HERE are but few flowers of the Cranes-bill family in Canada. The one most worthy of notice is the Wood Geranium (Geranium maculatum). This is a very ornamental plant: its favourite locality is open grassy thickets among low bushes, especially those tracts of country known as Oak-openings, where it often reaches to the height of from 2° to 3°, throwing out many branches adorned with deep lilac flowers; the half-opened buds are very lovely. The blossom consists of five petals, obtuse and slightly indented on their upper margins, and are lined and delicately veined with purple. The calyx consists of five pointed sepals; stamens ten; the anthers are of a reddish brown; styles five, cohering at the top. When the seed is mature these curl up, bearing the ripe brown seed adhering to the base of each one. The common name Cranes-bill has been derived from the long grooved and stork-like beak which supports the stigma. The Greek name of the plant means a Crane. The whole plant is more or less beset with silvery hairs. The leaves are divided into about five principal segments; these again are lobed and cut into sharply pointed irregularly sized teeth. The larger hairy root leaves are often discoloured with red and purplish blotches, from whence the specific name (maculatum) spotted, has been given by botanists to this species.
The flower stem is much branched and furnished with leafy bracts; the principal flowers are on long stalks, usually three springing from a central branch and again subdividing into smaller branchlets terminating in buds mostly in threes, on drooping slender pedicels; as the older and larger blossoms fall off a fresh succession appears on the side branches, furnishing rather smaller but equally beautiful flowers during many weeks. Gray gives the blooming season of the Cranes-bill from April to July, but with us it rarely appears before June, and may be seen all through July and August.
This Wood Geranium is a beautiful species, and would no doubt repay the trouble of cultivation. Besides being very ornamental our plant possesses virtues which are well known to the herbalist as powerful astringents, which quality has obtained for it the name of ‘Alum root’ among the country people, who apply a decoction of the root as a styptic for wounds; and sweetened, as a gargle for sore throats and ulcerated mouth: it is also given to young children to correct a lax state of the system.
Thus our plant is remarkable for its usefulness as well as for its beauty.
A showy species, with large rose-coloured flowers and much dissected leaves, may be found on some of the rocky islets in Stoney Lake, Ont. The slender flower stem is about six inches in height, springing from a leafy involucre which is cut and divided into many long and narrow segments; flowers generally from one to three, terminal on the little bracted-foot-stalks. The seed vessels not so long as in the Wood Geranium.
Besides the above named we have two smaller species. The well known Herb Robert—G. Robertianum or fœtid geranium—which is said to have been introduced from Britain, but is by no means uncommon in Canada, in half cleared woodlands and by waysides attracting the eye by its bright pink flowers, and elegantly cut leaves, which becomes bright red in the fall of the year. This pretty species is renowned for its rank and disagreeable odour when handled.
Another small flowered species, with pale insignificant blossoms is also common as a weed by road sides and in open woods, probably this is G. pusilum, smaller Cranes-bill; it also resembles the British plant, but is of too frequent occurrence in remote localities to lead us to suppose it to be otherwise than a native production of the soil.
Nat. Ord. Primulaceæ.