ) 
March.  1893.  / 
Local  Indigenous  Plants. 
153 
aid  us  in  our  curative  processes;  Anagallis  arvensis  is  a  small  annual  now 
scattered  in  our  fields.  The  common  name  is  derived  from  its  act  of  shutting 
up  shop  on  approach  of  rainy  weather. 
Fraxinus  Americanus  is  a  most  abundant  ash,  as  you  meet  it  frequently 
along  fences  or  in  rather  open  woods,  and  recognized  at  a  glance  by  its  pecu- 
liarly shaped  fruit.  Another  member  of  the  order  Oleaceae  in  this  latitude  is 
the  Fringe  Tree,  or  Chionanthus  Virginica.  It  is  of  great  beauty  during 
flowering  season,  made  conspicuous  by  its  long  and  drooping  panicles  of  deli- 
cate white  flowers.  For  this  reason  it  is  highly  prized  by  horticulturists. 
Ligustrum  vulgare,  or  privet,  belongs  to  this  order,  and  has  adapted  itself  to 
our  country. 
Apocynum  androscemifolium  and  A.  cannabinum ,  dogbane  and  Canadian 
hemp  respectively,  appear  in  moist  meadows  and  deserted  fields  quite  abun- 
dantly. A  chief  characteristic  of  them  is  the  fruit  arranged  in  pairs  of  slender 
follicles,  3  or  4  in.  long. 
The  order  Asclepiadaceae,  which  is  closely  connected  to  the  preceding,  yields 
the  butterfly  weed,  Asclepias  tuberosa,  or  pleurisy  root,  common  in  sterile 
soils,  particularly  in  New  Jersey,  the  lower  portion  of  which  is  pretty  well 
covered  with  it.  The  rich  orange  of  its  flowers  makes  it  a  very  conspicuous 
plant,  quite  attractive  and  valuable  for  lawn  decorations.  Dr.  Barton  said  of 
this  plant  "that  it  was  one  of  the  most  important  of  our  indigenous  reme- 
dies." The  common  milkweed,  Asclepias  Cornuti,  is  a  larger  plant,  more 
robust,  with  flesh-colored  or  whitish  flowers,  and  very  common  in  waste  places. 
A  few  weeks  ago  a  specimen  root  was  sent  us  by  an  importing  house,  as  a 
sample  of  elecampane.  It  was  utterly  unlike  inula,  but  the  characters  were 
so  few  that  identification  was  accordingly  difficult,  and  before  arriving  at  a 
determination  word  was  received  from  the  collectors  that  it  was  not  Inula  at 
all  but  milkweed,  Asclepias  Cornuti,  and  pulled  too  soon.  Needless  to  say  we 
reached  the  same  conclusion  respecting  their  education  in  some  things  essen- 
tial. The  whole  order  is  of  great  interest  to  the  botanical  student,  however,  as 
furnishing  fine  examples  of  cross-fertilization,  and  for  the  benefit  of  the  student 
we  will  mention  the  other  species  found  in  nearby  localities  as  it  is  likely  they 
are  as  important  therapeutically  as  the  species  mentioned  above  :  Asclepias pau- 
percula,  at  Cape  May  ;  A.  rubra,  scattered  in  New  Jersey  ;  A.  purpurascens, 
also  remotely  in  the  state  ;  A.  incarnata  is  very  tame,  encroaching,  in  moist 
situations,  to  our  very  doors,  and  its  variety  pulchra  is  filling  up  some  of  the 
swamps  of  adjoining  state  to  the  East,  while  its  neighbor,  A.  obttisifolia,  occu- 
pies the  very  dry  portion  ;  A .  variegata,  A.  phytolaccoides,  A.  quadrifolia,  and 
Jl.  verticillata  are  all  beautiful  plants  more  or  less  common  to  our  own  state. 
Thus  we  have  1  r  species  known  to  Eastern  United  States  at  our  doors. 
Spigelia  Marilandica  in  the  order  Loganiaceae  is  reported  from  southern 
portion  of  New  Jersey,  but  we  have  never  met  with  it.  But  the  Gentianaceae 
are  represented  by  handsome  Sabbatias  and  Gentians  that  to  a  mild  degree 
replace  the  required  ones  of  the  stores.  Sabbatia  lanceolata,  S.  angularis, 
S.  stellaris  and  S.  gracilis  are  the  ones  most  frequently  met  with  and  are 
magnificent  specimens  of  that  genus,  the  two  last  being  found  in  brackish 
marshes  along  the  Jersey  coast  and  noticeable  among  the  sedges  at  once  by 
their  star-shaped  pink  flowers. 
Among  the  Gentians  the  G.  angustifolia,  of  pine  barrens,  is  the  largest 
