Wild flowers of the north-eastern states : $b Being three hundred and eight individuals common to the north-eastern United States — John Stuart Mill — John Shaqi
Wild flowers of the north-eastern states : $b Being three hundred and eight individuals common to the north-eastern United States
John Stuart Mill · en
The long and narrow leaf has a blunt-pointed tip, an entire margin, and
shows only its midrib; the texture is thick and a little stiff, and the
surface is very slightly rough. In color it is a fine gray-green, with
a hint of the rich color of the flower. The leaves grow upon the stem
in clustered pairs, which occur at right angles to each other.
The small tubular flower is 2-lipped; the narrow upper lip being
2-cleft, while the wider lower lip is 8-cleft, with its middle and
largest lobe cut into 2 scallops. In texture the corolla is fine and
thin, and in color it is a deep and strong purple-blue. The 4 stamens,
and the pistil, are long, and curve out from the hollow of the upper
lip,--they are bright blue, and their tips, at first a rich red, become
white as they mature. The small 5-pointed calyx is reddish, with a fine
green bloom. The flowers grow in close groups of 3 or 5, in the angles
of the leaves, and form an irregular one-sided terminal spike.
This plant affords a perfect example of color-harmony, with its
contrasting absolute purplish-blue corolla, and deep red stamens,
brought into unity by the purple-toned green of its leaves. It has a
strong and pungent scent.
[Illustration: HYSSOP: Hyssopus officinalis.]
*Self Heal.* _Brunella vulgaris._
*Heal All.*
*Thimble-flower (Vt.)*
Found everywhere, among short grass, from July to September.
The stalk (from 6 to 12 inches high) is more or less reclining in
habit; it is leafy, and branching slightly, thick, square, with grooves
on its two opposite sides, tough-fibred, and smooth. In color, light
green.
The leaf is long, oval with a tapering tip, a sparsely notched, or
entire margin, and a smooth surface. Its growth, on short stems, is in
pairs. Green in color.
The flower is irregularly 2-lipped, the upper lip hoodlike, and the
lower 3-lobed, the middle lobe being largest and fringed on its edge.
The color is violet, the hooded lip is generally darker than the other
parts of the corolla; the buds are much deeper in color than the
blossoms. The lower division of the 2-parted calyx has 2 long points; a
broad heart-shaped bract supports its base; in color it is green with a
violet tinge. The flowers grow in an elongated, or thimble-shaped head,
on the end of the stalk, and from the angles of the upper leaves.
The clear violet of the corolla is brought into harmony with the
leaf-green, through the violet tinted calyx which supplies the unifying
color. The plant’s habit of growth is sprangling, for the stem,
which seems strong-fibred in itself, is given to lopping weakly upon
surrounding vegetation.
[Illustration: SELF HEAL: Brunella vulgaris.]
*Motherwort.* _Leonurus Cardiaca._
Found in blossom through July and August, on waste grounds around
dwellings.
The large, stout, square stalk grows from 3 to 4 feet high; it
branches, is very leafy, and of a dull purplish color.