The flowers of the Green Gentian are pale greenish-white with dark bluish spots on the tips of the petals. They are crowded in huge clusters a foot or two long on plants 2-6 ft. tall. They bloom all summer and are visited by many kinds of insects in search of honey. The nectaries are protected by a fringe of hairs. The plants grow in spruce and aspen woods or in grassy clearings at 6000-10000 ft. Fragrant Gentian Gentiana barbellata Plate 18, fig. 4 This is also a fringed gentian with very fragrant flowers which bloom in late summer. The petals are pale blue and curiously long. The plants are rare but may be found in open parks and meadows at 9000-12000 ft. [Illustration: Plate 18 GENTIAN FAMILY 1 Rose Gentian: Gentiana amarella 2 Fringed Gentian: Gentiana serrata 3 Green Gentian: Frasera speciosa 4 Fragrant Gentian: Gentiana barbellata 5 Prairie Gentian: Eustoma russellianum 6 Blue Gentian: Gentiana calycosa 7 Star Gentian: Swertia perennis] Prairie Gentian Eustoma russellianum Plate 18, fig. 5 The Prairie Gentian is one of the largest flowered gentians. Wet meadows at 4000-5500 ft. are brilliant in midsummer with the deep reddish-purple flowers. The plants rarely grow taller than 15 in. Blue Gentian Gentiana calycosa Plate 18, fig. 6 The deep blue flowers of this Gentian grow in clusters on plants 5-20 in. tall. They bloom in midsummer and autumn and are found in aspen woods and meadows at 8000-12000 ft. Practically all species of Gentians yield a substance which is one of the best simple bitters and is used in medicine. Star Gentian Swertia perennis Plate 18, fig. 7 The starry blue-purple or white flowers of the Star Gentian are clustered on stems 3-20 in. tall. They grow along brook-banks and in wet meadows and bogs at 8000-13000 ft. and bloom during midsummer. POTATO FAMILY Purple Ground Cherry Quincula lobata Plate 19, fig. 1 This Ground Cherry has beautiful purple flowers, each with a white-rayed, woolly star in the center of the corolla. The plants are low and spreading, and 2-8 in. high. They are found in waste places and along roadsides at 4000-6000 ft., blooming in early and midsummer. The common Ground Cherries usually have yellow flowers and the berries are edible, often being made into jams and pies. [Illustration: Plate 19 POTATO FAMILY 1 Purple Ground Cherry: Quincula lobata 4 Buffalo Bur: Solanum rostratum MORNING GLORY FAMILY