Chapter II: Part 2

The stem of the Mugwort is pale green, and has red ridges running from end to end. The leaves are very handsome. They are large and broad and feather-shaped, with big leaflets in pairs opposite each other on the stem, and there is always a single long leaflet at the end. Each of these leaflets is deeply cut round the edges into large teeth.

The back of the Mugwort leaves is covered with silvery white down, and often the green edges are curled back on to this white underside.

PLATE XI: 1. WILD MIGNONETTE 2. COMMON DANDELION 3. TANSY

1. WILD MIGNONETTE

The Wild Mignonette does not grow close to the ground like the sweet-scented Mignonette we have in our gardens. It is a tall, spiked plant, which you find in summer-time on waste ground and among stone heaps, and it is not at all noticeable.

The flowers grow on short, thin stalks. Those flowers at the bottom open first, and the little buds are always at the top of the tall spike.

These flowers are little yellow balls, which seem to be entirely made up of stamens. But if you gently pick one of these yellow balls to pieces, you will find that there are six greenish-yellow petals.

The four largest petals are so deeply cut round the edge that they appear to be fringed. But there are two long thin ones which are each in one piece. These petals are all joined together at the bottom, with the bunch of fluffy stamens and the seed-vessel inside.

Behind this little ball there are six thin green sepals. These are very narrow and pointed, and they stand round the flower like the legs of a spider.

The leaves are dark green, and they are very much lighter underneath than above. They are very narrow, with crinkled edges, and the upper half of the leaf branches into three or four parts, like a stag's horn.

2. COMMON DANDELION

The Dandelion is as well known as the Buttercup and Daisy. It grows in all kinds of places, and it is in flower from early spring to late autumn. The large yellow flower-heads are made up of a great many separate little flower-tubes, which widen out at the mouth into a long yellow strap. These yellow tubes are placed on a round disc with the straps standing out in a circle, like a rosette. Each flower-head grows singly at the end of a long green stalk. The stalks are hollow, and when you break them a white milky juice oozes out. At the top of the stalk you find a cup made up of narrow pointed green leaves. Some of these leaves curve back over the top of the stalk.

When the yellow flowers are withered, the round disc is covered with the tiny seed-vessels. Each seed-vessel ends in a slender green spike which has a beautiful tuft of starry down at its tip. This ball of starry down is one of the most beautiful things in the flower world.

The leaves of the Dandelion are a smooth glossy green. They are shaped like a blunt arrow-head, and they have a white line running up the centre. The edges are cut up into huge teeth which are said to resemble the teeth of a lion. From this the plant gets its name.

3. TANSY

The Tansy is to be found in hedge-banks, and by the roadside, or on the borders of the fields in many places all over the country, though in the North it is not very common. It flowers in autumn, and is a tall, bushy plant, with large green, ferny leaves.

The Tansy has a short, green stem rising stiff and straight from the ground, and this stem branches at the top into three or four forks. Each of these forks divides again into two or three smaller forks, and there is a flower which looks like a yellow button at the end of each fork.

If you pick one of these yellow buttons to pieces you find that it is made up of a great many yellow tubes, with a swollen green part at the bottom. These yellow tubes are of two kinds. In some the mouth of the tube is cut evenly all round into small scollops, and in others there is a yellow strap at one side of the tube. These tubes stand on a round disc, and at the back of this disc there is a thick double row of small green pointed leaves, which form a green cup behind the yellow buttons.

The leaves of the Tansy are like coarse ferns. They are feather-shaped, with deeply cut divisions, and each division is toothed at the edges. The Tansy has a strong scent, especially when you crush its leaves or stalks.

PLATE XII: 1. PRIMROSE. 2. COWSLIP. 3. BOG ASPHODEL.

1. PRIMROSE

Is there any child who does not know the Primrose? In spring and early summer you will find its yellow blossom starring the woods and hedge-banks, and you will see it too by the seashore.

The flowers grow singly on fine stalks rising from the middle of the root. A long yellow tube is hidden in the deep calyx-cup, and the mouth of this tube opens out into five pale lemon-yellow petals. Each petal has a notch in the outer edge, and there are two orange-coloured streaks running from the base. In the centre of the petals, you can see the mouth of the tube with the heads of the stamens in its throat. The slender thread with its pinhead top, which rises from the seed-vessel, can just be seen. Yet you will also find Primroses where the heads of the stamens are hidden from sight, but where this seed-vessel thread reaches beyond the mouth of the tube.

The calyx-cup is pale-green and hairy, and has fine, sharp teeth round the edge.

The Primrose leaves grow in a rosette, rising with short, juicy stalks from the root. They are covered with a fine network of veins, which are much raised on the underside of the leaf. The leaf is crinkled all over.

Before the leaves are full grown, the edges are often rolled back so as nearly to meet on the silvery underside.

2. COWSLIP

The Cowslip is the Queen of our meadow flowers. It is common in England and Ireland, and in many parts of Scotland. The spring, or early summer, is the best time to find it.

The flowers grow, a dozen or more together, in a loose cluster, at the end of a stout, round stalk. Each flower has a yellow tube which is sunk out of sight in a swollen calyx-cup. This cup is a beautiful light green colour, with five sharp teeth at the mouth, and it is covered with soft hairs. Sometimes you find it tinged with brown streaks.

Round the mouth of the yellow flower-tube stand five small lemon-coloured petals, each with a V-shaped nick in the outer edge, and a bright, reddish-orange spot at the base. If you look at the back of a cowslip, you will see that the yellow tube is swollen just below the petals.

There are five stamens, whose heads are just visible in the throat of the tube, with the tip of the seed-vessel amongst them. In some flowers this slender pillar comes a good way beyond the mouth of the tube, and the stamens are hidden out of sight.

The Cowslip leaves are crinkled all over, and have swollen veins which are much raised on the underside. In the young leaves the edges are rolled very far back.

3. BOG ASPHODEL

This wiry little plant is fond of marshy places and wet bogs and heaths. It grows all over the country, and is in flower in late summer and autumn.

The Bog Asphodel has a tall, wiry flower-stalk, near the top of which you find a spike of orange-yellow flowers. There are three narrow-pointed orange petals, and three orange sepals; but these are so much alike, you will not be able to distinguish between them. When the flower is in full bloom, these petals and sepals open out, like the rays of a star; then when the seeds are ripening, they close and form an orange cup.

In the centre of the star there are six stamens, with woolly yellow stalks and bright red heads. There is also a small pear-shaped green seed-vessel.

Each flower has its own short stalk. Notice the tiny green leaves which grow at intervals on the wiry flower-stalk, tightly pressed against it.

The leaves of the Bog Asphodel are like coarse grass. They have no stalks, and look as if they had been slightly folded together from end to end. Each leaf has long lines running from base to tip.

PLATE XIII 1. HONEYSUCKLE 2. YELLOW WATER IRIS 3. DAFFODIL

1. HONEYSUCKLE

The Honeysuckle grows in all parts of the country. You will find its sweet-scented flowers in thickets and woods during summer and autumn. It is a shrub with long, feeble, woody stems. These stems twist themselves round young trees and hedges, which support the plant and raise it up towards the sun.

The Honeysuckle flowers grow in loose heads at the end of the leaf-stem. They are shaped like long trumpets, and these trumpets are very narrow at the one end, and widen out at the mouth into two unequal lips. The lower lip is merely a long strap curled over at the end. But the upper lip is very much broader, and it is fringed at the edge. These beautiful flower-trumpets are yellow-pink, sometimes almost purple on the outside, and inside they are pale yellow. There are often seven to ten of these trumpets close together in one cluster, and you can see the heads of the stamens, and the long green tip of the seed-vessel coming out of the mouth of each trumpet.

After the flowers are withered, the seeds grow into clear dark crimson berries, of which the birds are very fond.

The leaves of the Honeysuckle grow opposite each other in pairs. They are blue-green in colour, are very smooth, and have a network of tiny veins all over them. Each leaf is oval, and its edges are smooth all the way round.

2. YELLOW WATER IRIS

The Yellow Iris with its lily flowers and sword-like leaves is found in summer-time by the side of ditches, and marshes, and ponds.

In the Iris the petals and the sepals are almost the same colour. The flower has a short yellow tube which folds back at the mouth into three broad, handsome yellow sepals, beautifully marked with deep orange streaks.

Between each of these sepals stands a small pale yellow petal.

Rising from the centre of the flower are what look like other three pale yellow petals, with fringed ends which curl upward. These are really three branches of the slender column which rises from the seed-vessel, and they bend backwards over each sepal. Half hidden under each of these fringed petals, you can see the dark purple head of a stamen, closely pressed against the broad yellow sepal.

The yellow flower-tube stands above the seed-vessel. This seed-vessel becomes very large in autumn, and it bursts lengthways into three parts, showing rows of dark brown seeds tightly packed together inside.

Before the flower opens, the Iris is enclosed in a green sheath.

The leaves are sword-shaped, with long lines running from base to tip. They are smooth, and in colour they are a dim green.

3. DAFFODIL

The Daffodil is one of our loveliest spring flowers. It is found abundantly in woods, and in meadows and pastures in England, but in Scotland it does not grow wild, and it is doubtful whether it really does so in Ireland.

The flowers grow singly on tall stalks. Each Daffodil is enclosed in a light brown sheath, which stands erect. But when the growing flowers have burst this covering, they droop their heads.

Each flower has a short yellow tube, divided about half way down into six deep points.

These points do not fold back, they enclose a long yellow trumpet, which is beautifully scolloped round the mouth.

Inside this trumpet are six stamens with large yellow heads, and the slender stalks of these stamens cling to the sides of the yellow trumpet. There is also a short pillar rising from the fat green seed-vessel, which you can see outside the coloured petals, below the yellow tube.

In the Daffodil, the sepals and petals are the same colour.

The stalk of the Daffodil is slightly twisted, and has fine lines running up it. It rises straight from the centre of the bulb which forms the root.

The leaves are long, narrow straps with blunt points, and they are thick and juicy.

PLATE XIV: 1. SNEEZEWORT YARROW. 2. MOUNTAIN EVERLASTING
3. COMMON COMFREY.

3. COMMON COMFREY

This tall, harsh-leaved plant is to be found all over the country in moist places, by the sides of streams and ditches, and by the roadside. It blooms in spring and autumn.

The flowers of the Common Comfrey are not always the same colour. Sometimes you find them pale yellow, and in other places they are a rich purple, and the buds are pink. These flowers grow in drooping clusters on short little stalks which curve in a curious serpent manner before the buds open.

The five petals joined together form a bell, which is cut into deep teeth at the edge. Within this bell, there are five stamens clinging to the sides, and from the seed-vessel, a long, slender white thread rises. You can see this white thread best after the yellow bell is withered, and the seed-vessel is left sitting in the centre of the calyx. The green calyx-cup is very shallow, with fine, sharply pointed teeth round the mouth.

The stem of the Comfrey is covered with hard, rough hairs. It has ridges running from top to bottom, and it is hollow in the middle. The leaves on the stem grow in tufts of three or four, without any stalks. They are narrow and pointed, with wavy edges, and are covered with hairs.

Many other coarse leaves rise from the root. These leaves, too, have no stalks, and they are broad and hairy.

1. SNEEZEWORT YARROW

This sturdy flower is the parent of the snow-white Bachelor's Buttons, which grow in our garden: it is a cousin of the Millfoil or Yarrow. It is common all over the country, where you find it in meadows and ditches, and by the roadside. It blooms in autumn.

The flowers resemble small daisies. You find about a dozen growing together on short stalks, near the top of the main stem.

Each daisy consists of a disc which is closely covered with greenish-white tube-flowers. The mouth of these tube-flowers is cut into points which bend outward, and coming out of the centre of each tube, you can see the yellow tip of the seed-vessel, round which the heads of the stamens are placed edge to edge like a deep collar.

Round the outer edge of the disc there is a small circle of tube-flowers, each of which has a broad white strap, and these straps are nicked at the ends.

Underneath these small daisies stands a circle of tiny green pointed leaves; these form a cup which protects the plant when it is in bud.

The stem of the Sneezewort is very sturdy. The leaves are sword-shaped, with long veins running from the base to the tip. They clasp the stem, and all round the edge they are cut into very fine teeth, like a saw.

2. MOUNTAIN EVERLASTING

This woolly little plant is common over most of the north country, on heaths and sandy pastures and in upland districts; but you do not find it in the south of England. It is in flower all summer.

The root of the Mountain Everlasting is like a thin brown worm lying on the surface of the ground, and from this root, long, slender brown threads go down into the ground and keep the flower steady.

The flowers resemble small woolly daisies. They grow in clusters of four or more, at the end of the main stem, and each cluster has a short, stiff stalk of its own.

These woolly daisies are made up of a great many tiny pink flower-tubes, each with a ring of fine white hairs round it. These tubes are surrounded by a double row of woolly, downy leaves which stand out like the strap-shaped rays of the daisy.

Underneath these woolly rays is a green cup, made up of a double row of narrow strap-shaped brown or green leaves, pressed close together.

The main stem rises straight and firm from the creeping root. It is closely covered with white down, and at intervals it is clasped by narrow, pointed green leaves. These leaves are dark green on the upper side, but underneath they are covered with white woolly down.

PLATE XV: 1. TRAVELLER'S JOY 2. WOOD ANEMONE 3. WATER CROWFOOT

1. TRAVELLER'S JOY

You will have no difficulty in recognising this plant. It has masses of grey-green flowers, and big bunches of feathery tufts; and you will find it growing in summer right over the tops of the hedges.

There are some unusual things about this flower. It has really no petals. There are four pretty sepals of a grey-green colour, which are covered with soft white woolly down. These woolly sepals soon fall off, and within you find a big bunch of whitish green stamens. When the seeds which grow in the centre of the bunch of stamens begin to ripen, they each send out a long feathery tail. These tails wave in the air, and look like tufts of down clinging to the hedges.

The leaves are dark green above and paler green below. They grow opposite each other on the stem. Sometimes their edges are quite smooth, and sometimes they are cut like the teeth of a big saw.

The stem of the Traveller's Joy is very tough and woody. It is easily bent, and would not be able to rise from the ground were it not that there are little curly green threads called tendrils below the small leaves. These tendrils twist themselves round the stems of the hedges, and with this support the plant can climb as high as the top of the hedge.

2. WOOD ANEMONE

This is one of the daintiest of our wild plants. You find the woods carpeted with it in early spring.

The flower has six delicate white sepals. These are long and rather narrow, and on the outside they are often tinged with purple or pink. The buds are usually quite pink until they open. These pink sepals form the calyx. There are no petals.

Within the pink sepals are many stamens with little yellow heads set on stems as fine as a hair, and in the centre of these stamens there is a small green knot of seeds.

The Wood Anemone has two kinds of green leaves. The flower grows on a short, smooth stalk, which rises from the centre of three soft, dark green leaves. These leaves are each divided into three parts, which are deeply cut up round the edge, and their short stalks are covered with fine hairs.

The second leaves rise on slender stalks straight from the root. They are divided very much the same as the others. If you dig up the Wood Anemone root you find that it is like a rough brown bit of stick. It creeps along underneath the ground instead of going straight down into it, and you can see that the flower and the first set of three leaves rises at a different part from the stalk which bears the other leaves.

3. WATER CROWFOOT

The Water Crowfoot is really a white Buttercup, and it likes to grow in ponds or in rivers that run very slowly. The flowers are at their best in May and June.

These flowers have five glossy white petals, and each petal has a yellow patch at the foot. Behind these beautiful white petals there are five green sepals which fold back close round the flower-stalk.

Within the flower there are stamens with thick yellow heads, growing in a circle round a small green knot which holds the seed-vessels.

This Water Crowfoot has two kinds of leaves. Some grow underneath the water, and these leaves are divided into fine hairs, which are each forked at the end. The water runs very easily through these hairs.

But those leaves which are above the water are solid. They are dark green and glossy, and are nearly round. Each leaf is divided into three parts, and sometimes the edges are cut up, and often they are quite smooth.

You may sometimes find a leaf with one-half made up of hairy threads while the other half is solid.

PLATE XVI: 1. SHEPHERD'S PURSE 2. COMMON SCURVY GRASS
3. HAIRY ROCK CRESS

1. SHEPHERD'S PURSE

The Shepherd's Purse is a very common plant, and it is not at all attractive. It is found all summer by the roadside and in waste places.

The flowers grow close together on short stalks near the top of a spike. They are very small, with tiny white petals, and those flowers which grow lowest on the spike always come out first. The buds are in a cluster at the very tip of the spike.

After the flower is withered, the seed-vessel, which still clings to the end of the short stalk, begins to swell. It looks like a small green heart, with a hard knot in the centre. You will easily recognise the Shepherd's Purse by these seed-vessels, which are far more noticeable than the tiny white flowers.

This plant has two kinds of leaves. Those that grow close to the ground have short stalks, and they spring from the root in the form of a rosette. Each leaf is long and narrow, and the edges are deeply cut up, nearly to the centre vein of the leaf.

But the Shepherd's Purse has other leaves which grow further up the flower-stem. These are shaped like the head of an arrow, and at the bottom they clasp the stem closely.

Both kinds of leaves are usually hairy all over, and so are the stalks, but sometimes you find plants where they are quite smooth.

2. COMMON SCURVY GRASS

The Common Scurvy Grass likes to grow on muddy shores and on rocks by the seaside, where you will find its masses of white flowers all summer.

The flowers grow close together in a cluster on short stalks. Each flower has four white petals, which are sometimes tinged with purple. The four tiny sepals are tinged with purple too. And the buds which are crowded together at the end of the cluster are nearly all purple.

After the flowers are withered, the seed-vessels still cling to the end of the flower-stalks. In this plant the seed-vessels are round, like small berries, and they are greenish-brown in colour. You usually find eight or ten of these berries halfway up the stem; then there will be several white flowers still in full bloom, and at the top of the stem comes a cluster of purple buds.

The Common Scurvy Grass has two kinds of leaves. Those that spring directly from the root have long stalks. They are broad, with smooth edges, which are slightly waved, and they are thick and fleshy. The second kind of leaves has no stalks; they grow clasping the stem closely, and they are shaped like arrow-heads.

The stem of the plant is hollow, and four-sided.

3. HAIRY ROCK CRESS

This dusty-looking plant grows on dry places such as rocks, or on the top of old walls or on hedge-banks.

The flowers of the Hairy Rock Cress are white and very tiny. They have four petals, which are not at all attractive, and they grow on each side of a tall spike. After the flowers are withered, the seed-vessel, which is in the middle of each flower, grows into a long thin pod like a needle. The green needle remains at the end of the flower-stalk, and you will see ever so many of these slender green pods standing straight up round the flower-spike.

You will easily recognise this plant by these green needle pods.

The leaves of the Hairy Rock Cress are very rough, and have coarse hairs all over them. Some are long and narrow, and cling closely to the stem. Others are broader, and they have short stalks and wavy edges. Those leaves which have stalks usually grow close to the ground at the foot of the main stem.

PLATE XVII: 1. COMMON CHICKWEED 2. MOUSE-EARED CHICKWEED
3. GREATER STITCHWORT

1. COMMON CHICKWEED

The Common Chickweed is found all over the country. It grows in fields, in waste ground, and on hedge-banks, and it is in flower from spring till autumn.

The Chickweed is a feeble, straggling plant, and it grows in an untidy mass near the ground. It is one of those plants that look very different in different places. It does not thrive well in dry, stony ground, where it looks small and dried up. But in untidy gardens where there is good soil you will find it in large bunches, with many white flowers and good-sized leaves. The canary birds like it best when there are many white flowers and seeds.

The white flowers are small, with tiny strap-shaped petals, and there are five small, green sepals with sharp points which show like the rays of a green star behind these tiny white petals.

Each flower grows at the end of a stalk which rises between the leaf and the main stem. The Chickweed leaves are oval, with smooth edges, and they grow in pairs up the stem. If you look closely at this stem you will see a line of fine hairs running down one side, and if you break this stem in two you will find that there is a green thread inside, which is more difficult to break than its soft green covering.

2. MOUSE-EARED CHICKWEED

The Mouse-eared Chickweed is very common all over the country. It grows in dry places, on old walls or on sandy ground, and it is in flower all summer.

It is a much smaller plant than the Common Chickweed. The white flowers are very tiny, and most of them grow in clusters at the end of short stalks which branch from the main stem. But you will also find a single flower appearing between the green leaves which grow in pairs at intervals up the main stem.

These leaves are very hairy. Sometimes they are sticky, and the whole plant is usually covered with dust, and is not at all attractive.

The Mouse-eared Chickweed is not such a feeble, straggling plant as the Common Chickweed. Its stems are stronger, and they rise straight from the ground without requiring support.

3. GREATER STITCHWORT

You will find the Greater Stitchwort in many places. It grows in grassy meadows, in woods and in thickets, and also on rocks among the mountains; and it blooms in spring or early summer.

The Stitchwort is a tall, slender plant, and the flowers are large and very pretty. They grow singly at the end of short stalks, which usually branch in pairs again and again from the main stem, oftenest where two leaves join. These flowers have five snowy white petals, each of which has a deep notch cut in the outer edge, and there are delicate green veins all over the petals. Within the flower there are ten yellow-headed stamens. Some of these stamens are long, and some are quite short; and in the middle there is a fat green seed-vessel.

Behind these beautiful white petals grow five narrow pointed sepals, which have very little colour. These sepals are like tiny scales, slightly tinged with green, and they lie flat behind the white flower.

The stem of the Greater Stitchwort is not very strong, and it has always a line of hard, short bristles, running up each side. The leaves are like blades of grass, narrow and pointed, but they are harder than grass, and the edges curl backwards. On these edges are hard bristles, the same as those on the stems.

PLATE XVIII: 1. GOUTWEED. 2. WILD ANGELICA
3. YELLOW BEDSTRAW. 4. HEMLOCK WATER DROPWORT.

1. GOUTWEED

This plant grows in all parts of Britain. You find it among old ruins, and by the roadside on damp hedge-banks. It blooms in summer.

The flowers are white and very small. They grow in clusters at the end of long green spokes, like the ribs of an umbrella, and you will notice that there are no little green pointed leaves either at the back of the separate flower clusters, or at the top of the stem where all the green spokes join.

The seed-vessels are almond-shaped, with little hollows running from top to bottom, and they have two long green hairs hanging out at the top.

The stalk of the Goutweed is hollow. It is very glossy and smooth, and has many ridges.

The leaves are shaped rather like rose leaves. They are pale green and are softer than rose leaves, and there is only one other plant with umbrella spokes whose leaves are at all similar. They are quite different from the fern-like leaves of so many other umbrella plants.

Notice the broad sheath where each leaf joins the main stem.

2. WILD ANGELICA

This bushy plant is common all over Britain. It flowers in summer and autumn, and it likes to grow in damp places, especially beside streams. At first you might mistake the Wild Angelica for Goutweed, as the leaves are very similar, but there are several differences. The Wild Angelica flowers are small and white, sometimes they are tinged with lilac, and they grow in clusters at the end of green spokes like the ribs of an umbrella.

At the back of each cluster of flowers you will find three tiny pointed green leaves, and at the top of the stem where all the spokes join there are other three. This is the first difference.

The seeds of the Wild Angelica are quite a different shape from the Goutweed seeds. They are much broader, with rough ridges running up them, and they have no bristles standing up at the top. This is the second point to notice.

The Wild Angelica stalk is beautifully tinged with rich purple, not in spots as in the Common Hemlock, but all over; and it is smooth, with fine lines running up and down. This is a third point.

And lastly, the leaves grow from the end of a curious large round sheath. This sheath is pale green and is very smooth and silky. It clasps the stem, which seems to grow right through the middle of it.

3. UPRIGHT HEDGE PARSLEY

In summer you will find the Upright Hedge Parsley all over the country, on hedge-banks and in waste places.

The tiny flowers are white, and are very often tinged with pink. They grow in clusters on green spokes which rise from the end of the main stem like the ribs of an umbrella. These green spokes are rough and hairy, and you will recognise this plant by these rough spokes.

There is a ring of narrow pointed green leaves at the top of the main stem where all the spokes join, and there are also little leaves at the back of each cluster of flowers.

In the Upright Hedge Parsley the seed-vessels are different from those of any of the other umbrella plants in this book. They are a dark pinky purple in colour, and are covered with short, thick bristles. At the top of each seed-vessel there are two long, thin bristles which bend over, very much like those in the Goutweed. You will always be able to recognise this plant by these bristly, purple seed-vessels.

The leaves of the Upright Hedge Parsley are dark green and hairy. They are like ferns, and have many divisions, which are cut into teeth all round the edge.

4. HEMLOCK WATER DROPWORT

This is one of the most poisonous plants that grow in Britain. A great many accidents have been caused by cattle and human beings eating its leaves and roots.

The Hemlock Water Dropwort is common all over the country, and it is in flower most of the summer.

The flowers grow in large clusters at the end of green spokes. They are white, and they have each five stamens with large pink heads, so that from a distance the clusters look pink. There are little pointed green leaves at the back of the flower clusters as well as where the spokes join the main stem.

The seed-vessels of the Hemlock Water Dropwort are a light brown colour, with slight ridges, and they have two little points standing up at the top. You will know this plant by these seed-vessels and by the curious roots.

The stems are tall and straight, with grooves running from top to bottom. They are hollow, and so tough that they are very difficult to gather. The roots are shaped like the fingers of your hand, long, fleshy fibres that grow very thick. These poisonous roots have sometimes been mistaken for Water Parsnips. The leaves are dark green and glossy. They are not fern-like, as are those of so many of the other umbrella plants.

PLATE XIX: 1. COW PARSNIP 2. WILD CHERVIL
3. SEA CARROT 4. COMMON HEMLOCK

1. COW PARSNIP

The Cow Parsnip is a common plant which you find all over Britain in summer and autumn.

It is one of a large family of plants which have from eight to twenty stiff green spokes at the end of the stem. These spokes are all about the same length, and they stand up like the ribs of an umbrella. In late autumn, when the flowers are withered, the brown ribs still remain on the plant.

Each green rib carries a flat bouquet of flowers. In the centre of this bouquet there are green buds, and all round the buds is a ring of small white flowers.

The stem of the plant is rough and hairy, and it is deeply grooved. The inside is hollow, and when the winter comes, small insects creep into these hollow stems for shelter.

The Cow Parsnip has large, rough leaves. These are covered with coarse hairs, and they always look dusty and shabby. You will notice curious green knobs which appear close to the stem.

These knobs are covered with a thin green sheath, and the flower-bud, with all its spokes still closed, is inside.

This bud grows bigger and bigger until it bursts the sheath. Then the flowers unfold, leaving the green covering still growing from the stem, with a curious green leaf coming out of the end.

2. WILD CHERVIL

This is a slender plant which is very common on hedge-banks and in open woods. It blooms all spring and summer.

The flowers are white, and they grow in clusters at the end of green spokes which look like the ribs of an umbrella. Notice that there is no ring of feathery green leaves where these spokes join the main stem. Before the flowers open, these green spokes bend downward.

There is a ring of tiny pointed leaves at the back of each cluster of flowers. These tiny leaves are tinged with pink, and when the flowers are fully opened, they fold back close to the main stem.

In the centre of each flower there is a long, thin seed-vessel. After all the white petals have fallen off, these seed-vessels grow into fat green beaks, each on a short stalk, and with two green points at the end.

The Wild Chervil is easily recognised by these clusters of green beak-like seed-vessels.

The leaves of the Wild Chervil are pale green, with fern-like divisions. Wherever they join the main stem there is a broad sheath.

The Wild Chervil has a stem which is deeply grooved. This stem is not spotted, but you will find another Chervil, the Rough Chervil, which is very like this one.

In it the stem is covered with purple blotches, and the leaves are blunter and less fern-like.

3. SEA CARROT

The Sea Carrot is common in many parts of Britain, where it blooms on the seashore all summer and autumn.

It belongs to the large family of plants that carry their flowers on green spokes like the ribs of an umbrella, and as these flowers are very confusing, you must notice the differences carefully.

The flowers of the Sea Carrot are usually small and white, though sometimes they have a pinky tinge. They grow in masses at the end of the green spokes. Before the flowers are fully out, these spokes stand straight up in the air, very close together, with the clusters of flower-buds all turned inwards.

But when the buds begin to open, these green spokes fold down so as to give the flowers room to look up towards the sun.

You will always know the Sea Carrot by the curious way the spokes stand close together until the flowers open.

At the top of the main stem, where all the spokes join, there is a circle of feathery green leaves. These feathery leaves each end in three points, and they have a special name which you will learn some day.

The leaves of the Sea Carrot are like fine soft ferns. They are so pretty that people use them for decoration among flowers.

4. COMMON HEMLOCK

The Hemlock is a common plant which is found all summer in waste places by the roadside and in open woods. It is poisonous, and you should look at it carefully, so as to know and avoid it.

The flowers grow in clusters at the end of green spokes like the ribs of an umbrella, which do not droop before they are fully out.

At the back of each little cluster of flowers you find three tiny pointed green leaves which are all turned to one side. This is the first point by which to recognise the Common Hemlock.

The stem is covered with purple blotches, and there is only one other umbrella plant which has a spotted stem.

The Common Hemlock stem is not hairy. It is smooth, with green ridges running up it, and it is not swollen where the leaves branch from it. This is the second point to notice.

The third point, and a very important one, is the shape of the seed-vessels. In the Wild Chervil these are little green beaks, rather long and thin, standing up in clusters. But in the Common Hemlock the seed-vessels are short and round; they are like two small apples stuck close together, and each has a little green swelling at the top. These seed-vessels are covered all over with rough ridges.

The leaves are fern-like, and resemble many of the other umbrella plants.

PLATE XX: 1. MEADOW SWEET. 2. WILD STRAWBERRY. 3. WOOD SORREL.

1. MEADOW SWEET

The Meadow Sweet grows abundantly all summer by the side of streams and in damp places. Many a time its delightful scent has tempted us to gather it in handfuls.

The flowers are creamy white, and are very small, with a great many yellow stamens in the centre. They grow in large clusters on short branching stalks, and the buds look like tiny ivory balls set in small green cups. You often see two or more branched stalks which shoot high above the mass of open flowers, bearing a great many closed buds. When the flowers are withered, the five green sepals fold back against the stem.

The green leaves of the Meadow Sweet are dark and rough above, but underneath they are covered with white down. They have a central leaf-stalk, and on each side of the stalk grow a pair of big leaflets and a pair of small leaflets alternately. Sometimes two pairs of very small leaflets may come together, and at the end of the stalk you always find one big leaflet which has several points.

The stem of this plant is hard, and it has lines running from end to end. Where the flower-stalk and the leaf-stalk join this stem, you find a curious green sheath, which seems to clasp them all together, and this sheath has sharply cut edges.

2. WILD STRAWBERRY

The Wild Strawberry is common all over Britain. In early summer you find it in woods and on shady hedge-banks. This pretty plant is related to the Wild Rose. It has dainty little flowers, with five small white petals, and behind these petals is a star of ten green pointed sepals. Five of these sepals have large points which show in between the white petals as you look down into the flowers, and the five which are smaller you can only see at the back of the flower.

The stamens grow in a ring close round the seed-vessel, and as they are joined to the sepals, they do not fall off when the white petals wither.

As the fruit ripens, the seed-vessel swells into a bright red berry, and you can see the tiny yellow seeds clinging all over this juicy berry.

The green leaves of the Wild Strawberry are beautiful. They are dark and crinkled, with soft hairs on the edges, and these edges are cut into large teeth. There are always three leaflets at the end of each stalk.

This Strawberry plant sends out long green shoots which lie close to the ground. Wherever a tuft of leaves rises from one of these shoots, a little bunch of white roots grows down into the ground, and these help to keep the plant steady.

3. WOOD SORREL

The dainty Wood Sorrel is common all over the country. It grows in damp woods and in shady places, and it blooms in spring.

The flowers grow singly at the end of slender pink stalks. They are large, and have five beautiful white petals, slightly tinged with pink. These petals are covered all over with fine veins, and when the sun shines on the plant they open out almost flat.

If you look closely at the bundle of yellow stamens in the centre of the flower, you will find that five are long and five are short.

Behind the white petals there is a tiny green cup, which is made up of five sepals joined together. The mouth of this cup is edged with five sharp points.

The leaves of the Wood Sorrel are very pretty. Each leaf has a slender pink stalk which springs straight from the root, and every leaf is divided into three delicate leaflets, which are pale green above, and a delicate pale pink below. These leaflets are heart-shaped, and before they have fully opened, they droop close to the stem.

If you taste one of the Wood Sorrel leaves, you will find it is bitter but not unpleasant.

PLATE XXI: 1. GOOSEGRASS OR CLEAVERS 2. WOODRUFF 3. YARROW OR MILLFOIL

1. GOOSEGRASS OR CLEAVERS

This clinging plant is common everywhere. It grows abundantly on every hedge-bank, and it is in bloom all summer and autumn.

The flowers are so small that you scarcely notice them. Each flower has four tiny white petals, and four yellow-headed stamens. Behind the flower there is a ring of narrow pointed pale green leaves.

When the white petals fall off, you see two pale olive or dull purple seeds, shaped like little balls. These balls always grow in pairs, and they are covered with sharp, prickly hooks, which cling to everything they touch. You find them clinging to your clothes, and they get caught in the hair of a dog's back, and you see them sticking to the wool of the sheep who nibble at the hedge-banks.

The square stem of the Goosegrass is rather weak. It, too, has hooks on its four sides, and these hooks catch hold of stronger plants in the hedge-bank, and so help the Goosegrass to rise well above the ground.

The leaves are long and narrow, and they have little hooks along the edge. They grow in a circle of eight round the square stem, with a short space between each circle. You will notice that the stalks which bear the tiny white flowers spring from the same part of the main stem as the leaf circles.

2. WOODRUFF

The sweet-smelling Woodruff is common all over the country, and when dried its perfume is like new-mown hay. It grows in woods and on shady hedge-banks, and it flowers in early summer.

The flowers are small and white, with four petals which stand round the mouth of a tiny tube. Inside this tube are four yellow-headed stamens, and there is a small green sepal-cup in which the white tube stands. The flowers grow in clusters at the end of the main stem. They do not rise from each circle of leaves as in the Goosegrass. The tiny seeds are black, and each seed is thickly covered with soft bristles, which are hooked at the end.

The ridged stem of the Woodruff is often a dull red colour. This stem is very feeble, so the Woodruff is usually found lying in a tangle along the ground. It has not so many hooks as the Goosegrass with which to catch hold of other plants, and so raise itself.

The leaves grow about an inch apart on the stem, in beautiful circles. In each circle there are eight narrow leaves which are pointed at the end. The circles nearest the foot of the stem lie flat open like a rosette, but those that are further up are usually half closed, with all their points standing upwards.

3. YARROW OR MILLFOIL

The Yarrow or Millfoil is a very common plant all over Britain. It grows on waste ground and in the corners of fields, and it is in flower in late summer and autumn.

It is one of the daisy plants, and you must look at it carefully. The flowers grow in clusters, three or four together, at the end of stalks which branch from the main stem. They are white, and look like tiny daisies. You must pick one of them gently to pieces, and then you will find that each daisy is really made up of a great many small flowers crowded together on a disc. The outer flowers consist of a white tube, with one long white strap, and there is a row of these white straps standing out like a frill round the yellow centre. Inside this white border there are a great many tiny yellow tube flowers, with five points at the mouth of each tube, but these you will not see without a microscope.

Outside this mass of flowers grows a ring of small green leaves, which are closely packed together and are very woolly.

The stem of the Yarrow is stiff and smooth and is slightly tinged with red. The leaves are long and narrow, and each leaf is made up of many tiny pairs of leaflets placed opposite each other on the stem. Each leaflet is cut up into many divisions, so that the whole leaf is light and feathery like a small fern.

PLATE XXII: 1. OX-EYE DAISY 2. DAISY 3. SCENTLESS MAYWEED

1. OX-EYE DAISY

The handsome Ox-eye Daisy is common all over Britain. You find it in flower from summer to the end of autumn.

It is a plant with a tall, stiff stem that has ridges running from top to bottom.

Notice how different its leaves are from those of the small Daisy, though both plants belong to the same family.

The flowers in the Ox-eye Daisy are very large. The yellow tube flowers in the centre are crowded together on a flat disc, and outside this disc there is a double ring of tiny white tubes, each of which has one broad white strap. These straps form the beautiful border to the flower.

At the top of the green flower-stalk there is a double ring of narrow green pointed leaves. When the flowers are in bud they look like thick green buttons, with a yellow spot in the middle, as these green leaves are tightly folded in a circle round the flat yellow centre.

The leaves are straggling and very poor-looking for such a handsome plant. They are feather-shaped, with the edges deeply cut up into many blunt points. They have no stalks of their own, but spring from the main stem.

2. DAISY

This well-known plant is to be found all over Britain. It is in flower from spring to late autumn, and I think it is the first flower little children learn to recognise.

But it is often a long time before they get to know anything more about the Daisy than its name, and yet it is an interesting flower, as well as a pretty one.

If you gather a Daisy, and then gently pick it to pieces, you find that it is made up of a great many tiny little flowers crowded together on a pear-shaped centre. These tiny flowers are of two kinds; those in the centre are yellow and are shaped like little tubes, each of which is edged with five points. But in the outer row of flowers, one of the five points has grown into a long white strap, which is tinged with pink and red at the tip.

These pretty white straps are arranged in a double frill round the yellow centre.

At the end of the flower-stalk there is a thick ring of small green pointed leaves, and these, as well as the stalks, are slightly hairy.

The Daisy leaves grow in a rosette close to the ground. They are oval, and each leaf has hairs all over it and round the edges.

3. SCENTLESS MAYWEED

This daisy plant is very common too. It grows all over Britain, and is in flower from June till October.

It is not such a stiff, handsome plant as the Ox-eye Daisy, but much more branched and bushy, and it often grows close to the ground. The stalks are tougher, and they are quite smooth, with fine ridges running up them.

The flower-heads are made up in the same way as those of the other daisy plants. You find a mass of tiny yellow tubes in the centre, and forming a border round this yellow centre is an outer ring of flowers, each with one large white strap.

When the Mayweed begins to wither, these white straps droop towards the stalk, and the yellow centre, instead of remaining nearly flat, becomes the shape of a thimble. You will find many of these yellow thimbles on the plant, after all the white straps are gone.

The tips of the green leaves, which grow in a double ring behind the flowers, are often tinged with pink.

The leaves of the Scentless Mayweed are like many leaves that grow in running water. They are divided into a tangle of fine hair-like points, which spring directly from the main stem without any stalk.

PLATE XXIII: 1. SNOWDROP 2. COMMON STAR OF BETHLEHEM 3. RANSOMS

1. SNOWDROP

The modest Snowdrop, with its graceful, drooping head, grows abundantly all spring in meadows and pastures and orchards in England and Scotland. It is not so common in Ireland.

The flower is enclosed in a grey sheath, edged with bright green lines. After the flower bursts out of the sheath, it droops from the end of a slender flower-stalk. Each flower has six white petals; the three outer petals are boat-shaped towards the tips, and there are three shorter petals which are not curved. These straight petals have a notch cut in the upper edge, and there is a bright green wavy stain just below this notch.

Inside these dainty white petals are six yellow-headed stamens with scarcely any stalks. These stamens stand on the flat round top of the seed-vessel, and in the centre rises its short, pointed pillar.

Notice that the oval green seed-vessel is outside the circle of white petals, at the top of the slender flower-stalk.

A single pair of leaves rise from the Snowdrop root, with the flower-stalk between them. These leaves look like short straps with blunt points. They are bluey green in colour, and have deep grooves running from base to tip.

2. COMMON STAR OF BETHLEHEM

This beautiful starry plant is found in many places in England and in a few in Scotland, but not in Ireland. It grows in meadows and pastures and orchards in early summer.

The flowers grow singly on long stalks which branch near the top of the main stem. There is always a withered-looking brown leaf at the base of each flower-stalk.

The flowers have six large white petals, which are pointed at the tips. The back of each petal is stained with bright green, except round the edge, where it remains white.

There are six yellow-headed stamens clinging to the base of the white petals. These stamens stand up in a circle round a fat green seed-vessel which sits in the centre of the white petals. This seed-vessel has a tiny pointed column in the middle.

The leaves of the Star of Bethlehem are very narrow. From the middle each leaf tapers to a long point. These leaves are deeply channelled, and they have a broad white stripe running down the centre.

3. RANSOMS