The small bell-shaped flowers have 5 recurved points, and are white, striped on the inside with hair lines of pink; their 5 yellowish stamens are arranged in a short, pointed cone. They hang on short stems, in small clusters from the ends of the branches and the angles of the leaves.
Taken by itself the Dogbane’s flower is pretty, but the plant is sprangly in growth and awkward in gesture; its branches spread at an unpleasing angle, and the leaves are stiffly set. It is seen at its best among tall grasses, where only the pink bells of the flowering tips arise above the neighboring growths. The plant is much visited by a small iridescent green beetle.
SPREADING DOGBANE: Apocynum androsæmifolium.
| Indian Hemp. | Apocynum cannabinum. |
Found on river banks during July and August.
This branching plant, from 2 to 3 feet in height, has milky juice, smooth and exceedingly tough bark, and is dull red in color.
The tip of the oval leaf is abruptly sharp-pointed; the margin is entire, the surface is smooth, and the color is dark green. The leaves are set on short stems, and placed in pairs.
The small and inconspicuous flowers are 5-pointed, and greenish white. They form small flat clusters on the ends of the branches.
The leaves and flowers have a faint pleasant odor. The plant is extremely awkward in gesture, without the redeeming grace of bloom belonging to its next of kin, the Dogbane.