Flowerless Plants
 
 Go Forth Under the Open Sky and List to Nature's Teachings. 
 
 BRYANT.
 
 FLOWERLESS PLANTS 
 
 Ferns, Mushrooms, Mosses, Lichens, and 
 Seaweeds 
 
 By 
 ELIZABETH H. HALE, A.B. 
 
 Head of Department, 
 Public Schools, Brooklyn, New York 
 
 Nature ever yields reward 
 
 To him who seeks, and loves her best. 
 
 CORNWALL. 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 GEORGE S. HULBERT & COMPANY 
 1907
 
 Copyright, 1907, by George S. Hulbert & Company 
 
 The Trow Press, New York
 
 PREFACE 
 
 THE purpose of this book is threefold: 
 
 1. To interest children in flowerless plants and to 
 lead them to a desire for further knowledge. 
 
 2. To present a few facts in such a way as to enable 
 the reader to discover for himself others equally in- 
 teresting. 
 
 3. To aid many who have found it difficult to ob- 
 tain information on this subject without a tedious 
 search through volumes not easily procured. 
 
 It is earnestly to be hoped that this book will in no 
 sense displace the study of the real plants, but that 
 it may be rather an incentive and an aid to field work. 
 More can be learned out " under the open sky" than 
 from any book, and there is greater pleasure in knowl- 
 edge thus gained. This book is but an introduction 
 to nature's flowerless plants, for this is all that can be 
 presented in so small a volume. 
 
 An effort has been made to secure illustrations that 
 will be helpful, and to keep the language within the 
 comprehension of the young readers, whom we wish 
 to reach. For this reason few technical terms have 
 been used, and these in such a way as to be readily 
 understood. 
 
 For several years the author has studied nature in 
 
 5
 
 PREFACE 
 
 the woods and fields, and at home with the micro- 
 scope. Among the books consulted which have been 
 especially helpful for ferns are Gray's Manual, Mrs. 
 Dana's How to Know the Ferns, Clute's Our Ferns in 
 Their Haunts, and Waters' s Ferns. To the last we are 
 especially indebted for information about spores and 
 the growing of young ferns. 
 
 Marshall's Mushroom Book, Gibson's Our Edible 
 Toadstools and Mushrooms, Palmer's About Mush- 
 rooms, and Atkinson's Studies of American Fungi have 
 been most helpful in the work on those interesting 
 plants. 
 
 For the study of mosses and lichens Macmillan's 
 Footnotes from the Pages of Nature, Grout's books on 
 Mosses, and Lindsay's British Lichens were consulted. 
 Hervey's Sea Mosses and Arnold's Sea Beach at Ebb 
 Tide were of great assistance in the study of seaweeds. 
 
 Nearly all the illustrations were from the author's 
 own specimens. To Mr. Henry E. Bedford we are 
 indebted for the photographs, and to Miss Sylvia C. 
 Warren for her assistance in the color work and in the 
 pen and ink sketches. 
 
 To Miss Emma L. Wagenseil we are under obliga- 
 tions for some of our specimens of mosses. 
 
 Our thanks are also due to Mr. Edward B. Shallow, 
 Associate Superintendent of Schools in Greater New 
 York, for reading the manuscript, for helpful sugges- 
 tions, and kindly words of encouragement. 
 
 6
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 NATURE'S TEACHINGS 9 
 
 PARTS OF A FERN 13 
 
 How FERNS GROW 15 
 
 OTHER WAYS TO START NEW FERNS . . . . . 19 
 
 FERNS IN SPRING 22 
 
 THROUGH THE YEAR WITH THE FERNS ... . . . 25 
 
 THE MARSH FERN ... . . . . 28 
 
 THE BRACKEN .... ..... 30 
 
 THE RATTLESNAKE FERN 33 
 
 THE EBONY SPLEENWORT 36 
 
 THE MAIDENHAIR FERN ... ... 38 
 
 THE OSMUNDES ... ... 40 
 
 THE LADY FERN ... 44 
 
 THE SENSITIVE FERN . 46 
 
 THE CHRISTMAS FERN . ... 48 
 
 THE SPINULOSE WOOD FERN . . 50 
 
 THE COMMON POLYPODY . 52 
 THE RUSTY WOODSIA ... . .54 
 
 THE EVERGREEN WOOD FERN ... 57 
 
 FERNS IN STONE AND COAL ... ... 58 
 
 MUSHROOMS ...... 62 
 
 PARTS OF A MUSHROOM 65 
 
 How MUSHROOMS GROW 68 
 
 THE COMMON MEADOW MUSHROOM ..... 70 
 
 THE FAIRY-RING MUSHROOM ....... 73 
 
 7
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 THE BOLETI . 
 
 PINK CAPS .... 
 
 THE AMANITA FAMILY 
 
 TREE MUSHROOMS . . 
 
 PUFFBALLS 
 
 THE CORAL FUNGI 
 
 MOSSES 
 
 PARTS OF THE Moss PLANT 
 
 TREE MOSSES . . . 
 
 PEAT Moss 
 
 FERN MOSSES . 
 
 HAIR-CAP MOSSES 
 
 HYPNUM MOSSES 
 
 WATER MOSSES 
 
 OTHER COMMON MOSSES 
 
 LICHENS 
 
 REINDEER Moss 
 
 ICELAND Moss 
 
 LICHENS AS DYESTUFFS . 
 
 A FEW COMMON LICHENS . 
 
 SEAWEEDS . . . . 
 
 ULVA 
 
 Fucus, OR ROCKWEED . 
 
 SARGASSUM, OR GULFWEED 
 
 EDIBLE SEAWEEDS . . 
 
 GIANT SEAWEEDS 
 
 SEA TANGLE 
 
 SEA FLOWERS 
 
 8
 
 NATURE'S TEACHINGS 
 
 LONGFELLOW tells us to go to the woods and hills 
 and learn lessons from nature. And Bryant, too, 
 another of our poets, says 
 
 "Go forth under the open sky and list 
 To Nature's teachings." 
 
 If you would do this, you might learn what a won- 
 derful teacher nature is. Perhaps the birds would 
 tell you how they build their nests and take care of their 
 little ones. In the woods and fields you would find 
 
 "On many a green branch swinging, 
 Little birdie ts singing." 
 
 Soon you would learn to know each by its song, 
 even when you could not see it. 
 
 Then there are those busy little creatures, the 
 insects and spiders! They would show you how many 
 things they have to do and how they do them. Among 
 them is 
 
 "The honeybee that wanders all day long 
 The field, the woodland, and the garden o'er, 
 To gather in his fragrant winter store." 
 
 9
 
 NATURE'S TEACHINGS 
 
 Here, too, is the ant, whose example all idle peo- 
 ple are told to follow. You may learn from the in- 
 sects that the smallest of God's creatures have work 
 to do. 
 
 The soil and the rocks can tell you wonderful 
 stories. They have traveled great distances and have 
 seen many strange sights along the way. When you 
 know them well, you can often find out where they 
 have come from. 
 
 You have already learned many things about plants ; 
 you can name their parts and you have seen the beauti- 
 ful blossoms fade and die. You know that from them 
 comes the seed with its baby plant wrapped close to 
 protect it from harm. 
 
 But do you know that there are some plants upon 
 which no bright, fragrant blossoms are ever seen? 
 It is about these flowerless plants that we are going 
 to read in this book. Perhaps you think that there 
 are not many of them. If so, you are mistaken; 
 there is really a greater number of flowerless plants 
 than there is of flowering ones. Among them are 
 ferns, mosses, and seaweeds. Others are the lichens, 
 ground pine, and fungi, such as toadstools, or mush- 
 rooms. 
 
 The ferns are the largest of them all. They are 
 also the most like the flowering plants. Like them 
 their leaves are closely packed away from the winter's 
 cold. When spring comes, the ferns stretch up into 
 
 10
 
 NATURE'S TEACHINGS 
 
 the light and send up green leaves borne upon 
 slender stems. It is because the ferns are so much 
 like flowering plants that we are going to read about 
 them first. 
 
 As we go on with our story you will learn many 
 things about these plants. But reading is not see- 
 ing, and Mother Nature's invitation is, "Come and 
 
 see." 
 
 You can learn more from the plants themselves 
 "under the open sky" than you can from books. 
 
 Then go into the woods and fields when you can. 
 But do not wait to do that. Use your eyes wherever 
 you are. In the country the ferns are growing along 
 the roadside. Mosses, lichens, and toadstools, or 
 mushrooms, are almost at your feet as you walk about. 
 Even in the city streets we may see these. You may 
 find moss upon the walks, on the cellar wall, and in the 
 neighboring patches of short grass. Do not pass these 
 by if you would like to know what they can teach 
 you. 
 
 Do you remember the story of Fawn-footed Nannie 
 and what she saw and heard? Suppose that you try 
 to make your ears and eyes like hers. 
 
 "' Fawn-footed Nannie, where have you been?' 
 'Chasing the sunbeams into the glen, 
 Plunging thro' silver lakes after the moon, 
 , Tracking o'er meadows the footsteps of June.' 
 
 11
 
 NATURE'S TEACHINGS 
 
 'Fawn-footed Nannie, what did you see?' 
 1 Saw the fays sewing leaves on a tree ; 
 Saw the waves counting the eyes of the stars, 
 Saw cloudlamps sleeping by sunset's red bars.' 
 
 ' Nannie, dear Nannie, take me with you, too, 
 
 So I may listen and see as you do.' 
 'Nay! you must borrow my ear and my eye, 
 
 Or music will vanish and beauty will die.' " 
 
 12
 
 FERNS 
 
 PARTS OF A FERN 
 
 LET us first try to find out something about the 
 parts of a fern. Do you remember how many kinds of 
 roots you found when you studied flowering plants? 
 The roots of ferns resemble some of these. They are 
 like stems growing under the ground and sending out 
 little rootlets, as you see in the picture. This under- 
 
 A Slender, Creeping Rootstock. 
 
 A Short, Stout Root- 
 stock. 
 
 ground stem is called a rootstock. Some rootstocks 
 are short and stout. They send up their leaves in 
 circles, but only in the spring. In these circles the 
 
 13
 
 FERNS 
 
 younger leaves are always in the middle. In the very 
 center you will find circles of buds which afterward 
 grow into leaves. 
 
 Other kinds of ferns have long, slender rootstoc!-" 
 which creep along under the ground and have many 
 
 branches. The leaves of 
 these come up in irreg- 
 ular clusters, or else 
 single leaf grows up here 
 and there along the root- 
 stock. New ones come 
 up every little while dur- 
 ing the summer. 
 
 The buds of ferns are 
 different from those of 
 flowering plants. They 
 are always coiled or folded 
 close. Very rarely do we 
 find this arrangement in 
 any other plant. When 
 a bud is all uncoiled, the leafy part is known as the 
 blade. The stem, or stalk, of the fern leaf is called 
 a stipe. The blade and stipe together form the frond, 
 but the blade alone often receives this name. 
 
 The work of a plant is to grow. The parts needed 
 for this work are a root, a stem, and leaves. The fern 
 has all of these. 
 
 Nature has given each part something to do. She 
 
 14 
 
 A Fern Frond. 
 
 Fern Buds 
 Uncoiling.
 
 HOW FERNS GROW 
 
 says to the root: "Cling fast to the earth and hold 
 this plant in its place. Get all the food and drink 
 that you can from the soil and give them to the 
 
 To the stipe she says: "Take the food and water 
 from the rootstock and carry them to the leaves, for 
 they need these to help them grow large and strong." 
 Then she asks the leaves to take the nourishment that 
 is brought them and to spread out their blades, so that 
 the light and moisture may reach every part, for she 
 wants them to grow just as fast as they can. 
 
 And the busy little ferns will help to make us 
 happy by doing their part to make our earth more 
 beautiful. 
 
 HOW FERNS GROW 
 
 WE have learned that the work of all plants is to 
 grow. Flowering plants have other work to do. When 
 they have grown large and strong enough, they put 
 forth flowers. Later still, they are very busy forming 
 seeds and caring for them. By and by new plants 
 will grow from these seeds. 
 
 Flowerless plants do not have flowers or seeds, but 
 Mother Nature finds another way for them to give 
 us new plants. 
 
 If, in midsummer, you look on the under side of 
 
 15
 
 FER^S 
 
 the fronds of some of our common ferns you will see 
 many small, brownish spots. These are fruit dots. 
 Sometimes each fruit dot has a thin, whitish cover- 
 ing. This hides it until it is nearly 
 ripe. The fruit dots are made up of 
 small bodies called spore cases. Within 
 these are the spores, which are set free 
 when ripe. These spores take the 
 
 TOP VIEW 
 
 $$**-' ' 
 
 Parts of Fern 
 Leaves with 
 Fruit Dots. 
 
 SIDE VIEW SIDE VIEW 
 
 Forms of Spore Cases. 
 
 place of the seeds which we find in flowering plants. 
 From them come new plants. 
 
 Here are pictures of the spore cases of some of our 
 common ferns. See how the spores are scattered. 
 Notice the stalked spore case. Around it is a jointed 
 
 16
 
 HOW FERNS GROW 
 
 ring. When the spores 
 within are nearly ripe the 
 ring becomes dry. This 
 causes a strain that bursts 
 the spore case. The ring 
 straightens out with a 
 jerk, tearing open the 
 spore case and scattering 
 
 the Spores in all direc- The Stalked Spore Case. 1, Closed; 
 tions. The wind Often 2, Open;. 3, Scattering the Seeds. 
 
 carries them great dis- 
 tances. 
 
 When the spores are 
 set free they fall to the 
 ground. If the soil is 
 moist, they will begin 
 to grow in a few days. 
 The brown coat bursts 
 open. A long tube, di- 
 vided into cells by cross 
 partitions, springs from 
 it. Then hairlike roots 
 a, A Spore before it Begins to Grow; are seen here and there. 
 
 b, Opened Spore with Tube Show- These fasten the young 
 
 ing Cross Partitions and Root-like p l ant to the Soil. Soon 
 
 Hairs; c, Tube with End Rattened r . , .. , 
 
 into Prothallium; d, Tube with the end of tne 
 
 Prothallium Full Grown. flattens out and forms 
 
 17
 
 FERNS 
 
 a small, green, platelike object. This is called the pro- 
 thal'li-um. When fully grown it is less than half an inch 
 across. On the under side of this are two sets of organs. 
 One set does the work of the stamens of the flower. The 
 other set does the work of the pistils. By the union of 
 the contents of these two sets of or- 
 gans a new fern plant is formed. 
 
 Young Fern Plants, a, Prothallia from which Young Plants Grow; 
 6, Leaves of the Young Fern Plants. 
 
 The first leaves of the little plant are very small 
 and simple, not at all like the later ones. They are so 
 nearly alike in most of our ferns that you cannot tell 
 one from another when the plants are very small. 
 The young fern receives its food through the prothal- 
 lium until it is old enough to take care of itself. Then 
 the prothallium dies away. 
 
 Do not mistake spores for seeds. Both fall from 
 the parent plant when fully ripe. Both begin to grow 
 if they fall upon a moist soil. But a seed, when planted, 
 sends up a plant like the parent ; a fern plant does not 
 
 18
 
 OTHER WAYS TO START NEW FERNS 
 
 come up from a spore. The prothallium comes first, 
 and from that the fern grows. 
 
 If you have sharp eyes you may be able to find 
 fern prothallia in the woods or fields. Look for them 
 along the moist and shaded banks of a stream or on 
 decaying stumps. You may also see them at the 
 florists', where they are found in the boxes used for 
 growing young ferns. Sometimes they are on the 
 outside of flowerpots, where the spores have fallen 
 accidentally and have begun to grow. 
 
 Perhaps you would like to raise some ferns from 
 spores. It is very easy and you would enjoy watching 
 them. Put some rich earth in a deep flowerpot saucer. 
 Scatter some spores over the surface of this earth, and 
 keep the soil moist by placing the saucer in a plate 
 containing a little water. Cover the saucer with a 
 deep glass dish. This screens it from the sun and keeps 
 the earth moist. Look for the spores to begin to grow 
 in about a week. Sometimes it takes longer than that ; 
 so do not become discouraged if they do not appear 
 on time. From three to seven years is required for 
 a fern to become old enough to have spores of its own. 
 
 OTHER WAYS TO START NEW FERNS 
 
 You have learned how ferns begin to produce spores, 
 and also how the young plants grow from these spores. 
 But the ferns have other ways to start new plants. 
 
 19
 
 FERNS 
 
 Some of the rootstocks send out branches in all direc- 
 tions. After a while these branches send up their own 
 fronds. Then they separate from the old rootstock 
 and form new fern plants. 
 
 One dainty little fern has all along the under side 
 of the stem curious little bulbs about the size of a 
 grain of pepper. After a while these fall to the ground. 
 
 In a week or two new plants 
 begin to grow out of them. 
 Each bulb is made up of two 
 or three little bits of fleshy 
 green scales joined together 
 at the base. If you w~atch 
 them at this time, you will 
 see a couple of slender roots 
 
 Fern Growing from a Bulb. springing from between ^ the 
 
 scales. These reach down into 
 
 the soil. Then a tiny frond begins to uncoil from the 
 heart of the bulb. After it come larger and larger 
 ones, until it is a good-sized plant. As these fronds 
 grow, the rootstocks push out from the bulb, growing 
 larger and thicker as the fern gains strength. 
 
 There is a fern, called the walking fern, which has 
 another way of forming new plants. In August the 
 fronds are fully grown. Then the tips of some of the 
 longer ones bend down against the rock or into the 
 moss. Soon a young plant with two or three tiny 
 fronds is found growing upon the end of the leaf. 
 
 20
 
 OTHER WAYS TO START NEW FERNS 
 
 Let us see how these young plants start. At first the 
 end of the frond becomes thicker. Soon a tiny frond 
 begins to uncoil. Others follow, until a little rosette 
 of from three to six leaves is pressed close against the 
 moss. The young plant keeps its connection with the 
 
 'S. C * = 
 
 The Walking Fern. 
 
 older one until the next summer. Then the large 
 frond withers away and the young fern starts out upon 
 an independent life. In this way these ferns spread 
 rapidly. Notice in the picture the lobes at the base 
 of the leaves. Sometimes new plants are formed on 
 these in the same way. There are a few other ferns 
 that start young plants in this manner. 
 
 21
 
 FERNS 
 
 FERNS IN SPRING 
 
 THE soft air and the warm sunshine seemed to say: 
 "Good news! Good news! Winter is going away! 
 Come out into the woods and fields." What do you 
 think we found? The robin and the bluebird had come. 
 Pussy Willow had taken the scales from her winter buds, 
 and they were all soft and furry. On some of the shrubs 
 and trees the leaf buds were starting out. The early 
 spring plants were beginning to put forth their delicate 
 blossoms. 
 
 What is that down among the rocks and fallen 
 trees? A few weeks ago there was a mass of dead 
 leaves, mixed with brown papery or hairlike scales. 
 Now, something green is beginning to grow. The 
 parts are all coiled up like little watch springs! There 
 is only one kind of a plant that comes up in that way. 
 It must be a fern and those are its uncoiling buds. 
 They are called crosiers. 
 
 The crosiers are not alike in all ferns. Some are 
 clothed with a coat of silvery-white wool. These are 
 sometimes called fiddleheads. When the weather be- 
 comes warmer, they will turn to a yellowish brown and 
 the woolly covering will disappear. Over there by the 
 roadside is another kind of crosiers. They are covered 
 with soft, short hairs of a silvery gray. Instead of the one 
 coil, there are three divisions, which unroll separately. 
 
 22
 
 FERNS IN SPRING 
 
 In the woods, we see circular clumps of uncoiling 
 buds. They are thickly covered with silky white scales 
 that make them easily seen above the dark soil. Along 
 the stream there are some slender crosiers somewhat 
 
 Crosiers with Three Divisions. 
 
 " Fiddleheads." 
 
 different in shape. They look like little green spheres 
 as they nod at the tops of their long stems. 
 
 Here are three kinds that show brighter colors in 
 their uncoiling fronds. The first has a stipe of a clear 
 
 23
 
 FERNS 
 
 wine color with light, 
 thin scales. The leafy 
 part is of a yellowish 
 green. Another mass of 
 buds has a tawny pink 
 hue. A third kind be- 
 longs to a fern having 
 a delicate frond. The 
 crosiers are slender and 
 the stems are covered 
 with a bluish bloom. The 
 uncoiling leaves are of 
 a dull-red color. These 
 ferns give a touch of 
 brightness to the spring 
 woods. 
 
 One of our poets 
 
 has written the following lines about the fern at this 
 
 season : 
 
 "Have ye e'er watched it budding, 
 
 With each stem and leaf wrapped small, 
 Coiled up within each other 
 Like a round and hairy ball? 
 
 Have ye watched that ball unfolding, 
 
 Each closely nestling curl, 
 Its fair and feathery leaflets 
 
 Their spreading forms unfurl? 
 24 
 
 " The Green and Graceful Fern, 
 How Beautiful it is."
 
 THROUGH THE YEAR WITH THE FERNS 
 
 Oh, then most gracefully they wave 
 
 In the forest, like a sea, 
 And dear as they are beautiful 
 
 Are these fern leaves to me." 
 
 THROUGH THE YEAR WITH THE FERNS 
 
 ONCE uncurled, the ferns spread out their broad 
 leaves and grow and grow. By the first of June their 
 waving fronds may be seen in all directions. Many of 
 them are water-lovers. These grow beside the running 
 brook or in the midst of a tangled swamp. We may 
 also find them on the rocks close to the waterfall. 
 
 "Far upward 'neath a shelving cliff, 
 
 Where cool and deep the shadows fall, 
 The trembling fern its graceful fronds 
 Displays along the mossy wall. 
 
 The wild flowers shun these craggy heights 
 Their haunts are in the vale below; 
 
 But beauty ever clothes the rocks 
 
 Where Nature bids the ferns to grow." 
 
 During the months of July and August most of the 
 ferns are full of leaves. On the under side of some of 
 the fronds we see the brown velvety spores. Other 
 plants have tall branching fruit clusters. These are 
 
 25
 
 FERNS 
 
 the months to find some of our rarest ferns. But 
 this is not always easy. If you really wish to see 
 
 Where Some of Our Ferns Grow. 
 
 No other plants know so well how to choose their haunts. If you wish to 
 know the ferns you must follow them to Nature's most sacred retreats. 
 
 MRS. DANA. 
 
 them you must search for them in nature's hiding 
 places. 
 
 When you get there, you will find other things, too : 
 the bright-colored butterflies, the rocks with their car- 
 
 26
 
 THROUGH THE YEAR WITH THE FERNS 
 
 pets of mosses and lichens, and the wild fruits and 
 flowers. 
 
 In September some of the late ferns show ripened 
 spores. Then come the bright days of October, when 
 the trees and shrubs are clothed in orange, red, bronze, 
 and yellow. Many of the ferns, too, change color. 
 A few are bleached almost white. Some wear gowns 
 of a j^ellowish tint, while others dress in brown. Near 
 by is a neighbor in orange. 
 
 All of these gradually disappear until we are left 
 with the evergreen ferns in their sober dresses. Their 
 stems become weakened by the cold and seem unable 
 to hold the plants erect. 
 
 Our coldest winter months come. But even then 
 we find some 'ferns that are proof against the ice and 
 snow. They nestle close to the earth and are not 
 harmed by the sharp, cold winds that blow about 
 them. Here we may find them if we visit the woods 
 in winter. No trace of green is seen among the others. 
 They look as if they were dead. But listen to what 
 they have to say: 
 
 "You think I am dead, 
 The dainty fern said, 
 Because I am coiled so small! 
 I never have died, 
 But safe I hide 
 In a soft and fuzzy ball. 
 27
 
 FERNS 
 
 Here I can rest through the long winter time; 
 
 When the robins call, 
 
 I shall hear them all, 
 And up I'll begin to climb." 
 
 This voice comes from yonder mass of dead leaves. 
 Now we remember that it was from such a place as 
 this that the crosiers grew up in the spring. So we 
 know that these fern children sleep in warm beds. 
 Instead of soft wool blankets like ours, a close cover- 
 ing of. brown leaves is provided. Under these they 
 are snug and warm during the cold winter. 
 
 THE MARSH FERN 
 
 Do not think that because this plant is called the 
 marsh fern it always grows in swamps. While that is 
 its favorite dwelling place, it is also found in wet 
 woods and by roadside ditches, where 
 
 "O'er the turbid water's breast 
 The plumes are waving green." 
 
 It is occasionally seen in dry pastures. The fronds 
 that are shown in the picture were found in a cattle 
 pasture through which ran a small brook. The cattle, 
 by their trampling, had made a soft, watery mud along 
 the banks of this stream. Here the ferns had found a 
 spot that suited them. 
 
 28
 
 THE MARSH FERN 
 
 You see that they have rather stiff-looking fronds. 
 These are of a pale, dull green. The stipes are usually 
 very long for the size of the frond. 
 
 Early in the spring, before other marsh plants 
 come up, the slender crosiers of this fern appear. They 
 look like little green 
 balls nodding to each 
 other, from the tops of 
 their tall stipes. The 
 rootstocks are long and 
 slender. The leaves 
 come up during the 
 'whole summer. None 
 of the early fronds bear 
 spores. 
 
 About the middle of 
 July the spore-bearing, 
 or fertile, fronds ap- 
 pear. The fruit dots 
 are in a double row on 
 each leaflet. They are 
 well grown before the frond uncurls. The edges of 
 the leaves are turned over to the under side, so as to 
 cover the fruit dots when they are young. Perhaps 
 you can see this in the frond at the left, which has 
 its under side toward you. 
 
 As the spores ripen, the spore cases spread out and 
 often cover all the under side of the leaf. One writer 
 
 29 
 
 The Marsh Fern.
 
 FERNS 
 
 says that these leaflets with their edges turned over 
 are thought to look very much like tiny, half-open 
 snuff-boxes. For this reason the plant has been 
 called the snuff-box fern. The fruited fronds are 
 heavier than the early sterile ones. The spores ripen 
 in September. 
 
 In deep woods the marsh fern grows tall and slen- 
 der, but has little fruit. In the sun it has much fruit, 
 but the fronds become thick and yellowish and are 
 often twisted. Sometimes the ends of the fronds turn 
 half-way around, while the tips of the leaflets bend 
 toward each other. 
 
 After the first sharp frost the fronds that are in 
 exposed places generally wither. In sheltered situ- 
 ations they may keep green for a month or more longer. 
 Never shall we find them defying frost and showing 
 their green plumes amid the ice and snow of winter. 
 
 THE BRACKEN 
 
 ONE of the commonest of American ferns is the 
 bracken. It often grows to be several feet in height. 
 Its smooth, black rootstock is deep in the earth and 
 has many branches. The crosiers are covered with 
 silvery-gray down. They come up singly at intervals 
 of from six inches to six feet. The three divisions, 
 unrolling separately, look somewhat like the claws 
 of a large bird. 
 
 30
 
 THE BRACKEN 
 
 The picture shows you a branch of a full-grown 
 frond. It is coarse and spreading. The color is a 
 dark, dull green. All fronds are about the same shape. 
 The edges of the spore-bearing ones are bent over to 
 form a covering for the spore cases. When young 
 this covering makes a silvery-white edging on the 
 under side of the frond. As the 
 spores ripen, they push it back 
 and peep out. Then they turn to 
 a deep, rich brown and make the 
 frond look as if it were em- 
 broidered. 
 
 Other names for this plant are 
 brake, umbrella fern, upland, and 
 eagle fern. The last name was 
 probably given because of some- 
 thing eaglelike about the plant. 
 Perhaps it was the clawlike crosiers, 
 or it may have been that the broad fronds looked 
 like an eagle's wings. 
 
 There are many superstitions about the bracken. 
 At one time it was thought to protect one from 
 goblins and witches. In the seventeenth century it 
 was the custom to burn the bracken when rain was 
 needed. 
 
 The bracken is the fern that was supposed to bear 
 the " mystic fern seed." According to the legend, 
 fern seed could be obtained from this plant on mid- 
 31 
 
 Crosiers of the 
 Bracken.
 
 FERNS 
 
 The Bracken. 
 
 summer eve only. 
 At dusk the fern 
 was supposed to 
 put forth a tiny 
 blue flower. This 
 soon gave place to 
 a small, shining 
 seed that ripened 
 at midnight. If it 
 fell from the stem 
 of its own accord 
 and was caught 
 in a white napkin, 
 it was thought to 
 give its possessor 
 the power to be- 
 come invisible. 
 
 "It boasteth a name of mystic fame, 
 
 For who findeth its magic seed 
 A witching and weirdly gift may claim, 
 
 To help him in his need ; 
 Unseen, unknown, ,he may pass alone 
 
 Who knoweth the fern seed's spell ; 
 Like the viewless blast, he sweepeth past, 
 
 And walks invisible." 
 
 The bracken is one of the useful ferns. Fruit, fish, 
 and vegetables are sometimes packed in it to keep 
 
 32
 
 THE RATTLESNAKE FERN 
 
 them from mildew and decay. The young crosiers 
 may be cooked and eaten like asparagus. These are 
 often sold in the Japanese market. In some places 
 in Europe the roots have been ground and mixed with 
 flour in making bread. 
 
 Houses have been thatched with the large bracken 
 fronds. In some parts of the world they are used as 
 a bedding for cattle. The fresh plants are sometimes 
 of service in tanning light leathers, as they contain 
 much tannic and other acids. In Scotland they used 
 to be burned when green. Then the ashes were made 
 into balls to be used instead of soap. 
 
 The bracken is very hard to transplant and start 
 in a new place; but when once started it is just as 
 difficult to root it out. 
 
 THE RATTLESNAKE FERN 
 
 ONE of the ferns that grows in the woods is the 
 rattlesnake fern. It does not like the sunshine. It 
 seems to delight in dim, moist hollows, but soon dis- 
 appears from a place when the trees are removed. 
 
 Early in May you will find the hairy leaf buds 
 just unfolding. Let us see how this fern grows. 
 
 A tangle of thick, fleshy roots extends horizontally 
 a few inches under ground. From this comes a single 
 frond. If you look at the picture, you will see that 
 
 33
 
 , 
 
 The Rattlesnake Fern. 
 
 34
 
 THE RATTLESNAKE FERN 
 
 this is divided into two parts, one of which bears the 
 spores. The green blade spreads out in a broad, flat 
 triangle. It is much cut and divided and quite thin. 
 If you can get some of these fronds and press them 
 you will find that they have a very delicate appear- 
 ance, and show beautiful shades of 
 color. 
 
 The spore-bearing part of the 
 frond rises several inches above 
 the green blade. As the spores 
 ripen the spaces between the parts 
 lengthen. There is finally a long, 
 slender cluster with the parts (called 
 branchlets) nearly parallel to the 
 stalk. 
 
 The bright-yellow spores ripen 
 in June. They escape from the 
 spore cases through a narrow slit 
 across it. 
 
 In a hollow at the base of the stipe is a bud for 
 next year's leaf. Within its tiny stem may be found 
 a still smaller bud, and this in turn incloses an- 
 other. So we may say that this plant has its cloth- 
 ing prepared three years ahead. The spore cases 
 also begin to grow a year or more before the spores 
 are shed. 
 
 There is a great difference in the size of these fern 
 plants. Some that are not more than three or four 
 
 35 
 
 Spore Cases of the 
 Rattlesnake Fern.
 
 FERNS 
 
 inches high bear fruit clusters. There are others that 
 are five or six times as large. 
 
 The name of rattlesnake fern was probably given 
 to this plant because of a likeness which was thought 
 to exist between the spikes of fruit and the rattle of 
 the snake. It is sometimes called the grape fern, be- 
 cause its clusters of spore cases look like bunches of 
 grapes. 
 
 THE EBONY SPLEENWORT 
 
 THE fern whose picture you see on the opposite 
 page belongs to a large family called "spleenwort." 
 A great many members of this family live in the United 
 States. We shall read about one only, the ebony 
 spleenwort. The home of this fern may be the woods, 
 the fields, or the roadside; but in a stony soil, for it is 
 a true rock lover. 
 
 Notice in the picture how it grows. The rootstock 
 is small and the leaves grow in tufts. See how differ- 
 ent the fronds are. The short ones that spread out 
 close to the ground have no spores. Their leaflets are 
 close together. The fronds that bear the spores are 
 much longer and their leaflets are farther apart. They 
 generally spring up from the center and stand erect. 
 This helps them to scatter their spores to a greater 
 distance. 
 
 You can see spores on two of the fronds. They al- 
 
 36
 
 THE EBONY SPLEENWORT 
 
 ways grow in double rows on each leaflet, some distance 
 from the edge. When young they have a white covering, 
 which soon withers 
 away. Then the spore 
 cases spread out and 
 cover most of the un- 
 der side of the frond. 
 The ebony spleen- 
 wort takes its name 
 from its dark, shin- 
 ing stem. It is some- 
 times called the 
 screw fern. This is 
 because the spore- 
 bearing leaflets grow 
 upon the stem in such 
 a way that they look 
 like the threads on a 
 screw. You cannot 
 see this very well in 
 the picture. It may 
 
 be easily noticed in a The Ebony Spleenwort. 
 
 growing plant. 
 
 This fern is found in the United States as far west- 
 ward as Colorado. The plant from which the picture 
 was made came from the fields of Long Island. 
 
 37
 
 FERNS 
 
 THE MAIDENHAIR FERN 
 
 A FERN that is often seen at the florist's is the 
 maidenhair. But you will not find such large plants 
 in the greenhouse as are found "under the open 
 sky." Even out of doors there is a great difference 
 in the size of the plants. The larger ones grow in 
 moist, shaded dells. They love "a quiet glen shut 
 in from all intrusion by the trees." On dry slopes 
 the plants are smaller. In the sunlight they are quite 
 small. 
 
 If you have once seen a maidenhair fern you will 
 be apt to know it again. It is not shaped like any of 
 the other ferns that we have been reading about. 
 Neither does it grow like them. The outline of the 
 whole frond is circular. The stem is very slender and 
 is hidden as you look down upon the plant. This 
 makes the fern look as if it were top-heavy. But if a 
 ground breeze comes along while you are looking at it, 
 you almost forget that you thought so. The mass of 
 green is all atremble. The shining, dark stipe is no 
 longer hidden, but glistens as the soft green top waves 
 to and fro. 
 
 The rootstock is near the surface of the ground. 
 It is slender and creeps about for a long distance, giv- 
 ing off many black, wiry roots. Before the leaves 
 push up out of the ground, they are protected by 
 
 38
 
 The maidenhair I 
 
 The maidenhair! 
 
 Of all the ferns, 
 
 There's none so fair. 
 
 In the deep green woods we found it, 
 
 With the mosses growing round it. 
 
 Maidenhair Fern.
 
 THE MAIDENHAIR FERN 
 
 brown, hairlike scales. When the young crosiers be- 
 gin to uncoil they wear all shades of pale green and 
 red. The stems vary from red and purplish to brown. 
 Nearly every frond has spores. You can see the fruit 
 dots along the outer margin of some of the fronds. 
 
 Frond of the Maidenhair Young Maidenhair Show- Venues Hair. 
 Fern. ing Bends in Stem. 
 
 In the picture they are covered by the rolled-over 
 edges of the leaflets. 
 
 On account of the smoothness of the fronds, rain 
 and dew roll off this plant without wetting it. For 
 this reason men who study about plants have given 
 this fern the name of Ad-i-an'tum, which means " with- 
 out wet." The name of maidenhair is said by some 
 to have been given on account of the slender black 
 stems. Others think that this name was used be- 
 
 39
 
 FERNS 
 
 cause the fine, black, wiry roots resemble the hair of 
 a maiden. 
 
 This fern is sometimes used for medicine. It is 
 said to be good for throat and lung diseases. 
 
 There is a fern in Europe and in the southern part 
 of our own country that looks somewhat like the 
 maidenhair. It is called the Venus's hair fern. If you 
 look at the little sprays of these two plants you will 
 see the difference in the shape of the leaflets. The 
 Venus's hair branches alternately along the stem in- 
 stead of forming a circle of branches at the top of the 
 stipe as the maidenhair does. 
 
 THE OSMUNDAS 
 
 THE Os-mun'-das are ferns that everybody ought 
 to know, because they are so common and so showy. 
 From the time their crosiers peep out of the ground 
 in the spring until their leaflets fall in the autumn, 
 they are a familiar sight. Their roots are the largest, 
 their crosiers the wooliest, their fronds the tallest, and 
 their fruit the earliest of any of the ferns. 
 
 The three best known members of the Osmunda 
 family are the cinnamon fern, the interrupted fern, 
 and the flowering fern. 
 
 Early in the spring, before the grass has turned 
 green, the young crosiers or "fiddleheads" of the cin- 
 
 40
 
 THE OSMUNDAS 
 
 namon fern begin to appear in wet ground. The 
 spore-bearing fronds are seen first, but before they are 
 full grown the other fronds spring up and grow so 
 fast that they are soon taller than the earlier ones. 
 These two sets of fronds grow in separate circles. 
 The fruit - bearing A 
 
 ones form the outer 
 circle, but during 
 their growth the 
 others bend out- 
 ward, so that when 
 full grown those 
 with spores appear 
 to be growing in 
 the inner circle. 
 
 The fruiting 
 fronds are stiff and 
 clublike, as seen in 
 the picture. At 
 first they are bright 
 
 green. In the latter part of May they begin to turn 
 to the cinnamon brown which gives this fern its name. 
 The spores are now ripe and a touch sets them free. 
 The fronds then wither and die. The other leaves re- 
 main green during the summer. 
 
 The thrush and the brown thrasher like to build 
 their nests in the center of these great ferns. 
 
 Though an early riser in the spring, the cinnamon 
 
 41 
 
 The Cinnamon Fern.
 
 FERNS 
 
 fern cannot get ahead of the interrupted fern. This 
 is the first of the Osmundas to appear. It starts as 
 soon as Mother Nature calls and never waits to take 
 
 another nap. At first it looks 
 so much like the cinnamon fern 
 that it is not easy to tell them 
 apart. 
 
 The interrupted fern does 
 not care so much for moisture, 
 but it likes the roadside and 
 pasture. Both kinds of fronds 
 begin to grow at about the same 
 time. The stipes are slenderer 
 than those of the cinnamon fern. 
 They are also less downy. When 
 the buds uncoil, the small fronds 
 are wholly green, but in the 
 taller ones this color is inter- 
 rupted by a few pairs of leaflets 
 that bear spores. At first the 
 spores are dark green, almost 
 black, and look very pretty in 
 the midst of the yellow-green 
 of the rest of the frond. Later 
 they turn brown. It is the way in which the spores 
 grow that gives this plant the name of interrupted 
 fern. 
 
 The third member of the Osmunda family, the 
 
 42 
 
 The Interrupted Fern.
 
 THE OSMUND AS 
 
 flowering fern, loves the water. The uncoiling fronds 
 have dark-red stipes and reddish-green or pinkish 
 blades. As these uncurl, 
 the bright green spore 
 cases may be seen peep- 
 ing through the leaflets, 
 which clasp them closely. 
 Notice in the picture 
 how different the leaves 
 are from those of other 
 ferns. They grow very 
 tall, often reaching a 
 height of six feet. All 
 the fronds are alike ex- 
 cept that spores are 
 borne on the upper part 
 of some of them. This 
 fruiting part *at the end 
 of the frond looks some- 
 what like a bunch of 
 small flowers. Like the 
 other Osmundas, the 
 spores are a bright green 
 until they ripen. 
 
 In all the Osmundas The Flowering Fern. 
 
 the buds for several 
 
 years to come are found nestling in the midst of the 
 circle of fronds. This central part is called the heart 
 
 43
 
 FERNS 
 
 of Osmund. It is crisp and tender and is good to eat. 
 It tastes somewhat like raw cabbage. 
 
 While all members of the Osmunda family are so 
 common in America, only one, the flowering fern, is 
 found in Europe. It is one of the handsomest of Brit- 
 ish ferns. One of the English authors speaks of this 
 plant as the " flower-crowned prince of British ferns." 
 
 THE LADY FERN 
 
 THE picture shows you a fern found in all parts of 
 our country. Sometimes it is seen growing among a 
 
 tangle of wild things in 
 the pasture, sometimes 
 by the roadside, and 
 again in the low moist 
 woodland. 
 
 The fronds spring up 
 in circles from a large 
 rootstock, often reaching 
 a height of three feet or 
 more. Notice how deli- 
 cate and lacelike they 
 look. 
 
 If you visit the haunts 
 of the lady fern in May, 
 
 The Lady Fern. you will find the earliest 
 
 44
 
 THE LADY FERN 
 
 fronds just awaking from their winter's sleep. The 
 stipes have a reddish color and light, thin scales. 
 These contrast prettily with the yellow green of the 
 uncoiling blades. 
 
 Go again in June where 
 
 "The Lady Fern flourishes graceful and tall," 
 
 and you find beautiful fronds of delicate green. In 
 late summer you see these fronds in tints of brown 
 and gold. Some of them have become blotched and 
 broken, but others are still beautiful. 
 
 "But not by burn in wood or vale 
 
 Grows anything so fair 
 As the Lady Fern when the sunbeams turn 
 To gold her delicate hair." 
 
 The spores of the lady fern are good ones to plant 
 because they grow so easily. Pick fronds that are 
 heavy with fruit dots. Dry them in a paper bag for a 
 day or two, until the spores are set free. Then plant 
 them as you learned in an earlier chapter. The pro- 
 thallia and young plants of different sizes are easily 
 found on moist earth where this fern grows. 
 
 An English author calls it the Queen of Ferns, 
 but we have many that retain their beauty longer 
 than this one. 
 
 45
 
 FERNS 
 
 THE SENSITIVE FERN 
 
 AUGUST is a good time to wander through the fields 
 in search of ferns. Along the banks of the streams 
 one may find large, coarse-looking plants that grow 
 in dense clumps. These are sensitive ferns. Go 
 nearer and examine them carefully. Hidden away at 
 the bottom of the mass of fronds are some tiny coiled 
 crosiers for next year's leaves. Here and there are 
 stems that look exactly like the lower part of the 
 stipe, but they end in a point. They have no leaves 
 and are never more than two or three inches long. 
 
 The rootstock is about as large as a pencil and 
 creeps along under the ground, sending out many 
 branches. The fronds come up from these at differ- 
 ent times during the summer. See how broad these 
 coarse leaves are. They are triangular in shape, and 
 the edges are very deeply cut. 
 
 Does it not seem strange that the name "sensi- 
 tive" should be given to a plant with such large, 
 coarse fronds? It was probably called by that name 
 because the early frosts so quickly kill it. Or it may 
 have been because it withers so soon after being cut. 
 
 Look now at the clusters of spore cases. These 
 are fronds of another kind. They are shorter than 
 the others. If you examine them carefully you will 
 see that they are made up of leaflets just as the large 
 
 46
 
 The Sensitive Fern.
 
 THE SENSITIVE FERN 
 
 green fronds are. These leaflets look like little green 
 berries strung along the stems. They are so closely 
 rolled that one author in speaking of them says that 
 most ferns hold their spore cases in the open hand, 
 but the sensitive fern grasps them tightly in the 
 clenched fist. When the little pods are ripe they burst 
 open and the spores escape. But the fronds remain 
 erect until the next summer. 
 
 If we had walked along the banks of this stream in 
 the spring we should have seen our ferns in a very 
 different dress. A mass of tawny pink crosiers would 
 have nodded to us as much as to say, "How do you 
 like our looks ? " If you had then picked some and 
 examined them, you would have wanted to reply, "I 
 like your looks very much," for you would have found 
 much beauty in the uncoiling pink blades. 
 
 The sensitive fern loves the sunshine. While it 
 will grow in the woods it very rarely bears spores 
 there. The plants that we have found in the shade 
 have had small fronds. They looked quite different 
 from the large, coarse plants growing in the sun. 
 
 Some very old books speak of this fern as drag- 
 on's bridges. Isn't that a queer name? No one 
 seems to know why it was so called. 
 
 The sensitive fern is found in nearly all parts of the 
 United States east of the Mississippi River, and in a 
 few places west of it. It also grows in Japan. 
 
 47
 
 FERNS 
 
 Full- veined and lusty green it stands, 
 
 Of all the wintry woods the gem; 
 Our spirits rise when we discern 
 The pennons of the Christmas fern. 
 
 With holly and the running pine 
 
 Then let its fronds in wreaths appear, 
 
 'Tis summer's fairest tribute given 
 To grace our merry Yuletide cheer; 
 
 Ah, who can fear the winter stern 
 
 While still there grows the Christmas fern. 3 
 
 SPINULOSE WOOD FERN 
 
 As you may see from its name, this fern grows in 
 the woods. It likes the shelter of rocks and large 
 trees. There are several different forms. All of these 
 have stiff brown scales or " spines" along the stipes. 
 These give the fern its name of "spinulose." 
 
 The fronds are a rich green. They spring up in 
 circles from fallen trees and decayed stumps, as well 
 as from the ground. The leaves are so finely cut that 
 they give a delicate lacelike look to the plant. When 
 young they are often very sticky on the under side. 
 
 The spore-bearing fronds are apt to be somewhat 
 taller than the others. You can see the fruit dots on 
 the back of the longer frond in the picture. If you 
 
 50
 
 SPINULOSE WOOD FERN 
 
 were to look at this leaf through a magnifying glass, 
 you would find that these dots were in double rows on 
 each of the leaflets. They are round, but they have 
 a kidney - shaped 
 covering. The 
 spore cases are 
 peeping out from 
 under the edges of 
 this. 
 
 All forms of 
 the spinulose fern 
 are evergreen. The 
 fronds turn brown 
 early in the spring. 
 One variety is 
 much used by flo- 
 rists in making up 
 designs. They use 
 this and the Christ- 
 
 The Spinulose Wood Fern. 
 
 mas fern more than 
 any others. A New 
 Orleans florist says that they are sent South by mil- 
 lions and kept in cold storage until wanted. 
 
 Another form is very common in Alaska. Its 
 rootstock is the first vegetable food that the Alaska 
 Indians are able to get in spring. They dig it before 
 the fronds spring up and bake it in pits lined with hot 
 stones. It is said to have a sweetish taste, but that 
 
 51
 
 FERNS 
 
 white people do not like it. It is too smoky and tastes 
 too much like tobacco to suit them. 
 
 This plant is very easy to cultivate. It grows 
 beautifully in the house among other ferns. 
 
 THE COMMON POLYPODY 
 
 AMONG all our ferns there is probably .none more 
 common than the polypody. It will grow almost any- 
 where. It likes best, however, the top of a shaded 
 ledge of rocks where the soil is somewhat dry. 
 
 You can see in the picture how slender the brown 
 rootstock is. This creeps along near the surface of 
 the soil. It was because this rootstock had so many 
 branches that the fern received the name of polypody, 
 which means "many feet." The spreading branches 
 seem to bind the plants together as they almost hang 
 over the rocky ledge. These ferns, thus bound to- 
 gether, have been compared to people who are climb- 
 ing the mountains and are kept from falling by a rope 
 which ties them together. 
 
 The young fronds appear in the spring. Others 
 come up during the early summer. They are from 
 four to ten inches long. You can see in the picture 
 how the leaf is divided. The deep-green frond is thick 
 and leathery. This helps the fern to live through long 
 periods of dry weather. Even in midsummer the 
 
 52
 
 THE COMMON POLYPODY 
 
 leaves keep 
 their freshness 
 and color. 
 Sometimes 
 they curl up if 
 there is no rain 
 for a long time. 
 A good shower 
 will soon re- 
 vive them. 
 The polypody 
 seems to make 
 the most of 
 every drop of 
 moisture. 
 
 About the 
 middle of June 
 the bright yel- 
 low-brown 
 fruit dots be- 
 gin to appear. 
 A month later 
 they are well 
 
 / 
 
 grown. You 
 can see them upon the back of one of the fronds. 
 They are generally near the margin, and mostly on 
 the upper part of the frond. These fruit dots are 
 round and very large. They have no covering. 
 
 53 
 
 The Common Polypody.
 
 FERNS 
 
 When winter comes the polypody still carpets the 
 rocks with its cheerful evergreen fronds. If, at this 
 season, you visit the woods where it grows, you will 
 find it green and full of life, as if defying the frost. 
 The poet says : 
 
 "And there, though shaken by wind and storm, 
 
 The glint of her fronds is seen 
 As she wreathes about the lichened stone 
 A circle of delicate green." 
 
 The picture that you see is from a plant found on 
 Long Island during the month of December. 
 
 THE RUSTY WOODSIA 
 
 WHILE wandering about through the woods at 
 Roger's Rock, Lake George, we found a number of 
 dainty little ferns. Among them was the rusty 
 woodsia. Tufts of this fern grew on the top of the 
 gray rocks overlooking the lake. There was not 
 much depth of soil, so the plants had little moisture. 
 Scattered trees here and there allowed the sun to 
 peep in. 
 
 This little fern loves to grow on rocks. The dense 
 tufts or masses in which it grows help to give it 
 moisture. About an inch above its base the stipe is 
 
 54
 
 " The Woodsia fern 
 
 that scorns to dwell 
 By shaded cliff, 
 
 in shadowy dell, 
 But on the gray ridge 
 
 rooted fast, 
 Fears neither sun 
 
 nor tempest's 
 blast." 
 
 The Rusty Woodsia. 
 55
 
 FERNS 
 
 jointed. When a frond dies it breaks off at this joint. 
 The bases of the old stipes, standing together, make 
 a trap to catch all the particles of soil that are 
 brought along by the wind. These, together with the 
 masses of rootstocks and rootlets, hold the moisture 
 as long as they can. 
 
 The leaves, also, are made to keep moist for some 
 time. They are smooth above, but on the under side 
 of the frond, where the breathing pores are situated, 
 there is a scaty covering. This prevents the moisture 
 from going off too rapidly. In May, when the fronds 
 uncoil, the scales are almost white; but they soon 
 turn to the color that has given the fern its common 
 name. 
 
 The fruit dots are round. Their covering consists 
 of a few slender hairs which curve over the spore 
 cases when they are young. On old fronds the under 
 side is so woolly that the fruit dots are almost con- 
 cealed. 
 
 This is a pretty little member of the rock-loving 
 family of ferns. Look for it on the rocks when you 
 visit the woods. It is well worth searching for as it 
 stands 
 
 " Content above the world to brood 
 In silence and in solitude "
 
 THE EVERGREEN WOOD FERX 
 
 THE EVERGREEX WOOD FERX, OR MAR- 
 GINAL SHIELD FERN 
 
 ANOTHER fern found at Lake George is shown in 
 the picture. This is an evergreen wood fern. As it 
 grew on the rocks where the soil was not deep the 
 fronds are rather 
 small. Notice 
 what a large root 
 there is for so 
 small a plant. No 
 other wood fern 
 has so heavy a 
 rootstock. Do 
 you see the long, 
 chaffy scales along 
 the stem and on 
 the rootstock? 
 These are always 
 found on this 
 kind of fern. 
 
 The fronds are 
 thick, almost like 
 leather. They are 
 of a dark bluish-green color and are lighter on the 
 under Side. As is shown by its name, these fronds 
 remain green through the winter. But they do not 
 
 57 
 
 Evergreen Wood Fern.
 
 FERNS 
 
 stand erect. In the fall the stipes get weak at the 
 base, and the fronds bend over to the ground. 
 
 The fruit dots of this fern are on the margin of the 
 leaflets. See how close to the edge they cling. Often 
 they look as if pushing out beyond it. Because of this 
 the plant is sometimes called the marginal shield fern. 
 When the fruit dots are young, they are hidden by a 
 white or gray covering. This does not wither as soon 
 as it does in most ferns. 
 
 This is an American fern. It is found from Canada 
 southward to Alabama and Georgia. 
 
 FERNS IN STONE AND COAL 
 
 IF you were to visit some of the coal mines of our 
 country, you might find pieces of coal upon which 
 there were very distinct fern-leaf shapes. These same 
 forms are often seen upon stones that are taken out 
 of quarries. They are called fossils. Here is a picture 
 of a piece of stone that has some of these plant forms. 
 You can see that none of the fronds are perfect. Very 
 seldom is an unbroken leaf found. 
 
 How do you suppose that ferns got inside of these 
 masses of coal and rock? Men have learned that coal 
 is made up of plant material. From this, they know 
 that coal beds are not like other rocks; but 'that at 
 some time there was a mass of plant life here. As 
 
 58
 
 FERNS IN STONE AND COAL 
 
 many fern fossils are found, there must have been a 
 great number of those plants. Some of them were 
 very large, much larger than they grow now. 
 
 It must have taken a long time for the coal to 
 become such a hard mass. It was certainly thousands 
 of years ago that these ferns grew. Let us see how 
 they changed, and why 
 the forms of these plants 
 can be so distinctly seen. 
 
 Did you ever step 
 into soft, wet mud and 
 find that the shape of 
 your foot was left there? 
 That was because your 
 foot was harder than the 
 mud. This is what prob- 
 ably happened to the 
 
 masses of plants. They formed at first a thick mat 
 of rushes, ferns, and trees. Then water flowed over 
 these beds, and mud, sand, and gravel settled there. 
 At length these formed thick layers on top of the 
 plants. They gradually pressed down close upon the 
 mass below, and there hardened into stone. The ferns 
 and other plants left their forms upon this rock wher- 
 ever they were pressed against it. Under this layer of 
 rock the plant mass, packed down, and kept warm, 
 but without light, gradually changed to coal. 
 
 A Fern changed to Coal. 
 
 59
 
 FERNS 
 
 ; In a valley centuries ago 
 Grew a little fern leaf green and slender, 
 Veining delicate and fibers tender, 
 Waving when the wind crept down so low; 
 Rushes tall and moss and grass grew round it, 
 Playful sunbeams darted in and found it, 
 Drops of dew stole down by night and crowned it. 
 But no foot of man e'er came that way 
 Earth was young and keeping holiday. 
 
 Monster fishes swam the silent main, 
 Stately forests waved their giant branches, 
 Mountains hurled their snowy avalanches, 
 Mammoth creatures stalked across the plain; 
 Nature reveled in grand mysteries; 
 But the little fern was not of these, 
 Did not number with the hills and trees, 
 Only grew, and waved its wild sweet way; 
 No one came to note it day by day. 
 
 Earth one time put on a frolic mood, 
 Heaved the rocks, and changed the mighty motion 
 Of the deep strong currents of the ocean; 
 Moved the plain and shook the haughty wood, 
 Crushed the little fern in soft moist clay, 
 Covered it and hid it safe away. 
 Oh, the long, long centuries since that day! 
 Oh, the changes ! oh, life's bitter cost ! 
 Since the useless little fern was lost. 
 
 60
 
 FERNS IN STONE AND COAL 
 
 Useless? Lost? There came a thoughtful man 
 
 Searching nature's secrets far and deep; 
 
 From a fissure in a rocky steep 
 
 He withdrew a stone o'er which there ran 
 
 Fairy pencilings, a quaint design, 
 
 Leafage, veining, fibers clear and fine, 
 
 And the fern's life lay in every line." 
 
 61
 
 MUSHROOMS 
 
 WE are now going to read about mushrooms, or 
 toadstools. Perhaps you will like them the best of any- 
 thing in this book. It seems almost strange to call 
 them plants they have no separate root, stem, or leaf. 
 They are not green, nor are they the shape of other 
 plants. Such plants are called fungi. People who have 
 studied them, however, find that fungi grow somewhat 
 as other plants do, and that they bear spores from which 
 we get new plants. 
 
 Like the ferns and mosses, mushrooms are found 
 everywhere. In the woods, you may see bright-red, 
 orange, or yellow toadstools peering out from among 
 the dead leaves at your feet. Tall gray, brown, or white 
 /ones are seen here and there growing around the roots 
 of trees and stumps. Dense clusters of them grow out 
 like brackets on the trunks of standing trees. Others 
 may be seen on the fallen logs which lie across the path. 
 Some looking like branches of dainty coral light up the 
 wood with their pink or golden coloring. 
 
 In the cattle pastures and along the roadside they 
 are the companions of the ferns, the mosses, and the 
 flowering plants. On the lawn we find them springing 
 
 62
 
 MUSHROOMS 
 
 up in clusters or circles, especially in damp weather, or 
 after a heavy rain. Even the garden is not free from 
 them, and they are often found in damp cellars and 
 mines. Sawdust is 
 also a favorite place 
 for fungi to grow. 
 
 It is not their 
 coloring alone that 
 makes mushrooms 
 so pretty. They are 
 found in all sorts of 
 odd shapes, as um- 
 brellas, balls, nests, 
 cups, clubs, hoofs, 
 shells, and hemi- 
 spheres. The picture 
 shows you some of 
 these. But there 
 are other forms that 
 are less pleasing. 
 The mildew on linen 
 the mold on bread, 
 the rust and smut 
 that spoil grain and 
 corn, are forms of fungi which we do not like. 
 
 The mushrooms found in the woods and fields feed 
 upon decaying wood and leaves. They must have food 
 on which to grow, just as we must have food to make 
 
 63 
 
 Mushrooms Showing Difference in Shape of 
 Caps. 1, Stipe or Stem; 2, Cap.
 
 MUSHROOMS 
 
 us large and strong. They have no leaf green, so they 
 must feed on material which has been made by green 
 plants. 
 
 People who have studied fungi have placed them in 
 three classes. The first is a cobwebby plant, and in- 
 cludes the bread mold, the potato rot, and the fungus 
 which grows on fishes and makes them 
 die. First we see fine white threads * - 
 
 2 J 
 
 3... 
 
 The Bread Mold. 1, Fine 
 Threads that form the 
 Plant; 2, Spore Cases. 
 
 Spores in Sacs. 
 
 Spores on Little Stalks 
 Standing in Large 
 Cells. 1, Spore 
 Cases; 2, Stalks on 
 which Spore Cases 
 Grow; 3, Cell out 
 of which the Stalks 
 Grow. 
 
 which form the plant. Later there are spore cases 
 holding tiny black spores. As their number increases, 
 they form a disagreeable black mass which destroys 
 the life of that upon which it lives. 
 
 The second class form spores in delicate sacs. 
 Among these is the yeast plant by which our bread is 
 raised. The fungus which makes the peach leaves curl, 
 
 64
 
 PARTS OF A MUSHROOM 
 
 and puts black knots on cherry and plum trees, is of this 
 kind. 
 
 In the third class are all the fungi which bear their 
 spores on little stalks standing up in large cells. This 
 class contains most of the mushrooms that we find in 
 the woods and fields. It is about these that we are 
 going to read. When you pick them you call them 
 toadstools. When they are cooked and given us to eat 
 we speak of them as mushrooms. Yet they may be 
 exactly the same. 
 
 PARTS OF A MUSHROOM 
 
 MANY mushrooms look like parasols or umbrellas. 
 The handle is the stem, or stipe. The open top is the 
 cap, or pileus. The cap is the first part to be noticed. 
 It is often very bright-colored. The size of the cap 
 varies from an eighth of an inch to sixteen inches or 
 more across. The outside may be smooth, or it may be 
 covered with little scales. Sometimes it shines like 
 satin. Notice how the caps of the small mushrooms on 
 this page differ in shape. 
 
 The cap is held in place by the stem which grows up 
 out of the ground, or out from a tree or stump. Some- 
 times this stipe is joined to the cap in the middle; often 
 it is at the side. Frequently there is no stem. In this 
 case the cap grows squarely against the surface of a tree 
 
 65
 
 MUSHROOMS 
 
 or stump. Sometimes the stems are of solid flesh all the 
 way through. Others are hollow, like a piece of rubber 
 tubing. The stem is often brittle and breaks easily. 
 In other plants it is impossible to divide it evenly in 
 breaking. 
 
 When the plant is young, the edge of the cap lies 
 
 close to the stem. 
 ~' 1 In some mush- 
 rooms, the cap 
 spreads out with- 
 out ever being fas- 
 tened to the stipe. 
 In others, threads 
 grow from the 
 edge of the cap 
 and from the outer 
 layer of the stem. 
 These interlace 
 and form a deli- 
 cate veil which 
 closes the space 
 between the cap 
 and stipe. The 
 veil remains firm for a while but is finally torn by the 
 opening cap. Its remnants are left for a time as a 
 ring on the upper part of the stem, or else parts of it 
 hang in flakes from the edge of the cap. 
 
 Examine a mushroom of this kind, and you will see 
 
 66 
 
 Parts of a Mushroom. 1, The Cap or Pileus; 
 2, The Gills Where Veil is Torn; 3, The 
 Veil; 4, Part of Veil _ Remaining on Stem. 
 This Forms the Ring or Annulus; 5, The 
 Stem, or Stipe; 6, The Volva or Cup.
 
 PARTS OF A MUSHROOM 
 
 that on the under side of the cap, reaching from the 
 stem to the edge, there are thin plates or gills. When 
 
 ^ \ 
 
 bm ^ 
 
 Mushroom 
 with Gills. 
 
 Mushroom with Tubes; 
 or Pores. 
 
 V 
 
 Mushroom 
 with Teeth. 
 
 the plant is young the gills cannot be seen. They are 
 hidden under the veil. As soon as this breaks they 
 come into sight. It is on the surface of the gills that the 
 spores are formed. When they 
 are ripe they fall to the ground 
 and grow into mushrooms, as you 
 will learn in the next chapter. 
 
 If you wish to see these spores, 
 cut off the stem of the mushroom 
 and place the cap, gills downward, 
 upon a piece of paper. Choose 
 a plant with dark gills and use 
 white paper. Cover with a glass 
 so that the wind cannot touch it. In a few hours re- 
 move the glass and lift the cap carefully. You will 
 
 67 
 
 Spore Prints.
 
 MUSHROOMS 
 
 probably find the spores on the paper in the form of 
 the gills, as you see in the picture on this page. 
 
 There are some mushrooms that have in addition to 
 the cap, gills, stem, and ring, a part somewhat like a 
 cup. This is at the lower end of the stem. From it 
 the stem appears to spring. This is the volva. It is 
 sometimes called the " poison cup" because it is found 
 on some of the most poisonous mushrooms. 
 
 HOW MUSHROOMS GROW 
 
 You have already learned that all forms of fungi are 
 spore-bearing plants. But how do these queer-looking 
 
 plants grow from spores? 
 A spore has but one cell. 
 This cell can absorb food 
 through its walls. When 
 the spore falls in a warm, 
 moist place, it begins to 
 take in food and grow. 
 Then it divides into two 
 cells. Each new cell di- 
 vides again, until long 
 chains of cells are formed. 
 These look like threads. 
 Soon they form below 
 the surface of the earth a tangled mass called the 
 my-ce'li-um, or spawn. The mycelium feeds on the 
 
 68 
 
 How Mushrooms Begin to Grow. 1 , A 
 Single Spore or Cell; 2, A Spore, or 
 Cell, Grown Larger; 3, A Spore Di- 
 vided into Two Cells; 4, A Chain of 
 Cells; 5, A Tangled Mass of Cells 
 (called Spawn).
 
 HOW MUSHROOMS GROW 
 
 decaying vegetable substance around and spreads 
 through the soil somewhat as the rootstock and rootlets 
 of ferns do. 
 
 After a while the threads mat together at certain 
 places and form little balls. At first these are about as 
 big as the head of a pin. They grow larger until they 
 are the size of a shoe button. If the ball is to be- 
 come a toadstool 
 a stem appears. 
 The stem and the 
 button keep on 
 growing and soon 
 the button comes 
 out of the earth. 
 Then it expands 
 and we see our 
 acquaintance, the 
 toadstool. 
 
 If the button 
 
 is to be what is known as a puff ball no stem appears. 
 It grows into a round ball covered with a skin or rind. 
 Sometimes the part that springs out of the earth stands 
 erect and sends out many branches. Then it looks 
 like a piece of coral. Or it may be shaped like an 
 Indian's club. This plant is four or five inches tall 
 and is blunt and rounded at the end. 
 
 Some fungi grow in trees instead of in the ground. 
 The mycelium gets into the tree through wounds where 
 
 69 
 
 Spawn, or Mycelium. Shows Button Stage and 
 Young Mushroom with Parts Complete.
 
 MUSHROOMS 
 
 branches are broken off. Here it lives and grows for 
 years, gradually taking the life from the tree and caus- 
 ing it to decay. 
 
 When people wish to grow mushrooms they plant the 
 mycelium, or spawn. The growth from soawn is much 
 quicker than from spores. 
 
 THE COMMON MEADOW MUSHROOM 
 
 THE common meadow mushroom is the best known 
 of the fungi. It is found for sale in many markets. 
 The picture shows you a cluster of these plants as they 
 grow among the meadow grass. Though this is their 
 favorite dwelling place, they are sometimes found on 
 the lawn, in the garden and pasture, and by the road- 
 side. 
 
 The thick, fleshy cap is rounded, and is usually white 
 or light brown. The surface is smooth and a little 
 silky. Sometimes it is torn up into scales. These 
 scales are often of a dark color. 
 
 The most important thing to notice in this plant is its 
 gills and their color. As the cap expands, and the veil 
 breaks, we find them to be of a delicate pinkish tint. 
 When they grow older they change to a smoky brown. 
 This is because of the great number of dark-colored 
 spores that are borne on their surface. No poisonous 
 mushrooms are known whose pinkish spores turn brown 
 
 70
 
 THE COMMON MEADOW MUSHROOM 
 
 as these do. The gills are close together and are 
 rounded at the stem end. They curve up to the cap. 
 
 The stem is short and is about the same size from 
 top to base. It is quite solid perhaps a trifle softer in 
 
 The Common Meadow Mushroom. 
 
 the middle than near the surface. It is easily separated 
 from the cap. 
 
 The veil is white and silky. It is thin and very 
 frail. It stretches as the cap spreads out and is finally 
 torn so that it clings as a ring around the stem. This 
 ring is so delicate that it is easily rubbed off. A rain 
 
 71
 
 MUSHROOMS 
 
 will often wash it away. Sometimes pieces of the veil 
 hang around the edges of the cap. 
 
 The flesh is white, but it may become slightly tinged 
 with red when cut and exposed to the air. Its taste is 
 pleasant, somewhat like that of a nut. 
 
 This is the plant that is generally spoken of as "the 
 mushroom." Probably because it is the only fungus 
 that has been cultivated to any great extent. Gener- 
 ally the mushroom or toadstool refuses to be coaxed 
 into growing anywhere except in its native place. 
 "They will not emigrate; they refuse to be educated, 
 and stand themselves upon their single leg, as the most 
 independent and contrary growth with which man has 
 to deal." But the common mushroom, when carefully 
 transplanted and cared for, will reward its cultivator 
 with an abundant crop. 
 
 There is a plant known as the horse or field mush- 
 room that is very much like the common meadow 
 mushroom and grows in about the same places. It is 
 somewhat larger. The stem is hollow, and larger at 
 the base than at the top. Near the cap is a double 
 ring or collar the lower part of which is thicker than 
 the upper. As it is good to eat, there is no harm done 
 if we cannot always tell it from the common mush- 
 room. 
 
 72
 
 THE FAIRY-RING MUSHROOM 
 
 THE FAIRY-RING MUSHROOM 
 
 HERE you see a leathery little toadstool that shrivels 
 up when dry, but becomes soft again when moistened 
 by rain or dew. It is common in grassy places, such as 
 lawns, roadsides, and pastures. The plants may be 
 seen from May until October. 
 
 The cap of this mushroom is from one to two 
 inches broad. When young it is tawny or reddish, 
 but it becomes paler as it grows older. When dry it 
 is usually a light yellow or buff. In the older plants 
 the center of the cap is often raised in a distinct tiny 
 mound. You can see this in the picture. 
 
 The gills are somewhat broad and far apart. Their 
 color is the same as that of the cap, or lighter. The 
 spores are white. 
 
 The slender stem is from one to two and a half 
 inches long with a smooth surface. It is solid and 
 quite tough. The color is whitish or a creamy yel- 
 low. 
 
 This mushroom usually grows in rings or circles. 
 It was once thought that the elves made the mushroom 
 rings for their moonlight dances. This is the reason 
 that it was called the " fairy-ring" mushroom. 
 
 Many are the tales which were told by the "old 
 folks" in some parts of England and Scotland about 
 travelers who were seized by the fairies and carried off 
 
 73
 
 MUSHROOMS 
 
 to join in their dances within the "mystic circle." On 
 pleasant nights these little people sat or danced on the 
 top of the toadstools. If a sudden shower came on 
 they huddled together beneath them. One old gar- 
 dener declared that he had seen the fairies holding a 
 
 " These are the tents of the fairies 
 
 That camped last night on the lawn. 
 Early this morning I found them, 
 But the sly fairies had gone." 
 
 toadstool over their fairy queen for an umbrella, as 
 she tripped home in the rain. 
 
 74
 
 THE FAIRY-RING MUSHROOM 
 Another story is told of a fairy feast in which 
 
 " A little mushroom that was now grown thinner 
 By being at one time shaven for the dinner " 
 
 served for a table. 
 
 This is not the only fungus that appears in circles. 
 Several different kinds are said to grow in this way. 
 The reason that fungi grow in rings, is because of the 
 way that the mycelium grows. At first there is a 
 single mushroom. This uses up the soil so that the 
 plant will not come up in the same spot again. But 
 the spawn spreads, and the next year sends up plants 
 in a small ring outside the place where the one grew 
 the year before. Again the mycelium spreads and the 
 spores fall. In this way the size of the circle increases 
 each year. 
 
 For a long time the "fairy-ring" mushroom has 
 been used for food. It is small, but in some places 
 bushels may be gathered in a day. It has an agreeable 
 nutty taste. 
 
 Mr. Hamilton Gibson said: "I remember, as a boy, 
 summer after summer, observing upon a certain spot 
 upon our lawn this dense, and at length scattering, 
 ring of tiny yellowish mushrooms, and the aroma, as 
 they simmered on the kitchen stove, is an appetizing 
 
 memorv." 
 
 75
 
 MUSHROOMS 
 
 THE BOLETI 
 
 IF you look on the under side of this mushroom for 
 gills you will not find them. It is one of those plants 
 that have their spores inside of tubes or pores. All 
 such mushrooms are called pol'y-po-ri, or "many 
 pores." 
 
 A great number of these fungi are found on the 
 trunks of trees, where they grow larger and larger each 
 year. But this mushroom did not grow on a tree. It 
 came up out of the ground, just as the common meadow 
 mushroom and the fairy-ring did. Instead of springing 
 up in the grass it grew under the trees in the woods, 
 where we found it during the month of July. 
 
 While this fungus belongs to the order of the Poly- 
 pori, it is called also the boletus. If we speak of 
 a number of these plants together we call them the 
 boleti. 
 
 The cap of a boletus is soft and thick, like a cushion, 
 and feels like velvet to the touch. 
 
 The plant in the picture is known as the edible 
 boletus. It is white and firm and somewhat sweet. 
 The young plants taste like raw chestnuts. 
 
 The upper surface of the cap of the edible boletus 
 is brown. The tube part is white when the mush- 
 room is young. Later it becomes yellow or a yellowish 
 green. 
 
 76
 
 The Edible Boletus.
 
 INK CAPS 
 
 The stem is long and largest at the base. It is 
 pale brown in color and generally has a network of 
 pink lines. As it is apt to be tough and stringy, it 
 should be cut out when the plant is cooked. 
 
 These mushrooms are often dried and used for flav- 
 oring. They are also eaten raw with pepper and salt. 
 
 It is best to be very cautious about the use of these 
 plants. None that have not been pronounced safe by 
 good authority should ever be eaten. 
 
 In color, the boleti are crimson, green, or yellow. A 
 strange thing about them is the way that they change 
 color when cut, broken, or bruised. In some, the flesh 
 becomes red immediately, while others turn blue or a 
 bluish green. 
 
 INK CAPS 
 
 Ox some summer or autumn morning you may 
 find, on the lawn, a crowded mass of odd-looking mush- 
 rooms. A few hours later the tall stems may be stand- 
 ing, but the caps are broken or melted away. An inky 
 fluid is, perhaps, still dropping from them. 
 
 These plants are ink caps and are sometimes called 
 "inky toadstools." The stem is slender, smooth, and 
 hollow. The cap is of a gray color. The gills are broad 
 and lie closely packed side by side. When young they 
 are a creamy white, but later they turn to a pinkish 
 
 77
 
 MUSHROOMS 
 
 gray. When the spores begin to ripen they turn black 
 and the color of the gills changes. The cap now begins 
 to expand and to turn into an inky fluid, first becoming 
 dark and then melting into a black liquid. This melt- 
 
 K 
 
 Ink Caps. 
 
 ing mass forms into drops which fall from the margin of 
 the cap. The extreme outer surface of the gills does 
 not dissolve so freely, and the thin remnant curls up- 
 ward and rolls up on the top of the cap. 
 
 78
 
 THE AMANITA FAMILY 
 
 We had a number of these plants in the garden, and 
 several efforts were made to keep them. The results 
 may be seen in this pic- 
 ture. The only way in 
 which they could be 
 kept was to put them 
 behind glass, where 
 nothing could touch 
 them. 
 
 Does it not seem 
 strange that such black- 
 looking things should be 
 good to eat? Yet, they 
 are pronounced excel- 
 lent by mushroom lov- 
 ers. They should be 
 picked when very young 
 and cooked as soon as 
 they are brought into the 
 
 Ink Caps Dried. 
 
 house. A very fine catchup is made from these plants. 
 The black fluid is sometimes used for ink, but it is 
 not considered a very good article. 
 
 THE AMANITA FAMILY 
 
 DID you ever find a beautiful plant or some pretty 
 bright-colored berries, and hear mamma say that you 
 must not touch them because they were poisonous? 
 
 79
 
 THE AMANITA FAMILY 
 
 The picture on the opposite page shows you four mush- 
 rooms of the Am-a-ni'ta family. These, like the poi- 
 sonous berries, should be let alone. Though they are 
 among the most beautiful of fungi, most of them con- 
 tain a deadly poison. 
 
 Notice the tall, light-colored one. This is sometimes 
 called the Death Cup or The Destroying Angel. It 
 
 contains the same 
 poison as that 
 of the rattlesnake 
 and other venom- 
 ous animals. 
 
 This plant is 
 found from June 
 to October. It 
 looks so much like 
 some of the mush- 
 rooms that are 
 good for food, thai 
 it is often picked 
 
 Young Plants of the Amanita Family. 
 
 and eaten by mistake. Look at the base of the stem of 
 a mushroom before picking it. If it belongs to the 
 Amanita family, there will be a cup or socket either 
 just above the soil or hidden under the ground. This 
 is known as the poison cup, and all fungi having 
 it should be avoided. 
 
 It is not safe even to handle these mushrooms. Mr. 
 Palmer, who was well acquainted with all kinds of fungi, 
 
 80
 
 Members of the Amanita Family.
 
 MUSHROOMS 
 
 tells of taking a large bunch of Amanitae to an artist 
 friend. He carried them in his hand and, though 
 wrapped in a paper, they made him feel quite ill. At 
 another time he had all the symptoms of mushroom 
 poisoning from smelling of two fine specimens sent him 
 by a friend. 
 
 The beautiful orange mushroom is also quite com- 
 mon. It is found mostly in open woods or groves where 
 the soil is poor. The bright coloring of the cap in 
 contrast with the white stem and gills makes it a very 
 showy plant. It is sometimes called the fly mush- 
 room. There is something about it that attracts flies, 
 but to taste its juices means death to them. Dead flies 
 are often found on the ground under it. It has been 
 used for many centuries in making fly-poisons. 
 
 From earliest times the poisonous character of this 
 plant has been well known. The Roman emperor, 
 Claudius, was given poisonous mushrooms to eat and 
 died from the effects. 
 
 Notwithstanding its poisonous character this mush- 
 room is eaten by people of Russia and Siberia. It is 
 thought that in those places there is something about 
 the plant that prevents it from being so poisonous as it 
 is here. Instead of killing the people, it intoxicates 
 them. 
 
 Another poisonous Amanita is seen in the brown 
 mushroom. The gills are white, as in other members of 
 the family, but the stem is light brown. 
 
 81
 
 TREE MUSHROOMS 
 
 The last of these four mushrooms has been known 
 for a long time. It is not poisonous. The Greeks and 
 Romans were very fond of it. They called it food of 
 the gods. Caesar's mushroom and the imperial mush- 
 room are other names for it. 
 
 TREE MUSHROOMS 
 
 AMONG the fungi growing on decaying stumps and 
 trees is a form known as the oyster mushroom. It was 
 
 given this name 
 because its shape 
 is much like that 
 of the oyster shell. 
 These mush- 
 rooms grow in 
 clusters and some- 
 times overlap each 
 other. They are 
 often irregular in 
 shape because of 
 this crowding. A 
 single mushroom 
 may be five or 
 six inches broad. 
 They grow side- 
 
 The Oyster Mushroom. ways from the tree 
 
 82
 
 TREE MUSHROOMS 
 
 and have little or no stem. If there is a stem, it is 
 fastened to the side of the cap. The upper surface of 
 the fungus is light brown or buff. The gills are a dirty 
 white and they bear white spores. 
 
 These plants are found from June to November. 
 They are more abundant when the weather is wet. For 
 a long time they have been known to be good to eat, but 
 the flesh is rather tough. 
 
 Another fungus which grows on trees is the elm 
 mushroom. It is called by this name because it is 
 found mostly upon the elm tree. 
 Sometimes there is a single 
 plant; again a dense mass is 
 seen covering several feet of the 
 trunk or branches. The stem of 
 the plant is generally longer than 
 that of the oyster mushroom, 
 and it is attached to the cap be- 
 tween the center and the edge. 
 
 . .. Llm Mushroom. 
 
 I he upper surface is yellow or 
 
 buff. When young it is smooth, but it becomes 
 broken and spotted with age. The flesh and spores 
 are white. 
 
 On account of its peculiar flavor this fungus is some- 
 times called the fish mushroom. It looks somewhat 
 like fish, too, when cooked. Some people have called 
 it the tree fish. 
 
 There is a third member of the family of tree fungi 
 
 83
 
 MUSHROOMS 
 
 that is quite different from those that we have been 
 reading about. It is not as common as the oyster and 
 elm mushrooms. It is of a dark-red color, and is very 
 soft and juicy. One writer in describing it says that it 
 
 looks like a big red 
 tongue sticking 
 out from the tree 
 trunk. 
 
 This fungus is 
 called the beef- 
 steak mushroom. 
 Of course we can 
 tell why it received 
 
 The Beefsteak Mushroom. this name. But it 
 
 has other names, 
 
 too. Sometimes it is spoken of as the vegetable beef- 
 steak. Why, do you think, was it given this name? It 
 is often called the oak or chestnut tongue. This 
 is because it grows mostly on oak or chestnut trees. 
 Here it may be found in wet weather from June to 
 September. 
 
 The beefsteak mushroom usually has a short stem 
 which spreads out into the broad and thick cap. When 
 young the upper side of the cap is velvety and of a 
 beautiful peach color. As it grows older, it loses its 
 velvety look and becomes a deep red with darker red 
 lines extending toward the edge of the cap, as you may 
 see in the picture of it. 
 
 84
 
 TREE MUSHROOMS 
 
 These are only a few of the many fungi that grow 
 out like brackets from dead or living trees, and from 
 the stumps that stand as monuments to mark the spots 
 where trees once grew. Some of these mushrooms are 
 
 Under Side of Bracket Fungi. 
 1. Showing the Gills. 2. Showing Spores, or Tubes. 
 
 very bright-colored, while others are so like that upon 
 which they grow and feed that they can scarcely be 
 seen a little distance away. 
 
 85
 
 MUSHROOMS 
 
 PUFFBALLS 
 
 CHILDREN like puff balls. It is such fun to squeeze 
 them between the fingers and watch the "smoke" come 
 out. This cannot be done until the puffball is old and 
 dry. When young this fungus is grayish or brownish 
 on the outside and white within. A few varieties are 
 dark inside. The firm, soft flesh of the inside is covered 
 with a skin or rind consisting of two layers. The outer 
 one is generally somewhat rough. The inner coat is 
 thin and papery. 
 
 Let us see how these puffballs grow. The myce- 
 lium forms a network of white threads. Then little 
 buttons are seen coming out on these white threads. 
 Like other mushrooms they grow larger and larger, but 
 there is no stem. Neither do they spread open and 
 show gills or tubes. They remain wrapped in their 
 light-colored coats. 
 
 Where do you think that the spores grow? If you 
 were to look at the inside of a puffball with a micro- 
 scope or magnifying glass, you would find it full of little 
 cells. Within these are dustlike spores. Often there 
 are elastic threads among the spores. These help to 
 push out the spores when they are fully ripe. 
 
 When a puffball begins to grow larger, the inside 
 becomes so filled with moisture that water may be 
 squeezed out of it. The color changes from white to 
 
 86
 
 PUFFBALLS 
 
 yellow, and then to a greenish brown. Later, the wet 
 
 mass becomes dry and powdery. The outside grows 
 
 darker as the puffball dries. The spores are now ripe 
 
 and the skin opens by a small hole so that they can 
 
 escape. Such puffballs are often seen lying on the 
 
 ground or clinging to old stumps or dead trunks of trees. 
 
 When the boys 
 
 and girls pick 
 
 them up and 
 
 squeeze them to 
 
 see the " smoke," 
 
 they are really 
 
 helping them to 
 
 scatter their 
 
 spores so they 
 
 may grow into 
 
 new plants. 
 
 There are 
 many kinds of 
 puffball, but we 
 will talk of but 
 two of them. 
 
 The first and largest is the giant puffball. It is from 
 eight to fifteen inches across. The skin is thin and 
 nearly smooth whitish at first, but yellowish as it 
 grows old. It is found in grassy places during August 
 and September. 
 
 Before matches were made, the dry, spongy inside 
 
 87 
 
 Pear-Shaped Puffballs.
 
 MUSHROOMS 
 
 of this puffball was used as tinder to catch the sparks 
 which flew from the flint when it was struck for fire. 
 The spore dust of this fungus has sometimes been used 
 to stop the flow of blood from a wound. 
 
 Another variety that is quite common is the pear- 
 shaped puffball. These are found everywhere in the 
 world. They grow on old timber or on the ground in 
 groups. Those that you see in the picture were grow- 
 ing on the ground along a country roadside. The 
 group from which they were taken was about two feet 
 in extent. When they were picked the inside was white 
 and firm. Now they have turned dark. The spores 
 are ripe and are of a greenish brown. Some of them 
 have the hole in the skin, and a little pressure will scat- 
 ter the spores. 
 
 All of the puffballs that have white flesh are good to 
 eat, as long as the flesh continues white. If, when cut, 
 the knife leaves a stain of yellow, the mushroom is too 
 old to cook. Puffballs that are dark inside when young 
 are not thought to be fit for food. 
 
 THE CORAL FUNGI 
 
 IF you have ever seen coral, you can guess why 
 these are called coral fungi. There are a great many 
 beautiful plants among them. All of them stand up 
 straight, or nearly so. Some are single, others are 
 
 88
 
 THE CORAL FUNGI 
 
 clustered; some are joined by their bases, and others are 
 very much branched. Among the different colors seen 
 are white, yellow, violet, red, and brown. Some have 
 red at the tips only. 
 
 One of the handsomest of them is the yellow one 
 seen at the beginning of this chapter. It grows from 
 four to six inches high. There is a stout stem which 
 goes down deep 
 into the ground. 
 From this grow 
 the branches, at 
 first stout ones, 
 and then slender 
 and longer ones. 
 These end in many 
 tips. When young 
 the branches are 
 red, pink, or 
 
 Orange. As the The Elegant Clavaria. 
 
 plant grows older 
 
 the color fades to a light yellowish or creamy 
 buff. The spores are on the outside and probably 
 give the fungus its color. The whole plant is 
 very brittle. Therefore, it has to be handled with 
 great care. 
 
 This plant grows in the woods among the dead 
 leaves and decayed logs. The dimness of the forest is 
 lighted up by its bright-yellow branches. You see 
 
 89
 
 MUSHROOMS 
 
 Mother Nature is fond of color and gives us touches of 
 
 it everywhere. 
 
 None of the coral fungi, or clavarias, is poisonous, 
 
 but some of them are so bitter or tough as to be unfit 
 
 for food. The flesh of some 
 is very tender. They often 
 grow in such large and dense 
 clusters as to make one 
 think of huge Cauliflowers. 
 The time to get them is in 
 the fall. 
 
 There is another form 
 that is sometimes called the 
 true coral fungus. Its color 
 is white. In shape it is 
 very much like the yellow 
 one seen in the picture. It 
 smells like the common 
 
 Little Tongue Clavaria. meadow mushroom, and has 
 
 a pleasant taste. This fun- 
 gus is much used in Germany, Italy, and Switzer- 
 land, where it is dried for winter use. 
 
 Here is a picture of an odd-looking plant. It is 
 called the Little Tongue Clavaria. When young it is 
 yellow, but as it grows older it turns to a light, pink- 
 ish brown. 
 
 90
 
 MOSSES 
 
 IT seems as if nature filled up all her vacant spaces 
 with tiny flowerless plants. Where nothing else can 
 grow, these find a home and make the earth more beau- 
 tiful. Of all these plants the mosses are the loveliest, 
 but they are not showy. Did you ever notice their 
 delicate coloring, their variety of form, and their fine, 
 lacelike leaves? The careless passer-by sees nothing of 
 their real beauty. But Ruskin, who loved them, said : 
 "No words that I know of will say what these mosses 
 are. None are delicate enough, none perfect enough, 
 none rich enough." 
 
 Ferns and flowering plants require soil for their 
 roots, but mosses thrive where there is but little. Some 
 grow upon the ground ; but many like best the rocks or 
 trunks of trees. Others grow on decayed wood, 
 stumps, or fallen trees. Ponds and small streams, too, 
 have their share, for many of them are water lovers. 
 Indeed, mosses are hardly absent from any place except 
 salt water. 
 
 In the arctic regions where there is little plant life, 
 they carpet the ground, giving a beautiful greenness to 
 the mountains and valleys. On the hot plains of Africa 
 
 91
 
 MOSSES 
 
 and around hot springs in different parts of the world, 
 they flourish and continue green under a heat that is 
 fatal to all other vegetation except lichens. 
 
 They love best the moist places, but do not refuse 
 to grow where the soil is dry. Tufts of them may be 
 seen here and there on the sandy desert. 
 
 We find them on the mountain tops amid howling 
 winds and driving storms, as well as in the calm and 
 silent woods where scarcely a breath of wind can stir 
 their leaves. 
 
 There is, in fact, no spot on earth so dry or wet, so 
 cold or hot, so stormy or so quiet, that these tiny flow- 
 erless plants do not find a dwelling place. They are, 
 however, most abundant in the temperate zone. Here, 
 too, they have their favorite haunts. At the foot of the 
 mountains, in rocky dells, with streamlets murmuring 
 through them, and the trees making a dim twilight, they 
 form their soft, green carpets. 
 
 In mosses, as elsewhere in nature, uses and beauties 
 mingle together. To them is given the task of prepar- 
 ing the way for higher forms of plant life. Before we 
 can have the wheat for our daily bread, or grass for our 
 cattle, or cotton and linen for cloth, mosses and lichens 
 prepare the soil for these useful plants. 
 
 Mosses protect the roots of trees and plants from 
 heat and cold. They make a home for insects. In 
 mountainous regions the thick mats of moss help to 
 soak up the rain and prevent floods from sudden storms. 
 
 92
 
 MOSSES 
 
 By holding this moisture until needed they aid in sup- 
 plying the stream during dry weather. 
 
 "Fringeless or fringed, and fringed again, 
 
 No single leaflet formed in vain; 
 
 What wealth of heavenly wisdom lies 
 
 Within one moss cup's mysteries ! 
 
 And few may know what silvery net 
 
 Down in its mimic depths is set 
 
 To catch the rarest dews that fall 
 
 Upon the dry and barren wall. 
 Voices from the silent sod, 
 Speaking of the perfect God." 
 
 Man has found many uses for mosses. We shall find 
 that these plants add much to our comfort and happi- 
 ness. 
 
 Some mosses ripen their spores after a few months 
 and die. Others live from year to year. Among a few 
 kinds, the lower part dies and the tips keep on growing 
 until there is a mass that is of great thickness. 
 
 These plants may be studied at all times of the year. 
 When the flowers and most of the ferns are gone these 
 humble companions still cheer us with their bright, 
 fresh looks. 
 
 93
 
 MOSSES 
 
 THE PARTS OF THE MOSS PLANT 
 
 WE often hear people speak of moss as if there were 
 but one kind. Perhaps you will be surprised to learn 
 that over ten thousand kinds are already known. 
 
 Some of them are slender and hairlike; others look 
 like small trees; a number of them resemble feathers. 
 All of them have roots, stems, and leaves, like other 
 plants. 
 
 The roots are very delicate, yet they take as firm a 
 hold of the soil, in proportion to their size, as many 
 trees. They consist of small, threadlike fibers, or long, 
 creeping, underground stems, like the ferns except that 
 they are smaller. In most cases these serve only to 
 attach the plant to its growing place, for every part 
 of the moss takes in its own share of nourishment. 
 
 Many of the mosses have long stems that branch and 
 branch again. Others have scarcely any stem. They 
 seem to send up from the root a mere tuft of leaves. 
 The stems are solid and are made up of many cells. 
 They have no woody fibers running through them as the 
 ferns and flowering plants have, so they cannot stand 
 up erect. These stems are of a reddish color, or of 
 green or brown. If you look at a moss stem carefully 
 you will find that the leaves grow around it on all sides. 
 
 The leaves of mosses are the part that we notice first. 
 If you examine them with a microscope you will see 
 
 94
 
 THE PARTS OF THE MOSS PLANT 
 
 that some have notched edges, while others are plain; 
 some are long like pine needles, others are oval or 
 round ; some have a nerve or vein which rims through 
 the center. 
 
 During the winter and spring the mosses begin their 
 
 , Different Shapes of Moss Leaves (Much Enlarged). 
 
 work of spore-bearing. A large number of hairlike 
 stalks rise out of the bed of green leaves. They are 
 from one to three inches tall. When young their color 
 
 95
 
 MOSSES 
 
 is pink, but later they turn to red, orange, or brown. 
 They make the moss look like a green pincushion well 
 filled with pins. 
 
 After a time small sacs appear at the top of these 
 hairlike stalks. At first they are but little thicker than 
 the stalk. Soon they grow larger and take different 
 shapes. Some are pear-shaped, and some are nearly 
 round; others urn-shaped; or they may be long and 
 slim. A few are like cubes or cylinders. One form 
 looks much like a closed parasol; another resembles a 
 small bug. These are the capsules that contain the 
 spores. 
 
 Until nearly ripe many of the capsules are covered 
 with little caps having high peaks and long laps. These 
 protect them from the sunshine and rain until they are 
 fully grown. Then the hood or cap is torn from its 
 support and carried to the top of the capsule, where it 
 stays until the spores are nearly ripe. At length it 
 falls off altogether. Then we find that under it there 
 is a little lid which covers the mouth of the capsule. 
 
 When the lid comes off there is found around the 
 mouth of the capsule a fringe of single or double rows of 
 teeth. These open in sunshine and close in rainy 
 weather. If you were to examine the inside of the cap- 
 sule with a microscope, you would find that the spores, 
 inclosed in little bags or spore cases, grow around a 
 column or pillar in the center. 
 
 When the spores are ripe, it is a curious sight to see 
 
 96
 
 THE PARTS OF THE MOSS PLANT 
 
 the stalks gradually bending over and turning the tops 
 of the capsules downward, so as to empty out the spores. 
 
 Forms of Capsules (Enlarged). 
 1, 2, 3, 6, Show Caps that Fall off when the Spores Ripem 
 
 If the soil on which the spores fall is moist enough, 
 they will begin to grow in a few days. A tiny, thread- 
 
 97
 
 MOSSES 
 
 like plant appears much like the prothallium of the 
 fern. Soon buds of young moss plants appear. On 
 these the plants grow and produce spores which in 
 their turn fall to the ground and grow into new plants. 
 Roots will grow from any part of a moss plant that 
 is kept dark and moist. Often roots and new plants 
 will grow from a leaf that is broken off. Mosses thus 
 spread very rapidly. 
 
 TREE MOSSES 
 
 Do you remember that we said there were mosses 
 that looked like small trees? The picture shows you 
 some of these. See what long roots they have. Do they 
 not look like the slender creeping rootstocks of some 
 ferns ? The little treelike plants come up from this 
 underground stem in the same way that fern fronds 
 spring up from their rootstocks. Because this moss is 
 so much like little trees it is called tree moss. 
 
 Notice how the stems bearing the capsules come out 
 from among the green leaves at the side of the stem. 
 There are quite a number of our mosses whose capsules 
 grow in this way. The tree mosses are among the larg- 
 est of these. The capsules nearly always stand up 
 straight at the ends of their long stems. When young 
 the capsules are green, but as the spores ripen they turn 
 brown. The beak at the top has a long point. When 
 
 98
 
 PEAT MOSS 
 
 the spores are fully ripe, this beak drops off and allows 
 the spores to escape. 
 
 The tree mosses are common in wet woods. They 
 are also found in moist, grassy places, but they do not 
 often bear fruit when growing there. Even in the 
 woods their capsules are not very plenty. Some years 
 we have looked in vain for plants with fruit. Several 
 patches of the moss were found on which there were 
 many capsules. 
 
 There are several kinds of tree mosses. Most of 
 them stand up straight, like those in the picture. One 
 kind, however, creeps on the ground. It rarely looks 
 like a tree. This form is very plenty in the swamps of 
 Long Island. 
 
 PEAT MOSS 
 
 IN some countries peat is almost the only fuel of the 
 poorer people. In the United States there is an abun- 
 dant supply of it. But we have so much fuel that is 
 cheaper and better that little peat is used. 
 
 Peat is formed of peat moss which grows in and near 
 water in swamps. The plants grow at the top and die 
 below. Sticks, leaves, and other substances are washed 
 in among the decaying stems. The whole mass, being 
 full of water, decays slowly, packs closely, and becomes 
 a hard, dark-brown or black substance known as peat. 
 
 The life of this moss seems to be endless. The 
 
 99
 
 MOSSES 
 
 mosses which we see growing in a bog now are the tips of 
 plants which began life perhaps thousands of years ago. 
 These have formed great beds of peat which may be 
 
 from fifteen to twenty 
 feet thick. 
 
 The peat mosses are 
 among our largest moss 
 plants. They are usually 
 pale green, but may be 
 a dirty white, a dark 
 red, a pale pink, or a 
 yellow. Those seen in 
 the picture were found 
 among the White Moun- 
 tains in New Hampshire, 
 where there was an 
 abundance of red plants. 
 Both leaves and stems 
 suck up the water like a 
 sponge, so that the whole 
 mass is full of moisture. 
 
 There is little or no 
 / 
 
 root. On the young 
 
 plants only are root hairs found. The plants seem to 
 float in an upright position, unattached. As they grow 
 closely packed together they help each other to stand 
 erect. There are many branches. The shorter ones at 
 the top are often much crowded. 
 
 100 
 
 Peat Moss.
 
 PEAT MOSS 
 
 The leaves have no midrib, but grow around the 
 stem in a spiral manner. They are fastened to it by a 
 broad base and taper to a point. You can see this in the 
 picture. 
 
 The stalks on which the capsules are borne are not 
 like those of other mosses. See how short and thick 
 they are. The branches at the top extend upward to 
 form them. A capsule is shaped somewhat like a vase. 
 When ripe it opens by a circular lid. 
 
 Peat mosses are of more value than any others. If 
 you were to visit Ireland you would find great tracts of 
 land covered with peat bogs. Vast amounts of fuel are 
 obtained from these. In the Highlands of Scotland 
 peat forms the largest part of the fuel of the inhabi- 
 tants. 
 
 This is also the principal moss north of the arctic 
 circle. Great quantities of it grow in Lapland. Here 
 it is used for beds. The Laplanders also use it for their 
 little babies instead of clothes, packing their cradles 
 firmly with it. In seasons of scarcity they make a 
 wretched kind of bread out of this plant. Florists 
 everywhere use this moss for packing flowers, because it 
 holds moisture for so long a time. 
 
 We owe our coal to the remains of ferns, and our 
 peat to the mosses two of the simplest of our plants 
 providing fuel in large quantities. 
 
 101
 
 MOSSES 
 
 FERN MOSSES 
 
 EVERYBODY admires fern mosses. Their branches 
 grow very regularly, just as the parts of the fern frond 
 
 do. They often send out 
 branchlets that are also very 
 regular. 
 
 The common fern moss 
 grows in damp, shady 
 places, spreading over 
 stones, decayed logs, and 
 waste places of the earth. 
 It reminds us of Ruskin's 
 words when he says, " Crea- 
 tion full of pity, covering 
 with strange and tender 
 honor the scarred disgrace 
 of ruin laying quiet finger 
 on the trembling stones, to 
 teach them rest." 
 
 Another common fern 
 moss is found growing on 
 poor soil in dry places. 
 
 Common Fern Moss. mi- 11 j j.u r 
 
 Ims is called the wiry tern 
 moss. It is rather stiff and grows in thick mats. 
 
 The mountain fern moss is a very beautiful kind. 
 It is larger than the others. One thing about its growth 
 
 102
 
 HAIR-CAP MOSSES 
 
 is peculiar: Every year each of the main shoots of the 
 year before sends out a single fernlike branch from the 
 middle, instead of branching out from the side of 
 the shoot, as most mosses do. 
 
 This plant grows in great 
 quantities in cool, moist moun- 
 tain woods, and on stones and 
 old logs. If you study the pic- 
 ture of this moss you will probably 
 know the plant when you see it 
 in the wood. 
 
 There are not many capsules 
 in proportion to the number of 
 plants. Sometimes, however, a 
 patch of this moss may have an abundance of fruit. 
 
 All fern mosses are easily known from their fernlike 
 forms. They are found 
 
 " Springing in valleys green and low, 
 And on the mountain high, 
 And in the silent wilderness 
 Where no man passes by." 
 
 Mountain Fern Moss. 
 
 HAIR-CAP MOSSES 
 
 THE hair-caps are our largest common mosses. 
 Some grow in old fields and meadows, or along the road- 
 side, while others seem to want the shade and moisture 
 
 103
 
 MOSSES 
 
 of the woods. Farmers do not like the common hair- 
 cap because it spreads rapidly and takes the place of 
 grass in their meadows. 
 
 Near our home was an old field where this moss 
 grew in many places. We have often seen the children 
 gather it in handfuls and, seating them- 
 selves upon the ground, begin to make 
 "rings" of it. They did this by bending 
 the stems and fastening them together at 
 the end of the capsules. These were then 
 placed upon their fingers and worn home in 
 triumph. 
 
 The leaves of the common hair-cap are 
 very thick and strong. Notice their thin, 
 clasping base and notched edges. Their 
 appearance is very different when dry from 
 what it is when wet. They spread out 
 when moist and are fresh and green, but 
 a lack of moisture causes the leaves to 
 fold up against the stem. This is to pre- 
 vent rapid evaporation. When left dry 
 for some time the plant turns brown. If placed in 
 water for a little while, it will regain freshness and 
 color. We have some mosses two or three years old 
 that can be made nearly as beautiful as they were at 
 first by letting them remain in water for a short time. 
 
 The reddish-brown stems are from two to eight 
 inches long. At the end of each is a capsule of the same 
 
 104 
 
 Leaf of Hair- 
 Cap Moss.
 
 HYPNUM MOSSES 
 
 color. This capsule is almost like a cube in shape and 
 has a lid at the top of it. The lid has a very short beak. 
 The grayish -brown hairy cap that entirely covers the 
 capsule gives the moss its name. 
 
 The capsule ripens in June or early July. Then the 
 cap falls off, the lid drops, and the spores escape. 
 
 If you were to pick some of the hair-cap moss when 
 ripe and pull off the cap, you would find under it the 
 beaked capsule. With a pin or a penknife remove the 
 lid and let the spores fall upon a piece of dark-colored 
 paper. They are quite a bright yellow and may be 
 easily seen with a lens. Without the lens the}' look like 
 a mass of fine yellow powder. 
 
 The common hair-cap moss is found in all parts of 
 North America, in Europe, and in Asia. In England it 
 is sometimes used for brooms. The Laplanders use it 
 to stuff pillows and beds. 
 
 HYPNUM MOSSES 
 
 MANY of our common mosses belong to the Hypnum 
 family. Its members usually grow in dense mats on 
 the ground, stones, bark of trees, and rotten wood. The 
 most of them are slender and lie nearly flat. Some are 
 creeping, with branches rising up from the mass of green. 
 There are many kinds of hypnums, but we can study 
 only a few of the common ones. 
 
 When you find a bright yellow-green moss growing 
 
 105
 
 MOSSES 
 
 in dense cushions you may make up your mind that 
 you have some kind of a hypnum. Examine it closely 
 with a magnifying glass. If it is quite large and has 
 bright-red stems showing through the leaves, it is a 
 
 Schreber's Hyp- 
 num. This is a 
 beautiful moss 
 which grows in 
 abundance in pas- 
 tures and open 
 woods. We have 
 seen almost the 
 entire surface of 
 decaying logs 
 covered with its 
 dense green cush- 
 ions. If you gath- 
 er some of this, it 
 will keep for a 
 long time. JWhen 
 placed in water 
 the fresh, green look will return, and the red of the 
 stems will be quite bright again. 
 
 The stems of this moss are often from four to six 
 inches long and nearly erect. They crowd very close 
 together. The capsules ripen in the fall. One would 
 think that such large plants would have many capsules, 
 but they do not. 
 
 106 
 
 Schreber's Hypnum.
 
 HYPNUM MOSSES 
 
 A hypnum that is easily recognized is the plume 
 moss. Doesn't it look like a feather? This is common 
 on decayed wood and stumps, in 
 cool, moist woods in New Eng- 
 land and New York. It is most 
 beautiful in the mountain forest, 
 where it covers the decaying 
 trunks of fallen trees with its deli- 
 cate, light-green plumes. 
 
 The pinnate hypnum is com- 
 mon in lowlands. It grows al- 
 most entirely on rotten wood, in 
 moist, shady places. It is a 
 darker green than the plume moss 
 and lies flat upon the logs in close, 
 dense mats. The branching does 
 not extend to the tips, as in the plume moss. Notice 
 this in the pictures of the two mosses. It is one of the 
 
 ways by which you can 
 know the pinnate hyp- 
 num. These plants have 
 many capsules. They 
 ripen in winter, but re- 
 main in good condition 
 for a long time. 
 
 Another common hyp- 
 num is the shaggy moss.. It grows on shaded banks 
 that are neither very wet nor extremely dry . The name 
 
 107 
 
 Plume Moss. 
 
 Pinnate Hypnum.
 
 MOSSES 
 
 "shaggy" describes the plant well. It has a ragged 
 look. The branches are irregular and the leaves stand 
 out straight from the stem. A picture of this does not 
 
 give a very good idea of the 
 plant. It should be seen, 
 and when once recognized 
 it is not easily forgotten. 
 The stems are elastic, or 
 " springy." For this reason 
 they are sometimes used 
 for packing china and glass. 
 
 Shaggy Moss. 
 
 Hooked Moss. 
 
 Hooked mosses also belong to the Hypnum family. 
 They may be easily known because the leaves at the 
 ends of the branches curve so as to look like little hooks. 
 These mosses grow on rocks, earth, and rotten wood, in 
 
 108
 
 WATER MOSSES 
 
 shaded swamps, and along shores of lakes and edges of 
 streams. 
 
 Some of the hypnums grow on stones in the beds of 
 brooks, where they are under water except when it is 
 very low. All but the youngest part of the plant is very 
 dark, almost black. 
 
 None of the hypnums that we have described, 
 except the hooked mosses, has a midrib. A magnify- 
 ing glass will show you that these have. 
 
 The members of this family are so much alike that 
 it is not easy to tell them apart. If you learn to know 
 the ones we have been talking about it is enough for the 
 present. 
 
 WATER MOSSES 
 
 " Mark ye the ferns that clothe the dripping rocks, 
 
 The crosier-headed ferns most fresh and rare; 
 And velvet mosses, fostered by the flow 
 Gain a luxuriance all unknown elsewhere." 
 
 IN mountain regions there are many small streams 
 which wind their way down to the valleys. Sometimes 
 they make sudden leaps over the rocks, as if in a hurry 
 to get to the end of their journey. 
 
 The picture shows you one of these mountain 
 streams just at the place where it is taking^ long 
 
 109
 
 A Mountain Stream at the Point where it Takes a Plunge Downward. 
 
 110
 
 WATER MOSSES 
 
 plunge downward. This stream is among the Catskill 
 Mountains. All along the sides of the rocks, kept moist 
 
 The Giant Water Moss. 
 
 by the spray, are many beautiful ferns and mosses. But 
 the mosses that we are going to talk about now do not 
 
 grow here. 
 
 Ill
 
 MOSSES 
 
 In the streams above these falls the water is clear 
 and cool. Here grows the giant water moss. This 
 plant is fond of cool streams where the water flows 
 swiftly. It grows on stones and sticks which lie in the 
 bed of the brook, or on the roots of overhanging trees. 
 
 Has it not beautiful shades of 
 coloring? It looks just like this 
 in the water. The plants are 
 large, the branches being some- 
 times a foot or more long. This 
 makes it very easy to see. . It has 
 thick three-cornered stems and 
 branches. These spread out in 
 the water and float along with the 
 current. This plant is called the 
 giant water moss because it is 
 the largest of them. 
 
 There is one strange thing 
 about this moss. It is very diffi- 
 The Common Water Moss, cult to burn it, even when it is 
 
 completely dry. Because of this 
 it is used in some parts of Europe for lining chim- 
 neys. It prevents the woodwork about the chimney 
 from taking fire. 
 
 You see here another kind of water moss. This is 
 much more common than the first. It, too, has very 
 beautiful coloring, and a soft, silky look. Sometimes it 
 is called the delicate water moss. This moss grows in 
 
 112
 
 OTHER COMMON MOSSES 
 
 the same locality as the giant water moss. Both of 
 them are found in streams among the White Mountains 
 in New Hampshire. 
 
 There are many other kinds of water mosses, but 
 these are among the most beautiful. 
 
 Sometimes pieces of moss are broken off and carried 
 along by the current. Perhaps they will fasten them- 
 selves to some object farther down the stream. There 
 is no knowing where will be their next home. They 
 themselves do not know. 
 
 "Soft green moss that floats along, 
 
 Down the bright stream 
 With current so strong, 
 
 Tell us, oh, tell us, 
 Where now do you go?" 
 
 Soft is the answer, 
 "I do not yet know." 
 
 OTHER COMMON MOSSES 
 
 WE will now glance at a few more of the common 
 mosses. One is an odd little plant called the Web'-e-ra. 
 Its leaves are quite small and form a broad mat of dark 
 green. Nestled in this green mass are the capsules, that 
 look like little bugs. They have very short stems. 
 
 113
 
 MOSSES 
 
 Webera Moss. 
 
 The Webera grows on moist banks where there are few 
 tall plants. A lichen is almost always found with it. 
 
 Another common moss is the Geor- 
 gia, named for an English king. It 
 grows on rotten stumps, or on the 
 banks of brooks. On the western end 
 
 < ^ T i j *.*. r j u 
 
 oi Long Island it is round in abun- 
 dance. This is a small moss, but it may be easily 
 known by its capsules. At the end of each there are 
 four long teeth. These may be seen with a lens, and 
 if one has good eyes it is not diffi- 
 cult to see them without a glass. 
 It is the only common moss plant 
 with this number of teeth. 
 
 Some very common mosses 
 in the woods are the Di'-cra'- 
 nums. Of these there are a num- 
 ber of kinds. They are generally 
 a bright yellow green and grow 
 in wide, thick tufts or mats. 
 
 The broom moss belongs to 
 the Dicranum family. Its like- 
 ness to a tiny broom gives it its 
 name. All the leaves turn to- 
 ward one side, but they are not crisp when dry, as some 
 of the Dicranums are. It has single curved capsules. 
 These are long and slender. This plant is often used by 
 florists to form banks of green in their show windows. 
 
 114 
 
 Georgia Moss.
 
 OTHER COMMON MOSSES 
 
 The wavy Dicranum is the largest and most beautiful 
 of all this family. It grows on the ground and on 
 rocks. Its leaves are very wavy, and have a beautiful 
 silky gloss. Like the broom moss they look as if the 
 wind had blown them all in one direction. The curved 
 capsules grow in clusters instead of singly, as the broom 
 mosses do. 
 
 Dicranums. 
 1, Broom Moss; 2, Wavy Dicranum; 3, Drummond's Dicranum. 
 
 Everybody has seen the white moss. It grows in 
 tufts looking like great pincushions. It is of a light 
 grayish-green or whitish color. There are few capsules, 
 but these are not needed to tell us the kind. The color 
 and manner of growth show this. It looks much like 
 the peat mosses, and the cushions take up and hold 
 water in the same spongelike way. 
 
 115
 
 MOSSES 
 
 White Moss. 
 
 A plant known as the cord moss is found everywhere. 
 When the spores are fully ripened the moss may be eas- 
 ily recognized, because the capsule, 
 with its mouth on one side, has such 
 a strange look. Before it is ripe the 
 capsule stands up erect. Then you 
 may not know it. The spores ripen 
 early in June. 
 
 By the roadside and in the fields 
 you will find a moss that looks like 
 this one. It is called the urn moss 
 because of the shape of its capsules. 
 Sometimes it is seen on the earth at the florist's. By 
 the side of the paths in the parks of Greater New York 
 it grows in quantities. You can get it in the best con- 
 dition in the month of May. 
 This moss is a'near relation to the 
 cord moss, though it looks very 
 unlike it in most ways. 
 
 " The tiny moss, whose silken 
 
 verdure clothes 
 The time-worn rock, and whose 
 
 bright capsules rise 
 Like fairy urns, on stalks of 
 
 golden sheen." 
 
 HereisaGiantBryum. Don't 
 you think that it looks a little like 
 
 116 
 
 Cord Moss.
 
 OTHER COMMON MOSSES 
 
 a small tree moss? There is an underground stem. 
 The stems spring from this. See how naked they look 
 until the top is reached. Here the leaves form a ro- 
 sette from the center of which grows the cluster of cap- 
 sules. This plant is quite common, and forms large 
 
 The Urn Moss. 
 
 Giant Bryum Moss. 
 
 mats on rocks or old rotten logs, or at the foot of trees 
 where the soil is rich. 
 
 Many of our mosses are like some twin boys whom 
 we once knew. They were so much alike that few per- 
 sons could tell one from the other. One day a friend 
 said to one of them, "I don't see how you two boys can 
 tell yourselves apart. ' ' He replied very quickly, ' ' Why, 
 when I see Johnny coming then I know I'm Jimmy." 
 When we know what a moss is not, it sometimes helps 
 us to find out what it is. 
 
 117
 
 MOSSES 
 
 Do not be discouraged if, after studying about these 
 plants, you do not know the names of all that you see. 
 There are people who have studied them for years who 
 even now find many of them that they are not sure 
 about. 
 
 When you find a new moss notice how and where it 
 grows; study the size, form, and growth of the leaves; 
 find out the shape of the capsule and when it ripens. 
 Then look in a book about mosses and try to find a 
 plant that answers this description. If it is not there 
 look for some one who can tell you about it. If you are 
 in earnest you will find some way of getting what you 
 want. But if you do not get all the names, you will 
 certainly get something, and that is, a great deal of 
 pleasure out of your study. One of our great English 
 writers has said, "He that enlarges his curiosity after 
 the works of nature multiplies the inlets of happiness. " 
 Try to find out what he meant. 
 
 118
 
 LICHENS 
 
 Lichen Attached by Black 
 Fibers on the Under Sur- 
 face. 
 
 LICHENS ! What are they? You have probably seen 
 them again and again, but did not know them. Not a 
 rock peeps above the surface of the soil but has these 
 small plants growing upon its 
 top and sides. Some, sprinkled 
 over stones and withered tufts 
 of moss, look like white and 
 yellow flowers; others are like 
 ink stains on the smooth tops 
 of posts and fallen trees; on the 
 bark of trees may be seen many 
 patches of bright green, while 
 
 long streaming tufts of grayish green hang from the 
 branches. 
 
 "Some are reddish, some brown, some gray, and some 
 
 black, 
 And they're puckered, edged, buttoned or fringed, 
 
 front and back; 
 
 Some are lying like leather close under your feet, 
 Some waving from trees in the forests you'll meet." 
 
 Lichens are composed of two parts. One gives nour- 
 ishment to the plant, and the other bears the spores. 
 
 119
 
 LICHENS 
 
 All lichens have a starting point of growth. From this 
 they spread on all sides in the form of a circle. Some- 
 times the central part is dead while the edge is growing. 
 This part of the plant takes the nourishment from the 
 air. 
 
 If you examine the leafy lichens, you will see curious 
 round disks or shields of a different color from the rest 
 of the plant. The spores are within the disks. When 
 
 Lichen Attached by a Single 
 Knotlike Root in the Cen- 
 ter. 
 
 Lichens Attached Closely to 
 the Rock, or the Bark of 
 the Tree. 
 
 the entire shield is wet, the part that holds the spores 
 becomes bulged out above and causes a pressure which 
 finally bursts the spore cases. Then the spores are 
 scattered. If you examine the spore cases of some 
 lichens with a magnifying glass you will be surprised 
 at their beauty. They are generally oval in shape. 
 Some are bright red or a golden yellow; others are deep 
 blue, green, olive, or brown. 
 
 Many lichens never produce spores in this way. In- 
 
 120
 
 LICHENS 
 
 stead, the whole surface of the plant is covered with 
 powdery grains which grow into new plants wherever 
 they are carried by the wind. 
 
 "Seeds to our eyes invisible can find 
 On the rude rock the bed that fits their kind." 
 
 On some lichens there are spongy tops which look 
 like tiny trees. Then there are the cup mosses that lift 
 up their spore cases above the circles so closely fastened 
 to the rocks. 
 These belong to 
 the bushy lichens. 
 
 To the crusty 
 lichens belong 
 those plants that 
 look like crusty 
 patches on walls, 
 stones, and trees. W ~T. T . , 
 
 ' Written Lichens. 
 
 One of this group 
 has very strange fruit vessels which look like Arabic 
 and Chinese letters. These lichens grow on the bark 
 of trees and are called written lichens. 
 
 Lichens spring up and grow rapidly the first year 
 or two; but after a circular frond is formed, they grow 
 but little for many years. Some of those that we see on 
 trees and rocks must be very old. Every year these 
 plants show renewed life at the approach of winter. 
 
 121
 
 LICHENS 
 
 Then they seem to delight in moist and stormy weather, 
 and put forth their spores so that we may have new 
 plants. 
 
 Lichens grow nearly everywhere on the globe. In 
 the Arctic region they form the largest part of the plant 
 life. Beyond their limits there is no vegetation. 
 
 "But here, above, around, below, 
 
 On mountain or in glen, 
 Nor tree, nor shrub, nor plant, nor flower, 
 Nor aught of vegetative power, 
 
 The weary eye may ken. 
 For all is rocks at random thrown, 
 Black waves, bare crags, and banks of stone; 
 As if were here denied 
 
 The summer's sun, the spring's sweet dew, 
 
 That clothe with many a varied hue 
 The bleakest mountain side." 
 
 In some countries lichens provide food for man and 
 beast. Several kinds are used for dyestuffs. Quite 
 a large part of the oxalic acid of the world comes from 
 the tiny lichens. They are also employed in the mak- 
 ing of perfumery because they retain odors for so long 
 a time. 
 
 There are between two and three thousand lichens 
 already known in different parts of the world. 
 
 122
 
 REINDEER MOSS 
 
 REINDEER MOSS 
 
 THE reindeer is the wealth of the inhabitants of 
 some cold countries. It patiently carries the people 
 from place to place. Its milk and flesh serve for food, 
 its skin for bedclothes, and its tendons for bow strings. 
 These useful animals live entirely upon a small lichen 
 which is found in large 
 quantities on the great 
 plains that border the Arc- 
 tic Ocean. 
 
 . This lichen is called 
 reindeer moss. In the tem- 
 perate regions it grows in 
 small tufts, and is some- 
 times found on the sides 
 and tops of mountains, cov- 
 ering places where the snow lies the longest. Its dense 
 tufts are white as new-fallen snow. As you may see, it 
 resembles some forms of coral. It is always erect and 
 much branched. There are tiny holes where the 
 smaller branches join the larger ones. The parts of the 
 plants which grow in large clumps usually mix together 
 and form one mass. This lichen is two inches or more 
 in height. The reindeer find it by scraping with their 
 feet, even when the snow is deep. 
 
 In the forests of Lapland the ground is often car- 
 
 123 
 
 Reindeer Moss.
 
 LICHENS 
 
 peted with it for many miles. These are fine pastures 
 to the Laplander, and a man who owns a tract of them 
 is thought to be rich, for he can keep great herds of 
 reindeer. 
 
 \Vhen the snow is frozen so hard that the reindeer 
 cannot get their usual food, they eat another curious 
 lichen called rock hair. This grows upon the trunks 
 and branches of trees. It hangs down in masses and in 
 long loops or garlands, waving in the wind. When the 
 
 winter is severe, the Lap- 
 landers cut down the trees so 
 that the reindeer can feed 
 upon these lichens. 
 
 You see from this that 
 these little lichens, which 
 Rock Hair. Ruskin calls " humblest of 
 
 the things that live," pro- 
 vide food, clothing, and means of transportation for a 
 vast number of people in the cold regions. The people 
 live upon the reindeer, and the reindeer upon the lichen. 
 
 ICELAND MOSS 
 
 You have just been reading about lichens that 
 furnish food for the reindeer. But in Iceland there is 
 a lichen which forms an important article of food for 
 the people. 
 
 This is the Iceland moss. It is found in all the 
 
 124
 
 ICELAND MOSS 
 
 northern parts of the world. It covers the ground 
 where it grows, and is from one and one-half to four 
 inches high. It grows largest on the lava near the 
 western coast of Iceland. Many people go there during 
 the summer to collect it. It is said that a person can 
 gather four tons of it in a week. It takes three years 
 for new plants to grow 
 where the old ones have 
 been taken away. 
 
 The illustration on 
 this page shows you the 
 shape of this lichen. It 
 is tough and leathery, 
 but somewhat soft. It 
 has a very bitter taste. 
 Where it is used for food 
 the people chop it in 
 pieces and leave it in 
 limewater for several 
 days to remove this 
 bitterness. It is then 
 dried, powdered, and mixed with flour of the common 
 knotgrass, and made into cakes. These are eaten 
 with the milk of the reindeer. The poor people say, 
 "A bountiful Providence sends us bread out of the 
 very stones." 
 
 Iceland moss is used all over the world. In some 
 countries it is an article of diet for the sick. The doctor 
 
 125 
 
 Iceland Moss.
 
 LICHENS 
 
 often gives it to a patient who is recovering from a 
 severe illness. 
 
 The powder looks very much like starch, and, like 
 it, swells in boiling water. When cooled it becomes 
 a fine, jelly like substance which is pleasant to the taste, 
 especially when sweetened and flavored. 
 
 LICHENS AS DYESTUFFS 
 
 DOES it not seem strange that some of our most 
 beautiful shades of red, violet, and yellow should be 
 
 obtained from the simple little 
 lichens that cover the rocks? 
 
 The plants that grow in such 
 places contain the, best coloring 
 matter. 
 
 The orchil gives a beautiful 
 purple color. A man of Flor- 
 ence, Italy, claims to have dis- 
 covered in the sixteenth century 
 
 The Orchil (A Bushy Lichen). . J 
 
 the art of preparing dye from the 
 
 orchil. In a short time he made a large fortune. The 
 secret was discovered, and the manufacture was carried 
 to Holland, where quite a trade in this lichen is still 
 carried on. It is believed by some that the use of the 
 orchil was known by the people of ancient Greece. 
 In temperate climates the orchil is found in small 
 
 126
 
 LICHENS AS DYESTUFFS 
 
 quantities on rocks by the seaside. In warm coun- 
 tries it grows in great abundance. It looks like a 
 very small shrub without any leaves. The color is 
 a whitish or blue gray, and the entire plant is cov- 
 ered with a mealy powder, or with scattered warty 
 spots. The men who get it ready for the dyer grind 
 it between stones, so as to bruise it but not make it 
 into a powder. 
 
 When beaten to a pulp and dried in little cubes about 
 
 the size of dice, the orchil is . , 
 
 called litmus. Paper wet with 
 this is the litmus paper used in 
 chemistry. When put into an 
 acid, like vinegar, this paper be- 
 comes red. Place it in an alkali 
 
 (ammonia, or water with soda The Cudbear Lichen. 
 in it) and it turns blue again. 
 
 Another useful dye lichen is the rock moss, or cud- 
 bear. It is found in Sweden and Sicily. It is of a dirty 
 gray with large, irregular shields of pale flesh color. 
 When the plant is moistened it has a disagreeable odor. 
 The dye made from it gives any tinge of purple or 
 crimson. 
 
 The common yellow wall lichen contains yellow and 
 red coloring matter. In some places the children col- 
 lect it for coloring Easter eggs. 
 
 The Scotch tartans of the Highland clans used to be 
 dyed with a common gray lichen found on trees and 
 
 127
 
 LICHENS 
 
 walls. Many women in the remote parts of that coun- 
 try still dye with this plant. 
 
 Without doubt, many other lichens could be used as 
 dyestuffs. The field is open to all, and it is probable 
 that, before many years, some one will gain a knowledge 
 of the uses of these lichens that will be of great benefit. 
 
 A FEW COMMON LICHENS 
 
 ONE of the common lichens that we all admire is 
 shown in the picture. It grows on rocks or around the 
 roots of stumps. There is a filmy mass fastened close 
 
 to the growing place. 
 From this arise many 
 hollow stalks. The 
 outside of these stalks 
 is often covered with 
 light - green powdery 
 grains. The edges of 
 the little cups may be 
 
 Rock Tripe. j- j j 
 
 whole or divided. 
 
 Sometimes there are bright-red fruit vessels on their 
 margins. Crabbe, an English poet, calls this the "cup 
 moss with the scarlet tip." 
 
 When dry the stalks are quite brittle and easily 
 crumble into dust. 
 
 This plant is a member of the same family as the 
 reindeer moss. They are often found growing together. 
 
 128
 
 A FEW COMMON LICHENS 
 
 Probably this is the "red cup moss" of which Mrs. 
 Hemans speaks in the following lines: 
 
 "Oh! green is the turf where my brothers play 
 Through the long, bright hours of the summer day; 
 They find the red cup 
 
 moss where they 
 
 climb, 
 And they chase the bee 
 
 o'er the scented 
 
 thyme." 
 
 The Dog Lichen. 
 
 A plant found every- 
 where in North America 
 is the common dog lichen. 
 When in a moist growing 
 state it is of a brownish-green color; if dried, it becomes a 
 light brown or ashy tint. The leaves are much wrinkled . 
 
 Notice the reddish nail- 
 like fruit vessels that grow 
 out from the edges of the 
 leaves; also the small fi- 
 bers given off from the 
 under side. These catch 
 into the soil and hold the 
 plant in place. 
 
 The name "dog lich- 
 en " was given it because 
 of its use as a medicine. 
 
 A Lichen of the Parmelia Family. 
 
 129
 
 LICHENS 
 
 It was said that a person bitten by a mad dog could 
 be cured by the use of this plant. 
 
 A black, leatherlike lichen with black spots scat- 
 
 
 Beard Moss. 
 
 " Here are old trees, tall oaks and gnarled pines, 
 That stream with gray-green mosses." 
 
 tered over its surface is often found fastened by strong, 
 short fibers to rocks on the mountains. This is the 
 rock tripe. In the arctic region it covers the surface of 
 
 130
 
 A FEW COMMON LICHENS 
 
 every rock with a dark, gloomy growth. These are bit- 
 ter lichens, yet they have kept alive hunters and ex- 
 plorers when no other food could be found. 
 
 To the Parmelia family belong some of our most 
 common leafy lichens. They are sometimes called leaf 
 lichens or Shield-edge lichens. The common yellow 
 wall moss is one of these that is abundant. It grows 
 almost 'everywhere on rocks, trees, and walls. It is 
 often seen with much fruit on roadside walls and fences 4 . 
 
 A lichen sometimes called beard moss, is found in 
 great quantities hanging from trees in the northern 
 part of North America. Longfellow compares trees 
 covered with it to old men "with beards that rest on 
 their bosoms." Another form is found along the coast 
 of California, where the oak trees are often covered 
 with festoons several yards long. These hanging 
 lichens are usually a grayish green or a brownish green 
 in color. 
 
 We cannot go into the woods and fields without see- 
 ing lichens. Let us keep our eyes open and find as many 
 different kinds as we can. 
 
 131
 
 SEAWEEDS 
 
 WHO of us does not love the sea? 
 
 "On the surface, foam and roar, 
 Restless heave and passionate dash; 
 Shingle rattle along the shore, 
 Gathering boom and thundering crash, 
 
 Under the surface loveliest forms, 
 Feathery fronds with crimson curl, 
 Treasures too deep for the raid of storms, 
 Delicate coral and hidden pearl." 
 
 It is not the sea that we are going to talk about, but 
 the " loveliest forms" under the surface that are tossed 
 up to us by the waves. 
 
 "The feathery fronds" are not all "with crimson 
 curl." There are the bright-green ones, almost the 
 color of the grass. These are very simple in form, 
 being among the lowest of all plant life. They are 
 made up entirely of soft cells, some in rows and others 
 in layers. New plants are produced by the division 
 of these cells. One plant breaks up and makes two 
 or more plants. 
 
 132
 
 133
 
 SEAWEEDS 
 
 There are also olive or brown seaweeds. Among 
 them are a number which have stem and leaf forms. 
 Many of them have spores from which new plants grow. 
 Some of these seaweeds are quite small; others grow 
 to be several hundred feet in length. 
 
 Last and most beautiful are the red seaweeds, in 
 color from a dainty pink to a deep purple. They are 
 not so large nor so leaflike in appearance as the brown 
 ones. They grow in deeper water, but are often 
 washed ashore. Many of them are beautiful feather- 
 like plants. Some, called corallines, are covered with 
 lime. 
 
 Among seaweeds the plant is called a frond. A 
 disk or conelike expansion at the base of the frond 
 takes the place of the root found in flowering plants. 
 This is a holdfast by which the frond fastens itself to 
 any material under the water. Seaweeds that grow 
 on sandy shores or on corals have holdfasts that 
 branch like fibrous roots. Holdfasts do not take in 
 nourishment for the plant, as roots do. Seaweeds get 
 their nourishment from the water around them. 
 
 Some sea plants live but a year; others have a 
 long life. Seaweeds vary much in different seasons. 
 If you live near the ocean, try to get some each sea- 
 son and notice the differences. Those which form 
 spores throw them off into the water. Here they 
 sink or are washed to some place where they soon 
 begin to grow. 
 
 134
 
 ULVA 
 
 Seaweeds give homes and food to millions of living 
 creatures. Iodine, potash, and other medicines are 
 made from them. Various kinds of food are obtained 
 from different species. Farmers along the coast every- 
 where use them to make the soil better. So you see 
 that seaweeds have uses as well as beauties. 
 
 ULVA 
 
 You may often find along the beach a plant which 
 looks like the one in the picture. It is an ulva. Some- 
 times it is full of holes. Then 
 you may know that it is an 
 old plant, or that a snail found 
 it before you did. 
 
 The largest bright-green 
 plants in all seas belong to this 
 family. Its brilliant green is 
 darker when the plant grows 
 in deep water. Two species 
 of this seaweed are found on 
 the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. 
 One is called the widest ulva 
 because it is the largest of any 
 of these plants. The other looks 
 somewhat like a lettuce leaf, 
 and is known as sea lettuce. 
 
 The frond of the sea lettuce 
 
 135 
 
 An Ulva. Notice the Hold- 
 fast at the Tip.
 
 SEAWEEDS 
 
 is paler and thinner than that of the widest ulva. 
 When young the sea lettuce is said to form an in- 
 flated bag, somewhat like a small toy balloon. Later, 
 this splits along the side and floats out, making a thin 
 leaf of but one layer of cells. This plant is not quite 
 so common as the larger one. 
 
 The ulva is one of the seaweeds that lives but a 
 year. It is often found on the beach in the winter, 
 but it is most abundant during the spring and summer 
 months. 
 
 FUCUS, OR ROCKWEED 
 
 THE rockweeds are said to make up about one-half 
 of our seaweeds. They are of different kinds. Three 
 are found on our Atlantic coast, and one is common 
 on the Pacific coast. 
 
 The plants are large, tough, and leathery. When 
 fresh, they have a distinct olive-green color, but they 
 become almost black when dry. They grow in thick 
 bunches, attached to the rocks by cone-shaped disks 
 or holdfasts. When the tide goes out they hang from 
 the rocks like long fringe. When it rises again, they 
 float and sway in the water like huge bouquets. Some- 
 times the spore cases are scattered over the entire 
 frond. In other plants they are found at the ends 
 of the branches. 
 
 The rockweed that is the most common is called 
 
 136
 
 FUCUS OR ROCKWEED 
 
 the fucus vesiculosus, because of its little bladders 
 or air vessels. These are oval and are imbedded in the 
 frond each side of the midrib. There are from one 
 to several pairs in each 
 frond. 
 
 You can find branches 
 with spores at the sea- 
 shore in winter or in early 
 spring. If you hold the 
 fronds between your eye 
 and the light you can see 
 the yellow fruit vessels. 
 Cut through the end of a 
 branch and you will find 
 a mass of hard gelatine 
 in which are the spore 
 cases. 
 
 Another common 
 
 , , . A Rockweed. The Light - Colored 
 
 rockweed is the knotty Spots are Air Q^ 
 
 fucus. It gets this name 
 
 from the knots or swellings which the air vessels make 
 in the fronds. There is a very narrow frond of the 
 same width throughout. Its branches do not fork as 
 in the other kinds, but it puts out branches of different 
 lengths from the sides of the main stem. With these 
 are short branchlets whose wider ends thicken and 
 bear the spore cases. 
 
 The third rockweed found on the Atlantic coast 
 
 137
 
 SEAWEEDS 
 
 is known as the forked fucus. This is wider and 
 shorter than the others. It has no air bladders. 
 This plant is found in deeper waters than are the 
 other forms of fucus. It is a seaweed seldom seen on 
 the coast south of Boston. 
 
 On the western coast of North America there is 
 another common form of rockweed. It has a cylin- 
 drical frond about as big around as a small wire nail. 
 It forks near the base. Then each part forks farther 
 and farther apart. There are generally six or seven 
 forkings. The plant grows to the height of three or 
 four inches. There are no air vessels. 
 
 If you were to visit some places along the coast 
 you would see women and children gathering the 
 fucus. They would tell you that they were getting 
 "kelp" for the garden. You might also see in some 
 of the near-by yards how they used the "kelp." 
 
 In Scotland and Norway where it is found the 
 fucus vesiculosus is eagerly eaten in winter by the 
 cattle. 
 
 SARGASSUM, OR GULFWEED 
 
 THE gulfweed belongs to the fucus family. It is 
 so different from the rockweed that it seems best to 
 place it in a chapter by itself. It is also called sar- 
 gassum, which is the Spanish for sea lentils. 
 
 As you may see in the picture, it has a stem and 
 
 138
 
 SARGASSUM, OR GULFWEED 
 
 leaves, and looks very much like some of the higher 
 forms of plants. The stem is round and grows from 
 one to three feet in length. The branches are alter- 
 nate. The leaves are long and narrow with a midrib 
 and toothed edges. They 
 grow out from the stem on 
 short stalks. All over 
 their surface may be seen 
 tiny dark spots. You can- 
 not see these in the pic- 
 ture, but they may be 
 found on a large plant. 
 On this smaller one they 
 are quite distinct when 
 seen with a magnifying 
 glass. 
 
 Notice the little round 
 balls all over the plant. 
 They look like little ber- 
 ries on stems. These are 
 the air vessels. Do you 
 remember where we found 
 them in the rockweeds? 
 
 Sargassum, or Gulfweed. 
 
 There are many twiglike forms that come out where 
 the leaf stems do. These are the fruit vessels. Within 
 them are the spore cases with their dustlike spores. 
 
 The plant which is shown in the picture was found 
 at Cape Cod. It grows upon small stones and pebbles 
 
 139
 
 SEAWEEDS 
 
 along the coast, just below low-tide marks. In Long 
 Island sound it is quite common. 
 
 There is another form of sargassum which you will 
 like to know about. Great banks or floating mead- 
 ows of it are out in the midst of the Atlantic ocean. 
 These are called the sargasso sea, on account of the 
 floating plants which form it. 
 
 This place was first reported by Columbus. His 
 sailors were frightened at the strange appearance and 
 wanted to turn back. They thought the vessel would 
 strike against the rocks. After sailing- for fifteen da} 7 s 
 they came into clear water. Since that time the Sar- 
 gasso sea has interested all sailors. Such an extent of 
 plants of one kind is not known elsewhere. 
 
 Many animals live among this mass of seaweed. 
 Numerous air vessels make the plants light enough to 
 bear their weight. 
 
 Often the gulfweed surrounds a ship and hinders 
 its progress, and then again, hours may pass without 
 a sight of the plant. 
 
 This seaweed is found attached to the rocks on the 
 coast of Florida and in the West Indies. Plants are 
 sometimes carried by the current northward and are 
 found washed ashore. Perhaps this is the seaweed 
 that our poet Longfellow had in mind when he wrote 
 the following lines : 
 
 140
 
 EDIBLE SEAWEEDS 
 
 "When descends on the Atlantic 
 
 The gigantic 
 
 Storm wind of the equinox, 
 Landward in his wrath he scourges 
 
 The toiling surges, 
 Laden with seaweed from the rocks. 
 
 From Bermuda's reefs, from edges 
 
 Of sunken ledges 
 In some far-off, bright Azore ; 
 From Bahama and the dashing, 
 
 Silver-flashing 
 Surges of San Salvador. 
 
 Ever drifting, drifting, drifting 
 
 On the shifting 
 Currents of the restless main ; 
 Till in sheltered coves, and reaches 
 
 Of sandy beaches, 
 All have found repose again." 
 
 EDIBLE SEAWEEDS 
 
 THERE are a number of seaweeds that are used for 
 food. One of these is the carrageen or Irish moss. Its 
 extensive use by the peasants of the coast of Ireland 
 gave it this name. It is collected along the eastern 
 
 141
 
 SEAWEEDS 
 
 coast of the United States. After being dried and 
 bleached in the sun, it is taken to the grocer. He 
 sells it to his customers to make into blanc mange and 
 puddings. 
 
 The frond begins with a flattened stem. When 
 about an inch high, this stem divides and subdivides 
 
 a great many times. 
 The frond is gener- 
 ally the shape of 
 a fan. It is thick, 
 tough, and leath- 
 ery, and grows from 
 two inches to ten 
 inches in length. 
 
 The size and 
 color of the plant 
 depend much upon 
 where it grows. In 
 shallow tide-pools 
 it is small and pale ; 
 under the shelter of rocks in deep water it grows 
 in dense masses, and is a dark purplish-red or a 
 reddish green. The very dark shades have changing 
 rainbow colors when seen through the water with the 
 sun shining upon it. They turn quite dark when dry. 
 Another seaweed that is used for food is known as 
 dulse. In Norway and Sweden this is eaten by the 
 sheep and goats. Among the peasants of the British 
 
 142 
 
 Carrageen, or Irish Moss.
 
 EDIBLE SEAWEEDS 
 
 Isles it is a common article of food. In the United 
 States, it is found on the New England and the Cali- 
 fornia coasts. 
 
 The color of the dulse is a purplish red. It gen- 
 
 The Dulse: 
 
 erally grows upon the rocks, but it is sometimes found 
 upon the fucus and other seaweeds. 
 
 A third edible seaweed is the laver. This is com- 
 mon everywhere. It is known by its dark-purplish 
 frond. This is thin and somewhat elastic. It shines 
 like satin, especially when in the water. 
 
 143
 
 SEAWEEDS 
 
 The laver is much used in Great Britain as an arti- 
 cle of food for a relish with roast meat. The Chinese 
 
 use it for making soup. 
 It is an annual that is, 
 it lives but one year. 
 
 GIANT SEAWEEDS 
 
 THE largest of all 
 known plants is a sea- 
 weed. This seems strange 
 when we think of all the 
 great plants and trees that 
 are found growing on the 
 land. It is a queer-look- 
 ing plant, too. Let us 
 see how it grows. There 
 is a thin naked stem from 
 700 to 1,500 feet long. It 
 is only about one-fourth 
 of an inch thick. At the 
 
 Porphyra, or Laver. 
 
 end of this stem is a fern-like leaf that is about fifty 
 feet in length. Where it joins the stem each leaflet 
 expands into an air vessel as large as an egg. These 
 air vessels hold up the great frond which floats on the 
 top of the water. This plant is found on the Pacific 
 coast of North America. 
 
 144
 
 SEA TANGLE 
 
 There is another order of brown seaweed which 
 grows to be very large. Belonging to this order are 
 the oarweeds, tangle, and sea colander. 
 
 The oarweeds have stout, woody stems, and broad, 
 tough, glossy leaves of a dark olive green. The large 
 fronds float like streamers in the water, while the 
 fishes swim in and out among them. 
 
 The sea colander has a round stem which becomes 
 flattened in the leaf, and extends through it like a 
 midrib. The frond has wavy edges. Its whole sur- 
 face is covered with holes, which give the plant its 
 name. 
 
 In the sea tangle the leaf is narrow and ribbon- 
 like. Its length is from three to thirty feet. It grows 
 at the end of a solid stem that is from three inches to 
 four feet long. The edge of the frond is much waved. 
 Through the center there is a band of sunken spots. 
 This seaweed is found on the northern shore of both 
 the Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. Perhaps you 
 will like to read a poem about the little maid and her 
 sea tangle. 
 
 SEA TANGLE 
 
 '"Go show to earth your power!' the East Wind cried 
 Commanding; and the swift submissive seas, 
 In ordered files, like liquid mountains, glide, 
 Moving from sky to sky with godlike ease. 
 
 145
 
 SEAWEEDS 
 
 Below a cliff, where mused a little maid, 
 
 It struck. Its voice in thunder cried, l Beware.' 
 
 But, to delight her, instantly displayed 
 
 A fount of showering diamonds in the air. 
 
 .... The wave passed on; 
 Touching each shore with silver-sandled feet, 
 But tossed, in flying, in the sun which shone, 
 A handful, to her lap, of sea blooms sweet. 
 
 More delicate than forms that frost doth weave 
 On window panes are Ocean's filmy brood; 
 Remembering the awful home they leave, 
 Their hues to that dim underworld subdued. 
 
 Fair spread on pages white, I saw arrayed 
 
 These fairy children of a sire so stern; 
 
 Their beauty charmed me ; while the little maid 
 
 Spoke of her new-found love with cheeks which burn. 
 
 'So grand, so terrible, how could I know 
 He cared for these?' she faltered, ' darlings dear! 
 That his great heart could nurture them and glow 
 With such a love beneath such looks severe?' 
 
 Like God, the Ocean, too, the least can heed, 
 Yearn in a moon-led quest to farthest shores, 
 And fondle in delight its smallest weed, 
 Yet look to Him it mirrors and adores." 
 
 J. G. APPLETON. 
 146
 
 147
 
 SEAWEEDS 
 
 SEA FLOWERS 
 
 WHAT a contrast to the giant seaweeds are some of 
 the delicate little plants found along our coasts. The 
 soft, silky tufts of the cal-li-tham'-ni-on are of cobweb 
 fineness. Their brilliant red color with the darker dots 
 along the branches make them look like flowers. 
 
 "O call us not weeds, but flowers of the sea, 
 For lovely and bright and gay tinted are we; 
 Our blush is as deep as the rose of the bowers, 
 Then call us not weeds; we are Ocean's gay flowers. n 
 
 The feather weed is another delicate red sea plant. 
 This grows under the rockweed or fucus on the sides 
 
 of the cliff near low-water 
 mark. It is often found 
 in summer and fall among 
 masses of seaweed left by 
 the waves. The fruit ves- 
 sels grow at the tips of 
 the feathery branchlets. 
 
 The grasslike seaweed 
 which you see on this 
 page is of a bright-green 
 color. It is common 
 everywhere. The fronds 
 are fine, hair-like tubes, 
 
 Callathamium. (A Beautiful Red 
 with Darker Dots along the 
 Branches.) 
 
 148
 
 SEA FLOWERS 
 
 soft and densely tufted. The name is a long one and 
 
 may be hard to remember. It is an en-ter-o-mor'-pha. 
 
 This plant often grows on 
 
 the bottoms of ships. The 
 
 sailors call it grass. 
 
 Coarser than any of 
 
 these is the pitcher weed 
 
 or cer-a'-mi-um, a sea 
 
 plant that may be easily 
 
 known. The tops of the 
 
 branches bend toward 
 
 each other. At the last 
 
 fork they are so curved in 
 
 and hooked that they look 
 
 like two tiny fishhooks 
 
 turned point to point. 
 
 If you look at these plants 
 
 through a magnifying glass you find that the stems and 
 
 branches are striped in dark and light colors. Some 
 
 of the small forms of the pitcher weed are often found 
 
 growing on the Irish moss 
 plants. 
 
 Another pretty "flower of the 
 sea" is the chenille weed. Out 
 of the water it looks like a string}' 
 mass of pink or purple jelly. 
 Floating in the sea there is a 
 delicate pink piece of chenille. 
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 Enteromorpha (bright-green). 
 
 Pitcher Weed or Ceramium.
 
 SEAWEEDS 
 
 Much of this plant is found between Fort Hamilton and 
 Coney Island. It extends northward to Cape Cod, but 
 no farther. 
 
 These are only a few of the many seaweeds that 
 are found among the rocks or along the sand. 
 
 " Search the shore, 
 
 Each rock pool has its treasure, every tide 
 Strews on the yellow sand from Ocean's lap 
 Weed than our flowers more fair, and fitted more 
 To beautify the album's tasteful page." 
 
 Beautiful ferns with fronds so green^ 
 In woods and meadows are often seen; 
 Beautiful mushrooms in colors bright, 
 Hiding their spores from the strong sunlight. 
 Beautiful mosses with tiny leaves 
 Cover the rocks and the fallen trees. 
 Beautiful lichens in gray and brown 
 Remain with us when the snow falls down. 
 Beautiful seaweeds out of the sea 
 Are cast on the sand for you and me. 
 Beautiful plants are these, large and small; 
 God has made them for us all. 
 
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