One to two feet high. Stem.—Smooth, pale, erect. Leaves.—Oblong, veiny. Flowers.—Blue, pinkish in bud, in raceme-like clusters which are rolled up from the end and straighten as the flowers expand. Calyx.—Five-cleft. Corolla.—Trumpet-shaped, one inch long, spreading. Stamens.—Five. Pistil.—One.
These very lovely blossoms are found in moist places during April and May in parts of New York as well as south and westward. The English naturalist, Mr. Alfred Wallace, seeing them, for the first time, in the vicinity of Cincinnati, writes in the Fortnightly Review: “In a damp river-bottom, the exquisite blue Mertensia Virginica was found. It is called here the ‘Virginian cowslip,’ its drooping porcelain-blue bells being somewhat of the size and form of those of the true cowslip.”
Blue-eyed Mary. Innocence.
Collinsia verna. Figwort Family.
Six to twenty inches high. Stems.—Branching, slender. Leaves.—Opposite, the lower oval, the upper ovate—lance-shaped, clasping by the heart-shaped base. Flowers.—Blue and white, long-stalked, appearing whorled in the axils of the upper leaves. Calyx.—Deeply five-cleft. Corolla.—Deeply two-lipped, the upper lip two-cleft, the lower three-cleft. Stamens.—Four. Pistil.—One.
Unfortunately these dainty flowers are not found farther east than Western New York. From there they spread south and westward, abounding so plentifully in the vicinity of Cincinnati that the moist meadows are blue with their blossoms in spring or early summer.
Forget-me-not.
Myosotis laxa. Borage Family.
Stems.—Slender. Leaves.—Alternate, lance-oblong. Flowers.—Blue, small, growing in a raceme. Calyx.—Five-lobed. Corolla.—Salver-shaped, five-toothed. Stamens.—Five. Pistil.—One.
Along the banks of the stream, and in low wet places, we may look for these exquisite little flowers. This plant is smaller and less luxuriant than the European species, blossoming in early summer.
Wild Phlox.
Phlox divaricata. Polemonium Family.
Nine to eighteen inches high. Stems.—Spreading or ascending. Leaves.—Opposite, oblong or lance-oblong, Flowers.—Pale lilac-purple, in a loose, spreading cluster. Calyx.—With five slender teeth. Corolla.—With a five-parted border, salver-shaped, with a long tube. Stamens.—Five, unequally inserted in the tube of the corolla. Pistil.—One, with a three-lobed style.