SUMM~R WILD FLOW~RS BY

G A L~ISMAN

THE KANSAS SCHOOL NATURALIST KANSAS STATE TEACHERS COLLEGE

Emporia Kansas Vol 4 APRIL

No4 1958

The Kansas

School Naturalist

Published by

The Kansas State Teachers College of ~mporia

Prepared and Issued by The Department of Biology with the cooperation of the Divisions of Education and Social Science

Acting Editor Carl W Prophet Department of Biology

Editorial Committee Ina M Borman Robert F Clarke Helen M Douglass Gilbert A Leisman Dixon Smith

The Kansas School Naturalist is sent upon request free of charge to any citizen of Kansas

The Kansas School Naturalist is published in October December February and April of each year by The Kansas State Teachers Colshylege Emporia Kansas Second-class mail privileges authorized at Emporia Kansas

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The Origin of Cultivated Plants Which of the following familiar

and important cultivated plants are native to the United States potato sweet potato corn wheat beans tomato squash pepper cabbage kohlrabi brussel sprouts broccoli cauliflower asparagus celery parsnip beet turnip rllUshybarb watermelon lettuce muskshymelon carrot onion pea spinach radish soybean and sorghum Beshyfore answering let us find out just how a scientist goes about determshyining the place of origin of these and other plants Where did our vegetables come from and where and when were they first used for food

As you might suspect this is no easy task to fulfill Many plants have been cultivated for so many years that their origin is all but lost in antiquity Sometimes however lady luck lends a helping hand Most of you remember David Livshyingstone as a famous explorer of Africa But did you know that he also found by accident the original home of the wild watermelon in central Africa This illustrates also one of the best methods of tracing the origin of cultivated plants namely by finding the place where the ancestral forms are still growshying naturally

In manv instances however wild forms of cultivated plants are not found anywhere Corn is a good example How can a scientist find out where such plants came from Well common names are someshytimes of a help A plant which has many different names among scatshy

tered people in a primitive country must have been there a long time Therefore this country might very well be its place of origin When the white man first discovered the Indians of North and South Amerishyca he also found that they had culshytivated beans for as long as could be remembered Each tribe moreshyover had their own name for this plant The Indians on the St Lawrshyence River called it sahe or sahu the Hurons called it ogarshyessa the northern Algonquins tuppuhguam-ash the Delawares malachxil the Roanoke River Inshydians okindgier and the Aztecs a vacotli or etl Thus it was likely that the common bean was native to the New World With the help of other evidence the origin of the common bean was eventua1ly traced to Central America

Archaeological findings are freshyquently of great help also Carvshyings decorated utensils and ornashyments frequently depict food plants used by the people of that time Even seeds are occasionally found Such findings of course -indicate ancient usage of these plants and possibly places of origin Wheat and barley have been traced to ancient Egypt by this method with their eventual place of origin being close by in Mesopotamia

Recently even the microscope has played a role Strange as it may seem the shape of a plants chromshyosomes-those structures within the cell which carry the hereditary controlling genes-may also provide certain clues Thus for example

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the chromosomes of North Amerishycan corn more closely resemble those of the corn in Cei1tral Amershyica than the corn in South America This indicates a direct descendenc) from Central American forms for North American corn rather than from South American forms

Now that we have examined some of the ways by which a plants place of origin can be ascertained let us return to the original quesshytion As you may suspect by now none of those plants listed can be traced to origins in the United States Isnt it strange how dependshyent we are on foreign vegetables and fruits

Well you may ask if these plants did not come from the United States where did they come from Space does not permit a deshytailed answer but some of the major centers of plant origin might be mentioned The area around the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea is one of the most important Many of our vegetables apparently came from this area as did Kansas most important harvest crop wheat The Far East and India is another important center Both Central and South America are the original home of many cultivated species And there are other censhyters too

Do we have any fruits or vegemiddot tables that are native to the United States Yes but they are relatively few in number Mention the strawshyberries raspberries blackberries currants gooseberries cranberries and blueberries and vou have alshymost exhausted the list America 1S a land of plenty to be sure but reshy

member that most of this plenty originally came from other lands

REFERENCES Camp W R V R Boswell and J R Magshy

ness 1957 The World in Your Garden National Geographic Society Washingshyton DC

Hutchinson J and R Melville 1948 The Story of Plants P R Gawthorn Ltd London

Schery R W 1952 Plants for Man prentice-Hall Inc New York

HOW WHEAT CAME TO KANSAS

In the previous article we dis cussed in general the origin of many of our cultivated plants Since much of the economy of Kansas is censhytered about one cultivated plant wheat lets examine in a little more detail the history of this our most valuable crop

The history of wheat is a long one and extends back to or even beshyyond the beginnings of civilization vVheat along with barley oats and rye was probably among the first of all cultivated plants Scientists have been able to trace the cultimiddot vation of wheat for food purpose~ back to the New Stone Age apshyproximately 15000 years ago These early people apparently disshycovered the wild wheat plants growing in the mountains of Persia and Afghanistan and through some way recognized the value of these plants as a source of food (Apshyproximately 50 different kinds of wild wheat are still found growing in this area a good indication that this is the center of origin)

In their wanderings from place to place they took the wheat with them cultivated it at each seasonal camp site and thus spread this crop to many relatively distant

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areas By 6000 BC heat had beshycome well established around the headwaters of the Tigris and Eushyphrates rivers the cn-dle of mul ancient civilizations Through the rise and fall of the Sumeri~n and Babylonian empires and until bib shylical times the cultiation of wheat continued to expand over much of the eastern and southern areas of the iVIediterranean region

Just how and when wheat was first introduced into Europe no one knows Suffice it to sav that once introduced it quickly became one of the basic food crops

The New World did not become acquainted with wheat until the early 1500s when the Spaniards introduced it into Mexico Someshywhat later the first English colonshyists brought wheat with them when the settled in Virginia As man moved westward across the Appashylachians wheat moved with him And so as civilization gradually pushed back the frontiers beyond the state of Kansas wheat came with the early settlers who soon found that our verdant prairies were ideally suited for this crop Today Kansas is one of the leading wheat producing states in the counshytry with approximately 200 million bushels produced annually From Persia to Kansas Its been a long journey but certainly from our point of viev very worth while

WHATS YOUR FOOD IQ

The following is a list of common plants that are regularly eaten as fruits or vegetables Do you know exactly what part of the plant you are eating when it is prepared for

consumption For example -hat does lettuce represent If ou ansered middotleaesmiddot oui-e correct 0 tIT our luck on those b elow _-nsels ~ill be lound on page 16

l Lirna beans Broccoli ) Irish Potato -1 Seet Potato J Caulifloer 6 Celen 7 Peas 8 Carrots 9 Brussel sprouts

10 Tomato

THE METHUSELAHS OF THE PLANT WORLD

What are the oldest living things on earth Most people would probshyably answer the giant sequoias of California Until a year or so ago this answer would have been acshycepted as correct But within reshycent months the discovery of even older trees has been announced by dendrochronologists (people who count and study the annual rings of trees )

Strange as it may seem these trees were found growing within 100 miles or so of Sequoia National Park the home of the former chamshypions of longevity White Mounshytains of California are the home of the new champions and their name is bristlecone pine More strangely still the grove of trees with the most ancient members is found growing on the most inhospitable site of the forest The trees are gnarled and weatherbeaten and seldom exceed 25 or 50 feet in height Perhaps only a narrow strip

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of the trunk and one or two branches will be alive on any given tree They seem to survive because of rather than in spite of adversity for on more favorable sites the trees do not attain anywhere near the age of these old timers

How old is the oldest of these bristlecone pines As of the momshyent the oldest one studied is over 4600 years old In contrast the General Sherman tree of Sequoia National Park is estimated to be 3500 years old a mere youngster by comparison

You may well ask how it is posshysible for a tree to be almost 50 censhyturies old and yet be less than 50 feet in height Growth of these pashytrimchs is exceedingly slow so slow in fact that over 100 annual rings can be counted in an inch of wood In many cases the tops and uppershymost branches die from starvation and onlv a few of the lower limbs survive Thus if you think a turtle or snail is slow remember the bristlecone pine

In terms of living in the future however the sequoias appear to have the best chance since most of the oldest bristlecones appear to be dying back It is estimated that within 5 centuries these ancient dwarfs will have perished The oldest sequoias on the other hand give no indication of slowing down with old age With continued proshytection they could still be living 3000 years from now Unfortunateshyly for you and me with our puny life span we will not be around to find out

FUTURE ISSUES OF KSN Plans are still rather nebulous as

to what subjects will appear in next years issues of The Kansas School Naturalist Issues for which some work has been done are Fossils (or perhaps Rocks and Fossils) How to do it for Elementary Science Snakes in Kansas Lizshyards in Kansas Nature Hobbies Watersheds in Kansas Wildlife Refuges and an issue on birds Every attempt is being made to cover subjects in which readers of The Kansas School N atumlist are interested so send your suggestions to the editor Among the many suggestions which have been made but upon which no work has been done as yet are Galls or Insect Homes and an issue dealing with the nature study of The Sunflower State

SUMMER WILDFLOWERS The October 1955 issue of The

Kansas School Naturalist was deshyvoted to fall wildflowers and the February 1956 issue to spring vildflowers Now well fill in the gap The plants described and picshytured are those that bloom during the months of June July and Augshyust

1 SCARLET GLOBEMALLOW

Here is one of the most familiar roadside plants of western Kansas These drought-resistant pubescent plants frequently form a solid carshypet along right-of-ways during early summer The leaves are 3-lobed with each lobe being divided furshyther If you have a hand lens or magnifying glass examine the hairs on the leaves more closely Note how each hair has a star-like apshy

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pearance being flat-topped with many radiating branches Like all members of the mallow familv the flower of the scarlet globenlallow has a central column of united stashymens The color of the 5 petals has been variously calleel vellowish-red or scarlet but orange or salmon would seem to be more appropriate adjectives It is one of the few natshyive plants in Kansas that has this flower color

2 SHOWY EVENING PRIMROSE

We have many different species of evening primroses in Kansas but this one is easily recognized by its white-petaled flowers All the others have yellow flowers The showy evening primrose is a common roadside and prairie perennial in central and eastern Kansas The 4 white petals 4 sepals and inferior ovary are distinctive floral characshyteristics Upon fading the petals turn a delicate shade of pink Like most of the evening primroses the flowers usually close during the heat of the afternoon The showy evenshying primrose is easily grown from seed

Another handsome evening primshyrose is the Missouri evening primshyrose or Ozark sundrops with its huge yellow flowers The fourmiddotshywinged seed pods green at first turn vello- and ma be seen on the grou~d all -inter shy

3 RUELLL

This lo--yoing perennial is found in pastures -n - -rairies in the eastern half of 1 1 Beci1llse of its rather dogt III la c-e to the common pduni- i i often l1b shynamed vild pet 1 Till _ litary purplish flowfs are bome in th

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leaf axil forming a funnel much like that of the petunia They are exshytremely short-lived with the corolla falling off within 24 hours Hence this is hardlv a flower for the wild flower boug~et Leave it in nature where it belongs The leaves have a very short petiole and are pubshyescent

4 SCURFPEA

As the name suggests this plant belongs to the pea or legume family The leaves are palmately divided into 3 or 5 leaflets and are usually pubescent In its general growth form and habit and its cluster of tiny blue or lavender pea-like flowers scurfpea closely resembles the cultivated alfalfa Because of this it is often called wild alfalfa The silvery or grayish pubescence of the leaves however usually disshytinguish it from alfalfa A familiar prairie and roadside plant the scurfpea adorns most every landshyscape throughout the state being especially common north and east

5 SENSITIVE BRIER

This shrubby low-growing pershymiddotennial is easily recognized by its spherical heads of attractive roseshycolored flowers its compound leaves divided into many tiny leafshylets and its long linear and spineshycovered pods following the bloomshying period The lovely flowers inshyvite picking but watch out for the many sharp spines covering the stems Like other members of the Mimosa family the leaflets have the peculiar ability to fold together at night or in stormy weather or when the plant is handled roughly The sensitive brier is found nearly throughout the state and makes a

handsome addition to he roadside and prairie eg ta tiOll

6 PHAIRIE cLo middotn~

Also a member of tJie pea or leshygume bmit- the prairie clover is one of our most handsome prairie plants Tlle compact spike or sphershyical head of tin- purple or white flowers makes the prairie clover readih- identifiable We have at least 6 different species in Kansas 4 with white flowers and 2 with purple All are perennial and have a long taproot They grow in prairies and meadows throughout the state and are very attractive to insects

7 QUEEN ANNES LACE

This plant is also called wild carshyrot and our domesticated carrot was derived from this plant Queen Annes Lace is not native to our country having been brought here from the Mediterranean region It is easily recognized by the finely divided fern-like leaves and thc loose cluster or umbels of tiny white flowers After flowering the flower stalks turn inward into a compact ball somewhat resembling a birds nest As the fruits ripen however the stalks bend outward again to form a flat-topped cluster Queen Annes lace is a biennial and is found along roadsides and waste places chiefl in the eastern half of the state

8 WOOLY cnOTOc(

A familiar roadside allnual throughout central and eastern Kansas this plant is eltisi- identified bv its oate lelt1e5 a11d ft yook p~besctllce Lik the s arlet globeshymallo mentioned efore the leaves are co-ered ith tho e UJlshy

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usual stellate hairs which show up so nicely under magnification The flowers are tiny and very inconshyspicuous and are either staminate (male) or pistillate (female) Both flower types however are borne in the same cluster Vhen crushed the plant gives off a very strong odor Other species of Croton are also quite common in Kansas

9 FOUR 0 CLOCK

The four 0 clock is found in waste places roadsides and other disturbed areas throughout the state Though sometimes called a weed it nevertheless is an atshytractive one The upright man~shybranched stems grow to a height of 2-3 feet and bear opposite more or less heart-shaped leaves The floshyering habit is rather unique for 2-3 flowers are borne in a cluster enshyclosed by a 5-10bed involucre or bract Each flower has a bell-shaped calyx colored purplish-pink but no corolla

Following pollination and fertilishyza tion the calyx tube drops off lea vshying the expanded involucre to surshyround and protect the developing fruits and seeds This plant is someshytimes called umbrellawort beshycause of this unusual feature It is closely related to our common garshyden four 0 clock and the exotic tropical vine often seen in our southenl states Bougainvillea

10 CONEFLOWER

The many species of this group all have one thing in common the type of floral structure Each head has a central cone either elongated or rounded of disk flowers and drooping ray flowers around the

base of the cone l o- t t ~ ) cie have vello 1lt1 flomiddoter~ The (0 Ullshy

nar pairie conefiower picturedh re is one of the mo t common p j

and is found ne r ~ hroll ~hou the entire state

11 TO-DFLX

The bright e11o and orange 0

flowers of this attmctin perennial gives rise to its other common name butter-and-eggs The flowers look very much like miniature snapdragshyons except for a rather prominent spur which extends from the lower portion of the corolla Its leaves are long and very narrow growing on a stem about 2 feet tall It is found scattered throughout the state in waste places along roadsides and in cultivated areas

12 BLACK SAMPSON

This rather sinister-sounding name is applied to one of our more attractive composites The long linear leaves are chiefly basal in position and are covered with coarse rough hairs The terminal head of flowers consists of a central cone or mound of brownish-colored disk flowers and a marginal array of purplish-colored ray flowers This stately perennial is found in prairies and meadows nearly throughout the state The Indians used the roots of this plant for medicinal purposes and even today certain tinctures are still prepared from the black Sampson

13 DAYFLOEH

l The chl-flo-er belonps to the 0

same famil - as the familiar spider-wort of earh- spring and the comshymon house plarlL ZCbriila or wandshy

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ering Jew It is found in waste places along roadsides and alleyshyways and seems to prefer partial shade The small rather inconspicshyuous flowers are actually quite atshytractive upon close examination Of the 3 petals the 2 upper ones are colored blue and the lower white Not a native of the United States since its home is in Asia the dayshyflower is found scattered throughshyout the eastern third of Kansas

14 PRICKLY POppy

An attractive yet formidable species the prickly POPP) is found throughout central and western Kansas in pastures and waste places Its flower is large and showy bearshying 5 rather flimsy white petals The center bears a conspicuous cone of bright yellow stamens Alshythough one may be tempted to gather the flowers for a bouquet this thought is quickly discouraged by the very sharp prickles which cover both leaves and stem Like other members of the poppy family it has a sticky juice or latex

15 ERIOGONUM

This plant is found throughout central and western Kansas and is very drought resistant a characmiddotmiddot teristic imparted by its deep tapshyroot system sparse foliage and whitish pubescence on both stems and leaves In one species the flowshyers are greenish-yellow in another they are white In either case howshyeve thev are very small and unshyattractiv~ The spieading infloresshycences at the top of the plant give it a somewhat flat-topped appearmiddotmiddot ance hence the sometimes-used common name of umbrella plant

16 WILD ROSE

Certainly here we have a plant that could scarcely be mistaken for any other kind Although we have a number of different species in Kansas everyone can recognize them as roses The thorny stems the compound leaves the pink 5shypetaled flower with many stamens and the bright red fruit are all disshytinctive characteristics The fruits or hips as they are called are edshyible and are readily eaten by birds and mammals Wild roses are found throughout the entire state and cershytain of the species are amazingly drough t -resistan t

17 PITCHER CLEMATIS

Of the many different kinds of vines that one is likely to encounter growing on and along roadside fences in eastern Kansas the pitcher clematis is one of the most common It is readily identified by its comshypound leaves (3 to 9 leaflets) and urn-shaped brownish-purple flowshyers borne singly on the ends of long flower stalks This vine might very ell make a handsome addition to the garden and is readily propashygated by seed It does require howshyever a deep rich soil Incidentally this flower has no petals the deep brovnish-purple color being imshyparted by the sepals alone

18 JIMSON WEED

A familiar weed around barnshyyards and feed lots in the eastern half of Kansas the Jimson weed is one of our largest annual species attaining a height of up to 5 feet by the end of the growing season It is eaSily recognized by its thick greenish or purp1ish stems coarsely

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toothed leaves and large trumpetshylike flowers The white or violet colored flowers open in the evening and emit a rather sweet odor which attracts night-flying moths The enshytire plant is poisonous to animals including man

19 PUNCTURE VINE

The puncture vine is one of our most familiar and occasionallv painful weeds A prostrate pLut which creeps along the surface of the ground it will frequently form a very dense mat in waste places and along roadsides Its fruit is its most conspicuous feature as many a barefoot boy can testify being sharply angled and armed with short pointed spines The flowers borne from July through September are small with 5 separate yellow petals Puncture vine has opposite compound leaves consisting of 10 to 14 leaflets Unfortunately this plant is disseminated rather eaSily and is rapidly becoming a pest in many parts of our country

20 YUCCA

This is a plant familiar to pracshytically everyone in central and western Kansas The large rosette Of bayonet-like evergreen leaves is a very distinctive feature In late May and June the inflorescence bearing large white cup-shaped flowers is produced The life hisshytory of Yucca or soapweed as it is sometimes called is very unusual since pollination and resiIltant proshyduction of seeds is dependent enshytirely upon one species of moth (see page 5 of the October 1955 issue of The Kansas School Natumlshymiddotist) Did you know that the Spanshy

ish bayonet and Joshua tree of southwestern United States were also species of Yucca

2l CINQUEFOIL

We have 11 different species of this plant growing in Kansas but most of them can be recognized by their yellow strawberry-like flower and palmately foliate leaves the number of leaflets usually being 5 Because of this characteristic cinquefOil is sometimes called fiveshyfinger They are found chiefly in the eastern half of Kansas growing in meadows and open woods

22 PRICKLY PEAR (cover picture) Almost everyone knows this

plant our most familiar representashytive of the cactus family A perenshynial and extremely drought-resistshyant the prickly pear is found nearly throughout Kansas though more common in the western half The large yellow flowers are very atshytractive a saving characteristic of most cacti The reddish cIubshyshaped fruits are edible and are occasionally made into candy or ielly The large succulent so-called leaves are in actualitv modified stems specially adapted for water storage The true leaves which are seen only on young shoots are small and narrow During periods of exshytreme drought when nothing else is available ranchers in western Kansas will sometimes singe off the spines of growing prickly pears thus making the plants edible for their cattle The next time vou visit a dry pasture look for a close relative of the prickly pear the smaller and rarer pin cushion Or ball cactus with reddish or yellOWish flowers

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PRESERVING FLOiVERS School will be out before the

flowers listed in this issue are in bloom Nevertheless ye hope that this issue will aid the teacher and student alike in learning to identify some of our common summer wildshyflowers Dming these vacation months the teacher does many things in preparing for school A good project would be to identify collect press and mount some of the summer flOers for use during the school year

In collecting plants for pressing and mounting one must remember to get as much of the plant as posshysible Of course if the plant is large it is not practical to coHect all of it In that case get enough of the root to show its type enough of the stem and leaves to show their charshyacteristics and of course be sure to get the flower

To press these plants place them in a folded sheet of newspaper and evenly apply pressure It is possible to press more than one plant at the same time but several sheets of papers should be placed between speciments to absorb the moisture These papers must be changed daily in order to dry the plants quickly and large roots should be split lengthwise to facilitate drying Too much heat will brown the plants so do not place them in an oven

The pressure necessary for pressshying these plants can be supplied in a number of ways such as using books rocks or any other heavy obshyject A good plant press can easily be constructed from the sides of an apple or orange crate The plants and their newspapers are placed on

one of the boards and then the other board is placed on top By using a strap at each end of the press the boards can be drawn tightly toshygether and the plants will be evenshyly and neatly pressed

The dried plants should be mounted on good stiff white paper Notebook size is fine but a larger size is better if it is available The plants may be glued to the paper or attached with small strips of transparent tape Mice and insects will eat these dried plants so they should be kept in boxes containing moth balls It is a good idea to spray the pressed specimens occasionally with a bug bomb Students will enshyjoy building a collection of pressed plants and projects such as this will add interest to the school science table

ABOUT THIS ISSUE Most of this issue of The Kansas

School Natumlist was prepared by Dr G A Leisman of the E-State Biology Department The article on preserving flowers was written by Mr Homer Stephens of the Forshyestry Fish and Game Commission This is the third issue of a series dealing with some of the wildshyflowers of Kansas Fall Wildshyflowers (Oct 1955) and Spring Wildflowers (Feb 1956) the other two issues of this series are now out of print and therefore are no longer available

AUDUBON SCREEN TOURS The Biology Department of the

Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia will present another Screen Tour Series next year

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ANSWERS TO FOOD QUIZ (page 5)

1 Lima beans are large seeds 2 Broccoli actuallv com bines two

two parts of tbe plant the stem and many unexpanded flower buds

middot3 The Irish potao is a tuber or special kind of underground stem

4 Sweet potatoes are true roots 5 Three cheers if you get this

one A head of cauliflower is nothing more than a large mass of undeveloped flowers

6 A celery stalk is a large and fleshv petiole or leaf stalk

7 Peas like beans are nothing more than seeds

8 This is easy A carrot is of course a root

9 Each head of brussel sprouts represents a miniature strucshyture like a cabbage bead In either case they are nothing more than leafy buds

10 One of our familiar vegeshytables the tomato is actually a fruit

If you got more than 7 right you know vour onions ( these are bulbs) Congratulations

LIGHT AND TIME Everyone has noticed that light comes

through a window but you may not realshyize that this light can be used to tell the time of day Select a window on the sunny side of the building and paste on the glass a piece of paper abou t the size of a half dollar See where the shadow of this spot is on the fiool or perhaps on the opposite wall Mark the place where the shadow is at say 830 A M Mark it again at 900 A M and at intervals for several hOUlmiddotS Notice next day whether the shadows are a t the same places at the same times Does this provide you with a clock Does this sun clock keep pace with the room clock A record kept through the school year will provide the answers to these and many other questions

THE 1958 WORKSHOP IN CONSERVATION

First Section - Three Weeks June 2 to June 20 1958

Credit - three semester hours Graduate or Undergraduate

vVater soil grassland and vvildlife conservation with emphasis throughout on conservation education Such topics as geography and climate of Kansas wltlter resources soil erosion problems and control grass as a resource bird banding wildflowers of Kansas conservation cJubs and conservation teaching at various levels Lectures demonstrations disshycussion groups films slides models field trips projects and individual and group reports Open to any interested person

Second Session - Three Weeks June 23 to July 11 1958

Credit - 1 2 or 3 hours for 1 2 or 3 weeks

Graduate or Undergraduate This section will be devoted to the

production of teaching aids for conshyservation and to other subjects dependshying upon the needs interests and exshyperiences of the participants Topics covered last year were lizzards wildlife refuges roadside nature study and a suggested guide to teaching conservashytion in the elementary schools Some of the materials developed by the 1958 workshop will probably be used in fushyture issues of The Kansa~ School Nafumlr ist

Several scholarships awarded by varishyous Soil Conservation Districts and other interested onranizations are available to people enrolled in the Workshop Pershysons interested in apniyinQ for a scholarshyhip are ur~ed to contact their local Soil Conservation Service Office There will also be a limited number of scholarships awarded bv the Emporia State Teachers College For additional infOlmation and anplication blanks write C F Gladfelter Kansas State Teachers ColIltgtge Emnoria

Vorkshops in Conservation will also be conducted at Fort Hays State and Sterling College Persons attending these workshops are also eligible for the Soil Conservation District Scholarships

The Kansas

School Naturalist

Published by

The Kansas State Teachers College of ~mporia

Prepared and Issued by The Department of Biology with the cooperation of the Divisions of Education and Social Science

Acting Editor Carl W Prophet Department of Biology

Editorial Committee Ina M Borman Robert F Clarke Helen M Douglass Gilbert A Leisman Dixon Smith

The Kansas School Naturalist is sent upon request free of charge to any citizen of Kansas

The Kansas School Naturalist is published in October December February and April of each year by The Kansas State Teachers Colshylege Emporia Kansas Second-class mail privileges authorized at Emporia Kansas

3

The Origin of Cultivated Plants Which of the following familiar

and important cultivated plants are native to the United States potato sweet potato corn wheat beans tomato squash pepper cabbage kohlrabi brussel sprouts broccoli cauliflower asparagus celery parsnip beet turnip rllUshybarb watermelon lettuce muskshymelon carrot onion pea spinach radish soybean and sorghum Beshyfore answering let us find out just how a scientist goes about determshyining the place of origin of these and other plants Where did our vegetables come from and where and when were they first used for food

As you might suspect this is no easy task to fulfill Many plants have been cultivated for so many years that their origin is all but lost in antiquity Sometimes however lady luck lends a helping hand Most of you remember David Livshyingstone as a famous explorer of Africa But did you know that he also found by accident the original home of the wild watermelon in central Africa This illustrates also one of the best methods of tracing the origin of cultivated plants namely by finding the place where the ancestral forms are still growshying naturally

In manv instances however wild forms of cultivated plants are not found anywhere Corn is a good example How can a scientist find out where such plants came from Well common names are someshytimes of a help A plant which has many different names among scatshy

tered people in a primitive country must have been there a long time Therefore this country might very well be its place of origin When the white man first discovered the Indians of North and South Amerishyca he also found that they had culshytivated beans for as long as could be remembered Each tribe moreshyover had their own name for this plant The Indians on the St Lawrshyence River called it sahe or sahu the Hurons called it ogarshyessa the northern Algonquins tuppuhguam-ash the Delawares malachxil the Roanoke River Inshydians okindgier and the Aztecs a vacotli or etl Thus it was likely that the common bean was native to the New World With the help of other evidence the origin of the common bean was eventua1ly traced to Central America

Archaeological findings are freshyquently of great help also Carvshyings decorated utensils and ornashyments frequently depict food plants used by the people of that time Even seeds are occasionally found Such findings of course -indicate ancient usage of these plants and possibly places of origin Wheat and barley have been traced to ancient Egypt by this method with their eventual place of origin being close by in Mesopotamia

Recently even the microscope has played a role Strange as it may seem the shape of a plants chromshyosomes-those structures within the cell which carry the hereditary controlling genes-may also provide certain clues Thus for example

4

the chromosomes of North Amerishycan corn more closely resemble those of the corn in Cei1tral Amershyica than the corn in South America This indicates a direct descendenc) from Central American forms for North American corn rather than from South American forms

Now that we have examined some of the ways by which a plants place of origin can be ascertained let us return to the original quesshytion As you may suspect by now none of those plants listed can be traced to origins in the United States Isnt it strange how dependshyent we are on foreign vegetables and fruits

Well you may ask if these plants did not come from the United States where did they come from Space does not permit a deshytailed answer but some of the major centers of plant origin might be mentioned The area around the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea is one of the most important Many of our vegetables apparently came from this area as did Kansas most important harvest crop wheat The Far East and India is another important center Both Central and South America are the original home of many cultivated species And there are other censhyters too

Do we have any fruits or vegemiddot tables that are native to the United States Yes but they are relatively few in number Mention the strawshyberries raspberries blackberries currants gooseberries cranberries and blueberries and vou have alshymost exhausted the list America 1S a land of plenty to be sure but reshy

member that most of this plenty originally came from other lands

REFERENCES Camp W R V R Boswell and J R Magshy

ness 1957 The World in Your Garden National Geographic Society Washingshyton DC

Hutchinson J and R Melville 1948 The Story of Plants P R Gawthorn Ltd London

Schery R W 1952 Plants for Man prentice-Hall Inc New York

HOW WHEAT CAME TO KANSAS

In the previous article we dis cussed in general the origin of many of our cultivated plants Since much of the economy of Kansas is censhytered about one cultivated plant wheat lets examine in a little more detail the history of this our most valuable crop

The history of wheat is a long one and extends back to or even beshyyond the beginnings of civilization vVheat along with barley oats and rye was probably among the first of all cultivated plants Scientists have been able to trace the cultimiddot vation of wheat for food purpose~ back to the New Stone Age apshyproximately 15000 years ago These early people apparently disshycovered the wild wheat plants growing in the mountains of Persia and Afghanistan and through some way recognized the value of these plants as a source of food (Apshyproximately 50 different kinds of wild wheat are still found growing in this area a good indication that this is the center of origin)

In their wanderings from place to place they took the wheat with them cultivated it at each seasonal camp site and thus spread this crop to many relatively distant

5

areas By 6000 BC heat had beshycome well established around the headwaters of the Tigris and Eushyphrates rivers the cn-dle of mul ancient civilizations Through the rise and fall of the Sumeri~n and Babylonian empires and until bib shylical times the cultiation of wheat continued to expand over much of the eastern and southern areas of the iVIediterranean region

Just how and when wheat was first introduced into Europe no one knows Suffice it to sav that once introduced it quickly became one of the basic food crops

The New World did not become acquainted with wheat until the early 1500s when the Spaniards introduced it into Mexico Someshywhat later the first English colonshyists brought wheat with them when the settled in Virginia As man moved westward across the Appashylachians wheat moved with him And so as civilization gradually pushed back the frontiers beyond the state of Kansas wheat came with the early settlers who soon found that our verdant prairies were ideally suited for this crop Today Kansas is one of the leading wheat producing states in the counshytry with approximately 200 million bushels produced annually From Persia to Kansas Its been a long journey but certainly from our point of viev very worth while

WHATS YOUR FOOD IQ

The following is a list of common plants that are regularly eaten as fruits or vegetables Do you know exactly what part of the plant you are eating when it is prepared for

consumption For example -hat does lettuce represent If ou ansered middotleaesmiddot oui-e correct 0 tIT our luck on those b elow _-nsels ~ill be lound on page 16

l Lirna beans Broccoli ) Irish Potato -1 Seet Potato J Caulifloer 6 Celen 7 Peas 8 Carrots 9 Brussel sprouts

10 Tomato

THE METHUSELAHS OF THE PLANT WORLD

What are the oldest living things on earth Most people would probshyably answer the giant sequoias of California Until a year or so ago this answer would have been acshycepted as correct But within reshycent months the discovery of even older trees has been announced by dendrochronologists (people who count and study the annual rings of trees )

Strange as it may seem these trees were found growing within 100 miles or so of Sequoia National Park the home of the former chamshypions of longevity White Mounshytains of California are the home of the new champions and their name is bristlecone pine More strangely still the grove of trees with the most ancient members is found growing on the most inhospitable site of the forest The trees are gnarled and weatherbeaten and seldom exceed 25 or 50 feet in height Perhaps only a narrow strip

6

of the trunk and one or two branches will be alive on any given tree They seem to survive because of rather than in spite of adversity for on more favorable sites the trees do not attain anywhere near the age of these old timers

How old is the oldest of these bristlecone pines As of the momshyent the oldest one studied is over 4600 years old In contrast the General Sherman tree of Sequoia National Park is estimated to be 3500 years old a mere youngster by comparison

You may well ask how it is posshysible for a tree to be almost 50 censhyturies old and yet be less than 50 feet in height Growth of these pashytrimchs is exceedingly slow so slow in fact that over 100 annual rings can be counted in an inch of wood In many cases the tops and uppershymost branches die from starvation and onlv a few of the lower limbs survive Thus if you think a turtle or snail is slow remember the bristlecone pine

In terms of living in the future however the sequoias appear to have the best chance since most of the oldest bristlecones appear to be dying back It is estimated that within 5 centuries these ancient dwarfs will have perished The oldest sequoias on the other hand give no indication of slowing down with old age With continued proshytection they could still be living 3000 years from now Unfortunateshyly for you and me with our puny life span we will not be around to find out

FUTURE ISSUES OF KSN Plans are still rather nebulous as

to what subjects will appear in next years issues of The Kansas School Naturalist Issues for which some work has been done are Fossils (or perhaps Rocks and Fossils) How to do it for Elementary Science Snakes in Kansas Lizshyards in Kansas Nature Hobbies Watersheds in Kansas Wildlife Refuges and an issue on birds Every attempt is being made to cover subjects in which readers of The Kansas School N atumlist are interested so send your suggestions to the editor Among the many suggestions which have been made but upon which no work has been done as yet are Galls or Insect Homes and an issue dealing with the nature study of The Sunflower State

SUMMER WILDFLOWERS The October 1955 issue of The

Kansas School Naturalist was deshyvoted to fall wildflowers and the February 1956 issue to spring vildflowers Now well fill in the gap The plants described and picshytured are those that bloom during the months of June July and Augshyust

1 SCARLET GLOBEMALLOW

Here is one of the most familiar roadside plants of western Kansas These drought-resistant pubescent plants frequently form a solid carshypet along right-of-ways during early summer The leaves are 3-lobed with each lobe being divided furshyther If you have a hand lens or magnifying glass examine the hairs on the leaves more closely Note how each hair has a star-like apshy

7

pearance being flat-topped with many radiating branches Like all members of the mallow familv the flower of the scarlet globenlallow has a central column of united stashymens The color of the 5 petals has been variously calleel vellowish-red or scarlet but orange or salmon would seem to be more appropriate adjectives It is one of the few natshyive plants in Kansas that has this flower color

2 SHOWY EVENING PRIMROSE

We have many different species of evening primroses in Kansas but this one is easily recognized by its white-petaled flowers All the others have yellow flowers The showy evening primrose is a common roadside and prairie perennial in central and eastern Kansas The 4 white petals 4 sepals and inferior ovary are distinctive floral characshyteristics Upon fading the petals turn a delicate shade of pink Like most of the evening primroses the flowers usually close during the heat of the afternoon The showy evenshying primrose is easily grown from seed

Another handsome evening primshyrose is the Missouri evening primshyrose or Ozark sundrops with its huge yellow flowers The fourmiddotshywinged seed pods green at first turn vello- and ma be seen on the grou~d all -inter shy

3 RUELLL

This lo--yoing perennial is found in pastures -n - -rairies in the eastern half of 1 1 Beci1llse of its rather dogt III la c-e to the common pduni- i i often l1b shynamed vild pet 1 Till _ litary purplish flowfs are bome in th

8

leaf axil forming a funnel much like that of the petunia They are exshytremely short-lived with the corolla falling off within 24 hours Hence this is hardlv a flower for the wild flower boug~et Leave it in nature where it belongs The leaves have a very short petiole and are pubshyescent

4 SCURFPEA

As the name suggests this plant belongs to the pea or legume family The leaves are palmately divided into 3 or 5 leaflets and are usually pubescent In its general growth form and habit and its cluster of tiny blue or lavender pea-like flowers scurfpea closely resembles the cultivated alfalfa Because of this it is often called wild alfalfa The silvery or grayish pubescence of the leaves however usually disshytinguish it from alfalfa A familiar prairie and roadside plant the scurfpea adorns most every landshyscape throughout the state being especially common north and east

5 SENSITIVE BRIER

This shrubby low-growing pershymiddotennial is easily recognized by its spherical heads of attractive roseshycolored flowers its compound leaves divided into many tiny leafshylets and its long linear and spineshycovered pods following the bloomshying period The lovely flowers inshyvite picking but watch out for the many sharp spines covering the stems Like other members of the Mimosa family the leaflets have the peculiar ability to fold together at night or in stormy weather or when the plant is handled roughly The sensitive brier is found nearly throughout the state and makes a

handsome addition to he roadside and prairie eg ta tiOll

6 PHAIRIE cLo middotn~

Also a member of tJie pea or leshygume bmit- the prairie clover is one of our most handsome prairie plants Tlle compact spike or sphershyical head of tin- purple or white flowers makes the prairie clover readih- identifiable We have at least 6 different species in Kansas 4 with white flowers and 2 with purple All are perennial and have a long taproot They grow in prairies and meadows throughout the state and are very attractive to insects

7 QUEEN ANNES LACE

This plant is also called wild carshyrot and our domesticated carrot was derived from this plant Queen Annes Lace is not native to our country having been brought here from the Mediterranean region It is easily recognized by the finely divided fern-like leaves and thc loose cluster or umbels of tiny white flowers After flowering the flower stalks turn inward into a compact ball somewhat resembling a birds nest As the fruits ripen however the stalks bend outward again to form a flat-topped cluster Queen Annes lace is a biennial and is found along roadsides and waste places chiefl in the eastern half of the state

8 WOOLY cnOTOc(

A familiar roadside allnual throughout central and eastern Kansas this plant is eltisi- identified bv its oate lelt1e5 a11d ft yook p~besctllce Lik the s arlet globeshymallo mentioned efore the leaves are co-ered ith tho e UJlshy

9

usual stellate hairs which show up so nicely under magnification The flowers are tiny and very inconshyspicuous and are either staminate (male) or pistillate (female) Both flower types however are borne in the same cluster Vhen crushed the plant gives off a very strong odor Other species of Croton are also quite common in Kansas

9 FOUR 0 CLOCK

The four 0 clock is found in waste places roadsides and other disturbed areas throughout the state Though sometimes called a weed it nevertheless is an atshytractive one The upright man~shybranched stems grow to a height of 2-3 feet and bear opposite more or less heart-shaped leaves The floshyering habit is rather unique for 2-3 flowers are borne in a cluster enshyclosed by a 5-10bed involucre or bract Each flower has a bell-shaped calyx colored purplish-pink but no corolla

Following pollination and fertilishyza tion the calyx tube drops off lea vshying the expanded involucre to surshyround and protect the developing fruits and seeds This plant is someshytimes called umbrellawort beshycause of this unusual feature It is closely related to our common garshyden four 0 clock and the exotic tropical vine often seen in our southenl states Bougainvillea

10 CONEFLOWER

The many species of this group all have one thing in common the type of floral structure Each head has a central cone either elongated or rounded of disk flowers and drooping ray flowers around the

base of the cone l o- t t ~ ) cie have vello 1lt1 flomiddoter~ The (0 Ullshy

nar pairie conefiower picturedh re is one of the mo t common p j

and is found ne r ~ hroll ~hou the entire state

11 TO-DFLX

The bright e11o and orange 0

flowers of this attmctin perennial gives rise to its other common name butter-and-eggs The flowers look very much like miniature snapdragshyons except for a rather prominent spur which extends from the lower portion of the corolla Its leaves are long and very narrow growing on a stem about 2 feet tall It is found scattered throughout the state in waste places along roadsides and in cultivated areas

12 BLACK SAMPSON

This rather sinister-sounding name is applied to one of our more attractive composites The long linear leaves are chiefly basal in position and are covered with coarse rough hairs The terminal head of flowers consists of a central cone or mound of brownish-colored disk flowers and a marginal array of purplish-colored ray flowers This stately perennial is found in prairies and meadows nearly throughout the state The Indians used the roots of this plant for medicinal purposes and even today certain tinctures are still prepared from the black Sampson

13 DAYFLOEH

l The chl-flo-er belonps to the 0

same famil - as the familiar spider-wort of earh- spring and the comshymon house plarlL ZCbriila or wandshy

12

ering Jew It is found in waste places along roadsides and alleyshyways and seems to prefer partial shade The small rather inconspicshyuous flowers are actually quite atshytractive upon close examination Of the 3 petals the 2 upper ones are colored blue and the lower white Not a native of the United States since its home is in Asia the dayshyflower is found scattered throughshyout the eastern third of Kansas

14 PRICKLY POppy

An attractive yet formidable species the prickly POPP) is found throughout central and western Kansas in pastures and waste places Its flower is large and showy bearshying 5 rather flimsy white petals The center bears a conspicuous cone of bright yellow stamens Alshythough one may be tempted to gather the flowers for a bouquet this thought is quickly discouraged by the very sharp prickles which cover both leaves and stem Like other members of the poppy family it has a sticky juice or latex

15 ERIOGONUM

This plant is found throughout central and western Kansas and is very drought resistant a characmiddotmiddot teristic imparted by its deep tapshyroot system sparse foliage and whitish pubescence on both stems and leaves In one species the flowshyers are greenish-yellow in another they are white In either case howshyeve thev are very small and unshyattractiv~ The spieading infloresshycences at the top of the plant give it a somewhat flat-topped appearmiddotmiddot ance hence the sometimes-used common name of umbrella plant

16 WILD ROSE

Certainly here we have a plant that could scarcely be mistaken for any other kind Although we have a number of different species in Kansas everyone can recognize them as roses The thorny stems the compound leaves the pink 5shypetaled flower with many stamens and the bright red fruit are all disshytinctive characteristics The fruits or hips as they are called are edshyible and are readily eaten by birds and mammals Wild roses are found throughout the entire state and cershytain of the species are amazingly drough t -resistan t

17 PITCHER CLEMATIS

Of the many different kinds of vines that one is likely to encounter growing on and along roadside fences in eastern Kansas the pitcher clematis is one of the most common It is readily identified by its comshypound leaves (3 to 9 leaflets) and urn-shaped brownish-purple flowshyers borne singly on the ends of long flower stalks This vine might very ell make a handsome addition to the garden and is readily propashygated by seed It does require howshyever a deep rich soil Incidentally this flower has no petals the deep brovnish-purple color being imshyparted by the sepals alone

18 JIMSON WEED

A familiar weed around barnshyyards and feed lots in the eastern half of Kansas the Jimson weed is one of our largest annual species attaining a height of up to 5 feet by the end of the growing season It is eaSily recognized by its thick greenish or purp1ish stems coarsely

14

toothed leaves and large trumpetshylike flowers The white or violet colored flowers open in the evening and emit a rather sweet odor which attracts night-flying moths The enshytire plant is poisonous to animals including man

19 PUNCTURE VINE

The puncture vine is one of our most familiar and occasionallv painful weeds A prostrate pLut which creeps along the surface of the ground it will frequently form a very dense mat in waste places and along roadsides Its fruit is its most conspicuous feature as many a barefoot boy can testify being sharply angled and armed with short pointed spines The flowers borne from July through September are small with 5 separate yellow petals Puncture vine has opposite compound leaves consisting of 10 to 14 leaflets Unfortunately this plant is disseminated rather eaSily and is rapidly becoming a pest in many parts of our country

20 YUCCA

This is a plant familiar to pracshytically everyone in central and western Kansas The large rosette Of bayonet-like evergreen leaves is a very distinctive feature In late May and June the inflorescence bearing large white cup-shaped flowers is produced The life hisshytory of Yucca or soapweed as it is sometimes called is very unusual since pollination and resiIltant proshyduction of seeds is dependent enshytirely upon one species of moth (see page 5 of the October 1955 issue of The Kansas School Natumlshymiddotist) Did you know that the Spanshy

ish bayonet and Joshua tree of southwestern United States were also species of Yucca

2l CINQUEFOIL

We have 11 different species of this plant growing in Kansas but most of them can be recognized by their yellow strawberry-like flower and palmately foliate leaves the number of leaflets usually being 5 Because of this characteristic cinquefOil is sometimes called fiveshyfinger They are found chiefly in the eastern half of Kansas growing in meadows and open woods

22 PRICKLY PEAR (cover picture) Almost everyone knows this

plant our most familiar representashytive of the cactus family A perenshynial and extremely drought-resistshyant the prickly pear is found nearly throughout Kansas though more common in the western half The large yellow flowers are very atshytractive a saving characteristic of most cacti The reddish cIubshyshaped fruits are edible and are occasionally made into candy or ielly The large succulent so-called leaves are in actualitv modified stems specially adapted for water storage The true leaves which are seen only on young shoots are small and narrow During periods of exshytreme drought when nothing else is available ranchers in western Kansas will sometimes singe off the spines of growing prickly pears thus making the plants edible for their cattle The next time vou visit a dry pasture look for a close relative of the prickly pear the smaller and rarer pin cushion Or ball cactus with reddish or yellOWish flowers

15

PRESERVING FLOiVERS School will be out before the

flowers listed in this issue are in bloom Nevertheless ye hope that this issue will aid the teacher and student alike in learning to identify some of our common summer wildshyflowers Dming these vacation months the teacher does many things in preparing for school A good project would be to identify collect press and mount some of the summer flOers for use during the school year

In collecting plants for pressing and mounting one must remember to get as much of the plant as posshysible Of course if the plant is large it is not practical to coHect all of it In that case get enough of the root to show its type enough of the stem and leaves to show their charshyacteristics and of course be sure to get the flower

To press these plants place them in a folded sheet of newspaper and evenly apply pressure It is possible to press more than one plant at the same time but several sheets of papers should be placed between speciments to absorb the moisture These papers must be changed daily in order to dry the plants quickly and large roots should be split lengthwise to facilitate drying Too much heat will brown the plants so do not place them in an oven

The pressure necessary for pressshying these plants can be supplied in a number of ways such as using books rocks or any other heavy obshyject A good plant press can easily be constructed from the sides of an apple or orange crate The plants and their newspapers are placed on

one of the boards and then the other board is placed on top By using a strap at each end of the press the boards can be drawn tightly toshygether and the plants will be evenshyly and neatly pressed

The dried plants should be mounted on good stiff white paper Notebook size is fine but a larger size is better if it is available The plants may be glued to the paper or attached with small strips of transparent tape Mice and insects will eat these dried plants so they should be kept in boxes containing moth balls It is a good idea to spray the pressed specimens occasionally with a bug bomb Students will enshyjoy building a collection of pressed plants and projects such as this will add interest to the school science table

ABOUT THIS ISSUE Most of this issue of The Kansas

School Natumlist was prepared by Dr G A Leisman of the E-State Biology Department The article on preserving flowers was written by Mr Homer Stephens of the Forshyestry Fish and Game Commission This is the third issue of a series dealing with some of the wildshyflowers of Kansas Fall Wildshyflowers (Oct 1955) and Spring Wildflowers (Feb 1956) the other two issues of this series are now out of print and therefore are no longer available

AUDUBON SCREEN TOURS The Biology Department of the

Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia will present another Screen Tour Series next year

16

ANSWERS TO FOOD QUIZ (page 5)

1 Lima beans are large seeds 2 Broccoli actuallv com bines two

two parts of tbe plant the stem and many unexpanded flower buds

middot3 The Irish potao is a tuber or special kind of underground stem

4 Sweet potatoes are true roots 5 Three cheers if you get this

one A head of cauliflower is nothing more than a large mass of undeveloped flowers

6 A celery stalk is a large and fleshv petiole or leaf stalk

7 Peas like beans are nothing more than seeds

8 This is easy A carrot is of course a root

9 Each head of brussel sprouts represents a miniature strucshyture like a cabbage bead In either case they are nothing more than leafy buds

10 One of our familiar vegeshytables the tomato is actually a fruit

If you got more than 7 right you know vour onions ( these are bulbs) Congratulations

LIGHT AND TIME Everyone has noticed that light comes

through a window but you may not realshyize that this light can be used to tell the time of day Select a window on the sunny side of the building and paste on the glass a piece of paper abou t the size of a half dollar See where the shadow of this spot is on the fiool or perhaps on the opposite wall Mark the place where the shadow is at say 830 A M Mark it again at 900 A M and at intervals for several hOUlmiddotS Notice next day whether the shadows are a t the same places at the same times Does this provide you with a clock Does this sun clock keep pace with the room clock A record kept through the school year will provide the answers to these and many other questions

THE 1958 WORKSHOP IN CONSERVATION

First Section - Three Weeks June 2 to June 20 1958

Credit - three semester hours Graduate or Undergraduate

vVater soil grassland and vvildlife conservation with emphasis throughout on conservation education Such topics as geography and climate of Kansas wltlter resources soil erosion problems and control grass as a resource bird banding wildflowers of Kansas conservation cJubs and conservation teaching at various levels Lectures demonstrations disshycussion groups films slides models field trips projects and individual and group reports Open to any interested person

Second Session - Three Weeks June 23 to July 11 1958

Credit - 1 2 or 3 hours for 1 2 or 3 weeks

Graduate or Undergraduate This section will be devoted to the

production of teaching aids for conshyservation and to other subjects dependshying upon the needs interests and exshyperiences of the participants Topics covered last year were lizzards wildlife refuges roadside nature study and a suggested guide to teaching conservashytion in the elementary schools Some of the materials developed by the 1958 workshop will probably be used in fushyture issues of The Kansa~ School Nafumlr ist

Several scholarships awarded by varishyous Soil Conservation Districts and other interested onranizations are available to people enrolled in the Workshop Pershysons interested in apniyinQ for a scholarshyhip are ur~ed to contact their local Soil Conservation Service Office There will also be a limited number of scholarships awarded bv the Emporia State Teachers College For additional infOlmation and anplication blanks write C F Gladfelter Kansas State Teachers ColIltgtge Emnoria

Vorkshops in Conservation will also be conducted at Fort Hays State and Sterling College Persons attending these workshops are also eligible for the Soil Conservation District Scholarships

3

The Origin of Cultivated Plants Which of the following familiar

and important cultivated plants are native to the United States potato sweet potato corn wheat beans tomato squash pepper cabbage kohlrabi brussel sprouts broccoli cauliflower asparagus celery parsnip beet turnip rllUshybarb watermelon lettuce muskshymelon carrot onion pea spinach radish soybean and sorghum Beshyfore answering let us find out just how a scientist goes about determshyining the place of origin of these and other plants Where did our vegetables come from and where and when were they first used for food

As you might suspect this is no easy task to fulfill Many plants have been cultivated for so many years that their origin is all but lost in antiquity Sometimes however lady luck lends a helping hand Most of you remember David Livshyingstone as a famous explorer of Africa But did you know that he also found by accident the original home of the wild watermelon in central Africa This illustrates also one of the best methods of tracing the origin of cultivated plants namely by finding the place where the ancestral forms are still growshying naturally

In manv instances however wild forms of cultivated plants are not found anywhere Corn is a good example How can a scientist find out where such plants came from Well common names are someshytimes of a help A plant which has many different names among scatshy

tered people in a primitive country must have been there a long time Therefore this country might very well be its place of origin When the white man first discovered the Indians of North and South Amerishyca he also found that they had culshytivated beans for as long as could be remembered Each tribe moreshyover had their own name for this plant The Indians on the St Lawrshyence River called it sahe or sahu the Hurons called it ogarshyessa the northern Algonquins tuppuhguam-ash the Delawares malachxil the Roanoke River Inshydians okindgier and the Aztecs a vacotli or etl Thus it was likely that the common bean was native to the New World With the help of other evidence the origin of the common bean was eventua1ly traced to Central America

Archaeological findings are freshyquently of great help also Carvshyings decorated utensils and ornashyments frequently depict food plants used by the people of that time Even seeds are occasionally found Such findings of course -indicate ancient usage of these plants and possibly places of origin Wheat and barley have been traced to ancient Egypt by this method with their eventual place of origin being close by in Mesopotamia

Recently even the microscope has played a role Strange as it may seem the shape of a plants chromshyosomes-those structures within the cell which carry the hereditary controlling genes-may also provide certain clues Thus for example

4

the chromosomes of North Amerishycan corn more closely resemble those of the corn in Cei1tral Amershyica than the corn in South America This indicates a direct descendenc) from Central American forms for North American corn rather than from South American forms

Now that we have examined some of the ways by which a plants place of origin can be ascertained let us return to the original quesshytion As you may suspect by now none of those plants listed can be traced to origins in the United States Isnt it strange how dependshyent we are on foreign vegetables and fruits

Well you may ask if these plants did not come from the United States where did they come from Space does not permit a deshytailed answer but some of the major centers of plant origin might be mentioned The area around the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea is one of the most important Many of our vegetables apparently came from this area as did Kansas most important harvest crop wheat The Far East and India is another important center Both Central and South America are the original home of many cultivated species And there are other censhyters too

Do we have any fruits or vegemiddot tables that are native to the United States Yes but they are relatively few in number Mention the strawshyberries raspberries blackberries currants gooseberries cranberries and blueberries and vou have alshymost exhausted the list America 1S a land of plenty to be sure but reshy

member that most of this plenty originally came from other lands

REFERENCES Camp W R V R Boswell and J R Magshy

ness 1957 The World in Your Garden National Geographic Society Washingshyton DC

Hutchinson J and R Melville 1948 The Story of Plants P R Gawthorn Ltd London

Schery R W 1952 Plants for Man prentice-Hall Inc New York

HOW WHEAT CAME TO KANSAS

In the previous article we dis cussed in general the origin of many of our cultivated plants Since much of the economy of Kansas is censhytered about one cultivated plant wheat lets examine in a little more detail the history of this our most valuable crop

The history of wheat is a long one and extends back to or even beshyyond the beginnings of civilization vVheat along with barley oats and rye was probably among the first of all cultivated plants Scientists have been able to trace the cultimiddot vation of wheat for food purpose~ back to the New Stone Age apshyproximately 15000 years ago These early people apparently disshycovered the wild wheat plants growing in the mountains of Persia and Afghanistan and through some way recognized the value of these plants as a source of food (Apshyproximately 50 different kinds of wild wheat are still found growing in this area a good indication that this is the center of origin)

In their wanderings from place to place they took the wheat with them cultivated it at each seasonal camp site and thus spread this crop to many relatively distant

5

areas By 6000 BC heat had beshycome well established around the headwaters of the Tigris and Eushyphrates rivers the cn-dle of mul ancient civilizations Through the rise and fall of the Sumeri~n and Babylonian empires and until bib shylical times the cultiation of wheat continued to expand over much of the eastern and southern areas of the iVIediterranean region

Just how and when wheat was first introduced into Europe no one knows Suffice it to sav that once introduced it quickly became one of the basic food crops

The New World did not become acquainted with wheat until the early 1500s when the Spaniards introduced it into Mexico Someshywhat later the first English colonshyists brought wheat with them when the settled in Virginia As man moved westward across the Appashylachians wheat moved with him And so as civilization gradually pushed back the frontiers beyond the state of Kansas wheat came with the early settlers who soon found that our verdant prairies were ideally suited for this crop Today Kansas is one of the leading wheat producing states in the counshytry with approximately 200 million bushels produced annually From Persia to Kansas Its been a long journey but certainly from our point of viev very worth while

WHATS YOUR FOOD IQ

The following is a list of common plants that are regularly eaten as fruits or vegetables Do you know exactly what part of the plant you are eating when it is prepared for

consumption For example -hat does lettuce represent If ou ansered middotleaesmiddot oui-e correct 0 tIT our luck on those b elow _-nsels ~ill be lound on page 16

l Lirna beans Broccoli ) Irish Potato -1 Seet Potato J Caulifloer 6 Celen 7 Peas 8 Carrots 9 Brussel sprouts

10 Tomato

THE METHUSELAHS OF THE PLANT WORLD

What are the oldest living things on earth Most people would probshyably answer the giant sequoias of California Until a year or so ago this answer would have been acshycepted as correct But within reshycent months the discovery of even older trees has been announced by dendrochronologists (people who count and study the annual rings of trees )

Strange as it may seem these trees were found growing within 100 miles or so of Sequoia National Park the home of the former chamshypions of longevity White Mounshytains of California are the home of the new champions and their name is bristlecone pine More strangely still the grove of trees with the most ancient members is found growing on the most inhospitable site of the forest The trees are gnarled and weatherbeaten and seldom exceed 25 or 50 feet in height Perhaps only a narrow strip

6

of the trunk and one or two branches will be alive on any given tree They seem to survive because of rather than in spite of adversity for on more favorable sites the trees do not attain anywhere near the age of these old timers

How old is the oldest of these bristlecone pines As of the momshyent the oldest one studied is over 4600 years old In contrast the General Sherman tree of Sequoia National Park is estimated to be 3500 years old a mere youngster by comparison

You may well ask how it is posshysible for a tree to be almost 50 censhyturies old and yet be less than 50 feet in height Growth of these pashytrimchs is exceedingly slow so slow in fact that over 100 annual rings can be counted in an inch of wood In many cases the tops and uppershymost branches die from starvation and onlv a few of the lower limbs survive Thus if you think a turtle or snail is slow remember the bristlecone pine

In terms of living in the future however the sequoias appear to have the best chance since most of the oldest bristlecones appear to be dying back It is estimated that within 5 centuries these ancient dwarfs will have perished The oldest sequoias on the other hand give no indication of slowing down with old age With continued proshytection they could still be living 3000 years from now Unfortunateshyly for you and me with our puny life span we will not be around to find out

FUTURE ISSUES OF KSN Plans are still rather nebulous as

to what subjects will appear in next years issues of The Kansas School Naturalist Issues for which some work has been done are Fossils (or perhaps Rocks and Fossils) How to do it for Elementary Science Snakes in Kansas Lizshyards in Kansas Nature Hobbies Watersheds in Kansas Wildlife Refuges and an issue on birds Every attempt is being made to cover subjects in which readers of The Kansas School N atumlist are interested so send your suggestions to the editor Among the many suggestions which have been made but upon which no work has been done as yet are Galls or Insect Homes and an issue dealing with the nature study of The Sunflower State

SUMMER WILDFLOWERS The October 1955 issue of The

Kansas School Naturalist was deshyvoted to fall wildflowers and the February 1956 issue to spring vildflowers Now well fill in the gap The plants described and picshytured are those that bloom during the months of June July and Augshyust

1 SCARLET GLOBEMALLOW

Here is one of the most familiar roadside plants of western Kansas These drought-resistant pubescent plants frequently form a solid carshypet along right-of-ways during early summer The leaves are 3-lobed with each lobe being divided furshyther If you have a hand lens or magnifying glass examine the hairs on the leaves more closely Note how each hair has a star-like apshy

7

pearance being flat-topped with many radiating branches Like all members of the mallow familv the flower of the scarlet globenlallow has a central column of united stashymens The color of the 5 petals has been variously calleel vellowish-red or scarlet but orange or salmon would seem to be more appropriate adjectives It is one of the few natshyive plants in Kansas that has this flower color

2 SHOWY EVENING PRIMROSE

We have many different species of evening primroses in Kansas but this one is easily recognized by its white-petaled flowers All the others have yellow flowers The showy evening primrose is a common roadside and prairie perennial in central and eastern Kansas The 4 white petals 4 sepals and inferior ovary are distinctive floral characshyteristics Upon fading the petals turn a delicate shade of pink Like most of the evening primroses the flowers usually close during the heat of the afternoon The showy evenshying primrose is easily grown from seed

Another handsome evening primshyrose is the Missouri evening primshyrose or Ozark sundrops with its huge yellow flowers The fourmiddotshywinged seed pods green at first turn vello- and ma be seen on the grou~d all -inter shy

3 RUELLL

This lo--yoing perennial is found in pastures -n - -rairies in the eastern half of 1 1 Beci1llse of its rather dogt III la c-e to the common pduni- i i often l1b shynamed vild pet 1 Till _ litary purplish flowfs are bome in th

8

leaf axil forming a funnel much like that of the petunia They are exshytremely short-lived with the corolla falling off within 24 hours Hence this is hardlv a flower for the wild flower boug~et Leave it in nature where it belongs The leaves have a very short petiole and are pubshyescent

4 SCURFPEA

As the name suggests this plant belongs to the pea or legume family The leaves are palmately divided into 3 or 5 leaflets and are usually pubescent In its general growth form and habit and its cluster of tiny blue or lavender pea-like flowers scurfpea closely resembles the cultivated alfalfa Because of this it is often called wild alfalfa The silvery or grayish pubescence of the leaves however usually disshytinguish it from alfalfa A familiar prairie and roadside plant the scurfpea adorns most every landshyscape throughout the state being especially common north and east

5 SENSITIVE BRIER

This shrubby low-growing pershymiddotennial is easily recognized by its spherical heads of attractive roseshycolored flowers its compound leaves divided into many tiny leafshylets and its long linear and spineshycovered pods following the bloomshying period The lovely flowers inshyvite picking but watch out for the many sharp spines covering the stems Like other members of the Mimosa family the leaflets have the peculiar ability to fold together at night or in stormy weather or when the plant is handled roughly The sensitive brier is found nearly throughout the state and makes a

handsome addition to he roadside and prairie eg ta tiOll

6 PHAIRIE cLo middotn~

Also a member of tJie pea or leshygume bmit- the prairie clover is one of our most handsome prairie plants Tlle compact spike or sphershyical head of tin- purple or white flowers makes the prairie clover readih- identifiable We have at least 6 different species in Kansas 4 with white flowers and 2 with purple All are perennial and have a long taproot They grow in prairies and meadows throughout the state and are very attractive to insects

7 QUEEN ANNES LACE

This plant is also called wild carshyrot and our domesticated carrot was derived from this plant Queen Annes Lace is not native to our country having been brought here from the Mediterranean region It is easily recognized by the finely divided fern-like leaves and thc loose cluster or umbels of tiny white flowers After flowering the flower stalks turn inward into a compact ball somewhat resembling a birds nest As the fruits ripen however the stalks bend outward again to form a flat-topped cluster Queen Annes lace is a biennial and is found along roadsides and waste places chiefl in the eastern half of the state

8 WOOLY cnOTOc(

A familiar roadside allnual throughout central and eastern Kansas this plant is eltisi- identified bv its oate lelt1e5 a11d ft yook p~besctllce Lik the s arlet globeshymallo mentioned efore the leaves are co-ered ith tho e UJlshy

9

usual stellate hairs which show up so nicely under magnification The flowers are tiny and very inconshyspicuous and are either staminate (male) or pistillate (female) Both flower types however are borne in the same cluster Vhen crushed the plant gives off a very strong odor Other species of Croton are also quite common in Kansas

9 FOUR 0 CLOCK

The four 0 clock is found in waste places roadsides and other disturbed areas throughout the state Though sometimes called a weed it nevertheless is an atshytractive one The upright man~shybranched stems grow to a height of 2-3 feet and bear opposite more or less heart-shaped leaves The floshyering habit is rather unique for 2-3 flowers are borne in a cluster enshyclosed by a 5-10bed involucre or bract Each flower has a bell-shaped calyx colored purplish-pink but no corolla

Following pollination and fertilishyza tion the calyx tube drops off lea vshying the expanded involucre to surshyround and protect the developing fruits and seeds This plant is someshytimes called umbrellawort beshycause of this unusual feature It is closely related to our common garshyden four 0 clock and the exotic tropical vine often seen in our southenl states Bougainvillea

10 CONEFLOWER

The many species of this group all have one thing in common the type of floral structure Each head has a central cone either elongated or rounded of disk flowers and drooping ray flowers around the

base of the cone l o- t t ~ ) cie have vello 1lt1 flomiddoter~ The (0 Ullshy

nar pairie conefiower picturedh re is one of the mo t common p j

and is found ne r ~ hroll ~hou the entire state

11 TO-DFLX

The bright e11o and orange 0

flowers of this attmctin perennial gives rise to its other common name butter-and-eggs The flowers look very much like miniature snapdragshyons except for a rather prominent spur which extends from the lower portion of the corolla Its leaves are long and very narrow growing on a stem about 2 feet tall It is found scattered throughout the state in waste places along roadsides and in cultivated areas

12 BLACK SAMPSON

This rather sinister-sounding name is applied to one of our more attractive composites The long linear leaves are chiefly basal in position and are covered with coarse rough hairs The terminal head of flowers consists of a central cone or mound of brownish-colored disk flowers and a marginal array of purplish-colored ray flowers This stately perennial is found in prairies and meadows nearly throughout the state The Indians used the roots of this plant for medicinal purposes and even today certain tinctures are still prepared from the black Sampson

13 DAYFLOEH

l The chl-flo-er belonps to the 0

same famil - as the familiar spider-wort of earh- spring and the comshymon house plarlL ZCbriila or wandshy

12

ering Jew It is found in waste places along roadsides and alleyshyways and seems to prefer partial shade The small rather inconspicshyuous flowers are actually quite atshytractive upon close examination Of the 3 petals the 2 upper ones are colored blue and the lower white Not a native of the United States since its home is in Asia the dayshyflower is found scattered throughshyout the eastern third of Kansas

14 PRICKLY POppy

An attractive yet formidable species the prickly POPP) is found throughout central and western Kansas in pastures and waste places Its flower is large and showy bearshying 5 rather flimsy white petals The center bears a conspicuous cone of bright yellow stamens Alshythough one may be tempted to gather the flowers for a bouquet this thought is quickly discouraged by the very sharp prickles which cover both leaves and stem Like other members of the poppy family it has a sticky juice or latex

15 ERIOGONUM

This plant is found throughout central and western Kansas and is very drought resistant a characmiddotmiddot teristic imparted by its deep tapshyroot system sparse foliage and whitish pubescence on both stems and leaves In one species the flowshyers are greenish-yellow in another they are white In either case howshyeve thev are very small and unshyattractiv~ The spieading infloresshycences at the top of the plant give it a somewhat flat-topped appearmiddotmiddot ance hence the sometimes-used common name of umbrella plant

16 WILD ROSE

Certainly here we have a plant that could scarcely be mistaken for any other kind Although we have a number of different species in Kansas everyone can recognize them as roses The thorny stems the compound leaves the pink 5shypetaled flower with many stamens and the bright red fruit are all disshytinctive characteristics The fruits or hips as they are called are edshyible and are readily eaten by birds and mammals Wild roses are found throughout the entire state and cershytain of the species are amazingly drough t -resistan t

17 PITCHER CLEMATIS

Of the many different kinds of vines that one is likely to encounter growing on and along roadside fences in eastern Kansas the pitcher clematis is one of the most common It is readily identified by its comshypound leaves (3 to 9 leaflets) and urn-shaped brownish-purple flowshyers borne singly on the ends of long flower stalks This vine might very ell make a handsome addition to the garden and is readily propashygated by seed It does require howshyever a deep rich soil Incidentally this flower has no petals the deep brovnish-purple color being imshyparted by the sepals alone

18 JIMSON WEED

A familiar weed around barnshyyards and feed lots in the eastern half of Kansas the Jimson weed is one of our largest annual species attaining a height of up to 5 feet by the end of the growing season It is eaSily recognized by its thick greenish or purp1ish stems coarsely

14

toothed leaves and large trumpetshylike flowers The white or violet colored flowers open in the evening and emit a rather sweet odor which attracts night-flying moths The enshytire plant is poisonous to animals including man

19 PUNCTURE VINE

The puncture vine is one of our most familiar and occasionallv painful weeds A prostrate pLut which creeps along the surface of the ground it will frequently form a very dense mat in waste places and along roadsides Its fruit is its most conspicuous feature as many a barefoot boy can testify being sharply angled and armed with short pointed spines The flowers borne from July through September are small with 5 separate yellow petals Puncture vine has opposite compound leaves consisting of 10 to 14 leaflets Unfortunately this plant is disseminated rather eaSily and is rapidly becoming a pest in many parts of our country

20 YUCCA

This is a plant familiar to pracshytically everyone in central and western Kansas The large rosette Of bayonet-like evergreen leaves is a very distinctive feature In late May and June the inflorescence bearing large white cup-shaped flowers is produced The life hisshytory of Yucca or soapweed as it is sometimes called is very unusual since pollination and resiIltant proshyduction of seeds is dependent enshytirely upon one species of moth (see page 5 of the October 1955 issue of The Kansas School Natumlshymiddotist) Did you know that the Spanshy

ish bayonet and Joshua tree of southwestern United States were also species of Yucca

2l CINQUEFOIL

We have 11 different species of this plant growing in Kansas but most of them can be recognized by their yellow strawberry-like flower and palmately foliate leaves the number of leaflets usually being 5 Because of this characteristic cinquefOil is sometimes called fiveshyfinger They are found chiefly in the eastern half of Kansas growing in meadows and open woods

22 PRICKLY PEAR (cover picture) Almost everyone knows this

plant our most familiar representashytive of the cactus family A perenshynial and extremely drought-resistshyant the prickly pear is found nearly throughout Kansas though more common in the western half The large yellow flowers are very atshytractive a saving characteristic of most cacti The reddish cIubshyshaped fruits are edible and are occasionally made into candy or ielly The large succulent so-called leaves are in actualitv modified stems specially adapted for water storage The true leaves which are seen only on young shoots are small and narrow During periods of exshytreme drought when nothing else is available ranchers in western Kansas will sometimes singe off the spines of growing prickly pears thus making the plants edible for their cattle The next time vou visit a dry pasture look for a close relative of the prickly pear the smaller and rarer pin cushion Or ball cactus with reddish or yellOWish flowers

15

PRESERVING FLOiVERS School will be out before the

flowers listed in this issue are in bloom Nevertheless ye hope that this issue will aid the teacher and student alike in learning to identify some of our common summer wildshyflowers Dming these vacation months the teacher does many things in preparing for school A good project would be to identify collect press and mount some of the summer flOers for use during the school year

In collecting plants for pressing and mounting one must remember to get as much of the plant as posshysible Of course if the plant is large it is not practical to coHect all of it In that case get enough of the root to show its type enough of the stem and leaves to show their charshyacteristics and of course be sure to get the flower

To press these plants place them in a folded sheet of newspaper and evenly apply pressure It is possible to press more than one plant at the same time but several sheets of papers should be placed between speciments to absorb the moisture These papers must be changed daily in order to dry the plants quickly and large roots should be split lengthwise to facilitate drying Too much heat will brown the plants so do not place them in an oven

The pressure necessary for pressshying these plants can be supplied in a number of ways such as using books rocks or any other heavy obshyject A good plant press can easily be constructed from the sides of an apple or orange crate The plants and their newspapers are placed on

one of the boards and then the other board is placed on top By using a strap at each end of the press the boards can be drawn tightly toshygether and the plants will be evenshyly and neatly pressed

The dried plants should be mounted on good stiff white paper Notebook size is fine but a larger size is better if it is available The plants may be glued to the paper or attached with small strips of transparent tape Mice and insects will eat these dried plants so they should be kept in boxes containing moth balls It is a good idea to spray the pressed specimens occasionally with a bug bomb Students will enshyjoy building a collection of pressed plants and projects such as this will add interest to the school science table

ABOUT THIS ISSUE Most of this issue of The Kansas

School Natumlist was prepared by Dr G A Leisman of the E-State Biology Department The article on preserving flowers was written by Mr Homer Stephens of the Forshyestry Fish and Game Commission This is the third issue of a series dealing with some of the wildshyflowers of Kansas Fall Wildshyflowers (Oct 1955) and Spring Wildflowers (Feb 1956) the other two issues of this series are now out of print and therefore are no longer available

AUDUBON SCREEN TOURS The Biology Department of the

Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia will present another Screen Tour Series next year

16

ANSWERS TO FOOD QUIZ (page 5)

1 Lima beans are large seeds 2 Broccoli actuallv com bines two

two parts of tbe plant the stem and many unexpanded flower buds

middot3 The Irish potao is a tuber or special kind of underground stem

4 Sweet potatoes are true roots 5 Three cheers if you get this

one A head of cauliflower is nothing more than a large mass of undeveloped flowers

6 A celery stalk is a large and fleshv petiole or leaf stalk

7 Peas like beans are nothing more than seeds

8 This is easy A carrot is of course a root

9 Each head of brussel sprouts represents a miniature strucshyture like a cabbage bead In either case they are nothing more than leafy buds

10 One of our familiar vegeshytables the tomato is actually a fruit

If you got more than 7 right you know vour onions ( these are bulbs) Congratulations

LIGHT AND TIME Everyone has noticed that light comes

through a window but you may not realshyize that this light can be used to tell the time of day Select a window on the sunny side of the building and paste on the glass a piece of paper abou t the size of a half dollar See where the shadow of this spot is on the fiool or perhaps on the opposite wall Mark the place where the shadow is at say 830 A M Mark it again at 900 A M and at intervals for several hOUlmiddotS Notice next day whether the shadows are a t the same places at the same times Does this provide you with a clock Does this sun clock keep pace with the room clock A record kept through the school year will provide the answers to these and many other questions

THE 1958 WORKSHOP IN CONSERVATION

First Section - Three Weeks June 2 to June 20 1958

Credit - three semester hours Graduate or Undergraduate

vVater soil grassland and vvildlife conservation with emphasis throughout on conservation education Such topics as geography and climate of Kansas wltlter resources soil erosion problems and control grass as a resource bird banding wildflowers of Kansas conservation cJubs and conservation teaching at various levels Lectures demonstrations disshycussion groups films slides models field trips projects and individual and group reports Open to any interested person

Second Session - Three Weeks June 23 to July 11 1958

Credit - 1 2 or 3 hours for 1 2 or 3 weeks

Graduate or Undergraduate This section will be devoted to the

production of teaching aids for conshyservation and to other subjects dependshying upon the needs interests and exshyperiences of the participants Topics covered last year were lizzards wildlife refuges roadside nature study and a suggested guide to teaching conservashytion in the elementary schools Some of the materials developed by the 1958 workshop will probably be used in fushyture issues of The Kansa~ School Nafumlr ist

Several scholarships awarded by varishyous Soil Conservation Districts and other interested onranizations are available to people enrolled in the Workshop Pershysons interested in apniyinQ for a scholarshyhip are ur~ed to contact their local Soil Conservation Service Office There will also be a limited number of scholarships awarded bv the Emporia State Teachers College For additional infOlmation and anplication blanks write C F Gladfelter Kansas State Teachers ColIltgtge Emnoria

Vorkshops in Conservation will also be conducted at Fort Hays State and Sterling College Persons attending these workshops are also eligible for the Soil Conservation District Scholarships

4

the chromosomes of North Amerishycan corn more closely resemble those of the corn in Cei1tral Amershyica than the corn in South America This indicates a direct descendenc) from Central American forms for North American corn rather than from South American forms

Now that we have examined some of the ways by which a plants place of origin can be ascertained let us return to the original quesshytion As you may suspect by now none of those plants listed can be traced to origins in the United States Isnt it strange how dependshyent we are on foreign vegetables and fruits

Well you may ask if these plants did not come from the United States where did they come from Space does not permit a deshytailed answer but some of the major centers of plant origin might be mentioned The area around the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea is one of the most important Many of our vegetables apparently came from this area as did Kansas most important harvest crop wheat The Far East and India is another important center Both Central and South America are the original home of many cultivated species And there are other censhyters too

Do we have any fruits or vegemiddot tables that are native to the United States Yes but they are relatively few in number Mention the strawshyberries raspberries blackberries currants gooseberries cranberries and blueberries and vou have alshymost exhausted the list America 1S a land of plenty to be sure but reshy

member that most of this plenty originally came from other lands

REFERENCES Camp W R V R Boswell and J R Magshy

ness 1957 The World in Your Garden National Geographic Society Washingshyton DC

Hutchinson J and R Melville 1948 The Story of Plants P R Gawthorn Ltd London

Schery R W 1952 Plants for Man prentice-Hall Inc New York

HOW WHEAT CAME TO KANSAS

In the previous article we dis cussed in general the origin of many of our cultivated plants Since much of the economy of Kansas is censhytered about one cultivated plant wheat lets examine in a little more detail the history of this our most valuable crop

The history of wheat is a long one and extends back to or even beshyyond the beginnings of civilization vVheat along with barley oats and rye was probably among the first of all cultivated plants Scientists have been able to trace the cultimiddot vation of wheat for food purpose~ back to the New Stone Age apshyproximately 15000 years ago These early people apparently disshycovered the wild wheat plants growing in the mountains of Persia and Afghanistan and through some way recognized the value of these plants as a source of food (Apshyproximately 50 different kinds of wild wheat are still found growing in this area a good indication that this is the center of origin)

In their wanderings from place to place they took the wheat with them cultivated it at each seasonal camp site and thus spread this crop to many relatively distant

5

areas By 6000 BC heat had beshycome well established around the headwaters of the Tigris and Eushyphrates rivers the cn-dle of mul ancient civilizations Through the rise and fall of the Sumeri~n and Babylonian empires and until bib shylical times the cultiation of wheat continued to expand over much of the eastern and southern areas of the iVIediterranean region

Just how and when wheat was first introduced into Europe no one knows Suffice it to sav that once introduced it quickly became one of the basic food crops

The New World did not become acquainted with wheat until the early 1500s when the Spaniards introduced it into Mexico Someshywhat later the first English colonshyists brought wheat with them when the settled in Virginia As man moved westward across the Appashylachians wheat moved with him And so as civilization gradually pushed back the frontiers beyond the state of Kansas wheat came with the early settlers who soon found that our verdant prairies were ideally suited for this crop Today Kansas is one of the leading wheat producing states in the counshytry with approximately 200 million bushels produced annually From Persia to Kansas Its been a long journey but certainly from our point of viev very worth while

WHATS YOUR FOOD IQ

The following is a list of common plants that are regularly eaten as fruits or vegetables Do you know exactly what part of the plant you are eating when it is prepared for

consumption For example -hat does lettuce represent If ou ansered middotleaesmiddot oui-e correct 0 tIT our luck on those b elow _-nsels ~ill be lound on page 16

l Lirna beans Broccoli ) Irish Potato -1 Seet Potato J Caulifloer 6 Celen 7 Peas 8 Carrots 9 Brussel sprouts

10 Tomato

THE METHUSELAHS OF THE PLANT WORLD

What are the oldest living things on earth Most people would probshyably answer the giant sequoias of California Until a year or so ago this answer would have been acshycepted as correct But within reshycent months the discovery of even older trees has been announced by dendrochronologists (people who count and study the annual rings of trees )

Strange as it may seem these trees were found growing within 100 miles or so of Sequoia National Park the home of the former chamshypions of longevity White Mounshytains of California are the home of the new champions and their name is bristlecone pine More strangely still the grove of trees with the most ancient members is found growing on the most inhospitable site of the forest The trees are gnarled and weatherbeaten and seldom exceed 25 or 50 feet in height Perhaps only a narrow strip

6

of the trunk and one or two branches will be alive on any given tree They seem to survive because of rather than in spite of adversity for on more favorable sites the trees do not attain anywhere near the age of these old timers

How old is the oldest of these bristlecone pines As of the momshyent the oldest one studied is over 4600 years old In contrast the General Sherman tree of Sequoia National Park is estimated to be 3500 years old a mere youngster by comparison

You may well ask how it is posshysible for a tree to be almost 50 censhyturies old and yet be less than 50 feet in height Growth of these pashytrimchs is exceedingly slow so slow in fact that over 100 annual rings can be counted in an inch of wood In many cases the tops and uppershymost branches die from starvation and onlv a few of the lower limbs survive Thus if you think a turtle or snail is slow remember the bristlecone pine

In terms of living in the future however the sequoias appear to have the best chance since most of the oldest bristlecones appear to be dying back It is estimated that within 5 centuries these ancient dwarfs will have perished The oldest sequoias on the other hand give no indication of slowing down with old age With continued proshytection they could still be living 3000 years from now Unfortunateshyly for you and me with our puny life span we will not be around to find out

FUTURE ISSUES OF KSN Plans are still rather nebulous as

to what subjects will appear in next years issues of The Kansas School Naturalist Issues for which some work has been done are Fossils (or perhaps Rocks and Fossils) How to do it for Elementary Science Snakes in Kansas Lizshyards in Kansas Nature Hobbies Watersheds in Kansas Wildlife Refuges and an issue on birds Every attempt is being made to cover subjects in which readers of The Kansas School N atumlist are interested so send your suggestions to the editor Among the many suggestions which have been made but upon which no work has been done as yet are Galls or Insect Homes and an issue dealing with the nature study of The Sunflower State

SUMMER WILDFLOWERS The October 1955 issue of The

Kansas School Naturalist was deshyvoted to fall wildflowers and the February 1956 issue to spring vildflowers Now well fill in the gap The plants described and picshytured are those that bloom during the months of June July and Augshyust

1 SCARLET GLOBEMALLOW

Here is one of the most familiar roadside plants of western Kansas These drought-resistant pubescent plants frequently form a solid carshypet along right-of-ways during early summer The leaves are 3-lobed with each lobe being divided furshyther If you have a hand lens or magnifying glass examine the hairs on the leaves more closely Note how each hair has a star-like apshy

7

pearance being flat-topped with many radiating branches Like all members of the mallow familv the flower of the scarlet globenlallow has a central column of united stashymens The color of the 5 petals has been variously calleel vellowish-red or scarlet but orange or salmon would seem to be more appropriate adjectives It is one of the few natshyive plants in Kansas that has this flower color

2 SHOWY EVENING PRIMROSE

We have many different species of evening primroses in Kansas but this one is easily recognized by its white-petaled flowers All the others have yellow flowers The showy evening primrose is a common roadside and prairie perennial in central and eastern Kansas The 4 white petals 4 sepals and inferior ovary are distinctive floral characshyteristics Upon fading the petals turn a delicate shade of pink Like most of the evening primroses the flowers usually close during the heat of the afternoon The showy evenshying primrose is easily grown from seed

Another handsome evening primshyrose is the Missouri evening primshyrose or Ozark sundrops with its huge yellow flowers The fourmiddotshywinged seed pods green at first turn vello- and ma be seen on the grou~d all -inter shy

3 RUELLL

This lo--yoing perennial is found in pastures -n - -rairies in the eastern half of 1 1 Beci1llse of its rather dogt III la c-e to the common pduni- i i often l1b shynamed vild pet 1 Till _ litary purplish flowfs are bome in th

8

leaf axil forming a funnel much like that of the petunia They are exshytremely short-lived with the corolla falling off within 24 hours Hence this is hardlv a flower for the wild flower boug~et Leave it in nature where it belongs The leaves have a very short petiole and are pubshyescent

4 SCURFPEA

As the name suggests this plant belongs to the pea or legume family The leaves are palmately divided into 3 or 5 leaflets and are usually pubescent In its general growth form and habit and its cluster of tiny blue or lavender pea-like flowers scurfpea closely resembles the cultivated alfalfa Because of this it is often called wild alfalfa The silvery or grayish pubescence of the leaves however usually disshytinguish it from alfalfa A familiar prairie and roadside plant the scurfpea adorns most every landshyscape throughout the state being especially common north and east

5 SENSITIVE BRIER

This shrubby low-growing pershymiddotennial is easily recognized by its spherical heads of attractive roseshycolored flowers its compound leaves divided into many tiny leafshylets and its long linear and spineshycovered pods following the bloomshying period The lovely flowers inshyvite picking but watch out for the many sharp spines covering the stems Like other members of the Mimosa family the leaflets have the peculiar ability to fold together at night or in stormy weather or when the plant is handled roughly The sensitive brier is found nearly throughout the state and makes a

handsome addition to he roadside and prairie eg ta tiOll

6 PHAIRIE cLo middotn~

Also a member of tJie pea or leshygume bmit- the prairie clover is one of our most handsome prairie plants Tlle compact spike or sphershyical head of tin- purple or white flowers makes the prairie clover readih- identifiable We have at least 6 different species in Kansas 4 with white flowers and 2 with purple All are perennial and have a long taproot They grow in prairies and meadows throughout the state and are very attractive to insects

7 QUEEN ANNES LACE

This plant is also called wild carshyrot and our domesticated carrot was derived from this plant Queen Annes Lace is not native to our country having been brought here from the Mediterranean region It is easily recognized by the finely divided fern-like leaves and thc loose cluster or umbels of tiny white flowers After flowering the flower stalks turn inward into a compact ball somewhat resembling a birds nest As the fruits ripen however the stalks bend outward again to form a flat-topped cluster Queen Annes lace is a biennial and is found along roadsides and waste places chiefl in the eastern half of the state

8 WOOLY cnOTOc(

A familiar roadside allnual throughout central and eastern Kansas this plant is eltisi- identified bv its oate lelt1e5 a11d ft yook p~besctllce Lik the s arlet globeshymallo mentioned efore the leaves are co-ered ith tho e UJlshy

9

usual stellate hairs which show up so nicely under magnification The flowers are tiny and very inconshyspicuous and are either staminate (male) or pistillate (female) Both flower types however are borne in the same cluster Vhen crushed the plant gives off a very strong odor Other species of Croton are also quite common in Kansas

9 FOUR 0 CLOCK

The four 0 clock is found in waste places roadsides and other disturbed areas throughout the state Though sometimes called a weed it nevertheless is an atshytractive one The upright man~shybranched stems grow to a height of 2-3 feet and bear opposite more or less heart-shaped leaves The floshyering habit is rather unique for 2-3 flowers are borne in a cluster enshyclosed by a 5-10bed involucre or bract Each flower has a bell-shaped calyx colored purplish-pink but no corolla

Following pollination and fertilishyza tion the calyx tube drops off lea vshying the expanded involucre to surshyround and protect the developing fruits and seeds This plant is someshytimes called umbrellawort beshycause of this unusual feature It is closely related to our common garshyden four 0 clock and the exotic tropical vine often seen in our southenl states Bougainvillea

10 CONEFLOWER

The many species of this group all have one thing in common the type of floral structure Each head has a central cone either elongated or rounded of disk flowers and drooping ray flowers around the

base of the cone l o- t t ~ ) cie have vello 1lt1 flomiddoter~ The (0 Ullshy

nar pairie conefiower picturedh re is one of the mo t common p j

and is found ne r ~ hroll ~hou the entire state

11 TO-DFLX

The bright e11o and orange 0

flowers of this attmctin perennial gives rise to its other common name butter-and-eggs The flowers look very much like miniature snapdragshyons except for a rather prominent spur which extends from the lower portion of the corolla Its leaves are long and very narrow growing on a stem about 2 feet tall It is found scattered throughout the state in waste places along roadsides and in cultivated areas

12 BLACK SAMPSON

This rather sinister-sounding name is applied to one of our more attractive composites The long linear leaves are chiefly basal in position and are covered with coarse rough hairs The terminal head of flowers consists of a central cone or mound of brownish-colored disk flowers and a marginal array of purplish-colored ray flowers This stately perennial is found in prairies and meadows nearly throughout the state The Indians used the roots of this plant for medicinal purposes and even today certain tinctures are still prepared from the black Sampson

13 DAYFLOEH

l The chl-flo-er belonps to the 0

same famil - as the familiar spider-wort of earh- spring and the comshymon house plarlL ZCbriila or wandshy

12

ering Jew It is found in waste places along roadsides and alleyshyways and seems to prefer partial shade The small rather inconspicshyuous flowers are actually quite atshytractive upon close examination Of the 3 petals the 2 upper ones are colored blue and the lower white Not a native of the United States since its home is in Asia the dayshyflower is found scattered throughshyout the eastern third of Kansas

14 PRICKLY POppy

An attractive yet formidable species the prickly POPP) is found throughout central and western Kansas in pastures and waste places Its flower is large and showy bearshying 5 rather flimsy white petals The center bears a conspicuous cone of bright yellow stamens Alshythough one may be tempted to gather the flowers for a bouquet this thought is quickly discouraged by the very sharp prickles which cover both leaves and stem Like other members of the poppy family it has a sticky juice or latex

15 ERIOGONUM

This plant is found throughout central and western Kansas and is very drought resistant a characmiddotmiddot teristic imparted by its deep tapshyroot system sparse foliage and whitish pubescence on both stems and leaves In one species the flowshyers are greenish-yellow in another they are white In either case howshyeve thev are very small and unshyattractiv~ The spieading infloresshycences at the top of the plant give it a somewhat flat-topped appearmiddotmiddot ance hence the sometimes-used common name of umbrella plant

16 WILD ROSE

Certainly here we have a plant that could scarcely be mistaken for any other kind Although we have a number of different species in Kansas everyone can recognize them as roses The thorny stems the compound leaves the pink 5shypetaled flower with many stamens and the bright red fruit are all disshytinctive characteristics The fruits or hips as they are called are edshyible and are readily eaten by birds and mammals Wild roses are found throughout the entire state and cershytain of the species are amazingly drough t -resistan t

17 PITCHER CLEMATIS

Of the many different kinds of vines that one is likely to encounter growing on and along roadside fences in eastern Kansas the pitcher clematis is one of the most common It is readily identified by its comshypound leaves (3 to 9 leaflets) and urn-shaped brownish-purple flowshyers borne singly on the ends of long flower stalks This vine might very ell make a handsome addition to the garden and is readily propashygated by seed It does require howshyever a deep rich soil Incidentally this flower has no petals the deep brovnish-purple color being imshyparted by the sepals alone

18 JIMSON WEED

A familiar weed around barnshyyards and feed lots in the eastern half of Kansas the Jimson weed is one of our largest annual species attaining a height of up to 5 feet by the end of the growing season It is eaSily recognized by its thick greenish or purp1ish stems coarsely

14

toothed leaves and large trumpetshylike flowers The white or violet colored flowers open in the evening and emit a rather sweet odor which attracts night-flying moths The enshytire plant is poisonous to animals including man

19 PUNCTURE VINE

The puncture vine is one of our most familiar and occasionallv painful weeds A prostrate pLut which creeps along the surface of the ground it will frequently form a very dense mat in waste places and along roadsides Its fruit is its most conspicuous feature as many a barefoot boy can testify being sharply angled and armed with short pointed spines The flowers borne from July through September are small with 5 separate yellow petals Puncture vine has opposite compound leaves consisting of 10 to 14 leaflets Unfortunately this plant is disseminated rather eaSily and is rapidly becoming a pest in many parts of our country

20 YUCCA

This is a plant familiar to pracshytically everyone in central and western Kansas The large rosette Of bayonet-like evergreen leaves is a very distinctive feature In late May and June the inflorescence bearing large white cup-shaped flowers is produced The life hisshytory of Yucca or soapweed as it is sometimes called is very unusual since pollination and resiIltant proshyduction of seeds is dependent enshytirely upon one species of moth (see page 5 of the October 1955 issue of The Kansas School Natumlshymiddotist) Did you know that the Spanshy

ish bayonet and Joshua tree of southwestern United States were also species of Yucca

2l CINQUEFOIL

We have 11 different species of this plant growing in Kansas but most of them can be recognized by their yellow strawberry-like flower and palmately foliate leaves the number of leaflets usually being 5 Because of this characteristic cinquefOil is sometimes called fiveshyfinger They are found chiefly in the eastern half of Kansas growing in meadows and open woods

22 PRICKLY PEAR (cover picture) Almost everyone knows this

plant our most familiar representashytive of the cactus family A perenshynial and extremely drought-resistshyant the prickly pear is found nearly throughout Kansas though more common in the western half The large yellow flowers are very atshytractive a saving characteristic of most cacti The reddish cIubshyshaped fruits are edible and are occasionally made into candy or ielly The large succulent so-called leaves are in actualitv modified stems specially adapted for water storage The true leaves which are seen only on young shoots are small and narrow During periods of exshytreme drought when nothing else is available ranchers in western Kansas will sometimes singe off the spines of growing prickly pears thus making the plants edible for their cattle The next time vou visit a dry pasture look for a close relative of the prickly pear the smaller and rarer pin cushion Or ball cactus with reddish or yellOWish flowers

15

PRESERVING FLOiVERS School will be out before the

flowers listed in this issue are in bloom Nevertheless ye hope that this issue will aid the teacher and student alike in learning to identify some of our common summer wildshyflowers Dming these vacation months the teacher does many things in preparing for school A good project would be to identify collect press and mount some of the summer flOers for use during the school year

In collecting plants for pressing and mounting one must remember to get as much of the plant as posshysible Of course if the plant is large it is not practical to coHect all of it In that case get enough of the root to show its type enough of the stem and leaves to show their charshyacteristics and of course be sure to get the flower

To press these plants place them in a folded sheet of newspaper and evenly apply pressure It is possible to press more than one plant at the same time but several sheets of papers should be placed between speciments to absorb the moisture These papers must be changed daily in order to dry the plants quickly and large roots should be split lengthwise to facilitate drying Too much heat will brown the plants so do not place them in an oven

The pressure necessary for pressshying these plants can be supplied in a number of ways such as using books rocks or any other heavy obshyject A good plant press can easily be constructed from the sides of an apple or orange crate The plants and their newspapers are placed on

one of the boards and then the other board is placed on top By using a strap at each end of the press the boards can be drawn tightly toshygether and the plants will be evenshyly and neatly pressed

The dried plants should be mounted on good stiff white paper Notebook size is fine but a larger size is better if it is available The plants may be glued to the paper or attached with small strips of transparent tape Mice and insects will eat these dried plants so they should be kept in boxes containing moth balls It is a good idea to spray the pressed specimens occasionally with a bug bomb Students will enshyjoy building a collection of pressed plants and projects such as this will add interest to the school science table

ABOUT THIS ISSUE Most of this issue of The Kansas

School Natumlist was prepared by Dr G A Leisman of the E-State Biology Department The article on preserving flowers was written by Mr Homer Stephens of the Forshyestry Fish and Game Commission This is the third issue of a series dealing with some of the wildshyflowers of Kansas Fall Wildshyflowers (Oct 1955) and Spring Wildflowers (Feb 1956) the other two issues of this series are now out of print and therefore are no longer available

AUDUBON SCREEN TOURS The Biology Department of the

Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia will present another Screen Tour Series next year

16

ANSWERS TO FOOD QUIZ (page 5)

1 Lima beans are large seeds 2 Broccoli actuallv com bines two

two parts of tbe plant the stem and many unexpanded flower buds

middot3 The Irish potao is a tuber or special kind of underground stem

4 Sweet potatoes are true roots 5 Three cheers if you get this

one A head of cauliflower is nothing more than a large mass of undeveloped flowers

6 A celery stalk is a large and fleshv petiole or leaf stalk

7 Peas like beans are nothing more than seeds

8 This is easy A carrot is of course a root

9 Each head of brussel sprouts represents a miniature strucshyture like a cabbage bead In either case they are nothing more than leafy buds

10 One of our familiar vegeshytables the tomato is actually a fruit

If you got more than 7 right you know vour onions ( these are bulbs) Congratulations

LIGHT AND TIME Everyone has noticed that light comes

through a window but you may not realshyize that this light can be used to tell the time of day Select a window on the sunny side of the building and paste on the glass a piece of paper abou t the size of a half dollar See where the shadow of this spot is on the fiool or perhaps on the opposite wall Mark the place where the shadow is at say 830 A M Mark it again at 900 A M and at intervals for several hOUlmiddotS Notice next day whether the shadows are a t the same places at the same times Does this provide you with a clock Does this sun clock keep pace with the room clock A record kept through the school year will provide the answers to these and many other questions

THE 1958 WORKSHOP IN CONSERVATION

First Section - Three Weeks June 2 to June 20 1958

Credit - three semester hours Graduate or Undergraduate

vVater soil grassland and vvildlife conservation with emphasis throughout on conservation education Such topics as geography and climate of Kansas wltlter resources soil erosion problems and control grass as a resource bird banding wildflowers of Kansas conservation cJubs and conservation teaching at various levels Lectures demonstrations disshycussion groups films slides models field trips projects and individual and group reports Open to any interested person

Second Session - Three Weeks June 23 to July 11 1958

Credit - 1 2 or 3 hours for 1 2 or 3 weeks

Graduate or Undergraduate This section will be devoted to the

production of teaching aids for conshyservation and to other subjects dependshying upon the needs interests and exshyperiences of the participants Topics covered last year were lizzards wildlife refuges roadside nature study and a suggested guide to teaching conservashytion in the elementary schools Some of the materials developed by the 1958 workshop will probably be used in fushyture issues of The Kansa~ School Nafumlr ist

Several scholarships awarded by varishyous Soil Conservation Districts and other interested onranizations are available to people enrolled in the Workshop Pershysons interested in apniyinQ for a scholarshyhip are ur~ed to contact their local Soil Conservation Service Office There will also be a limited number of scholarships awarded bv the Emporia State Teachers College For additional infOlmation and anplication blanks write C F Gladfelter Kansas State Teachers ColIltgtge Emnoria

Vorkshops in Conservation will also be conducted at Fort Hays State and Sterling College Persons attending these workshops are also eligible for the Soil Conservation District Scholarships

5

areas By 6000 BC heat had beshycome well established around the headwaters of the Tigris and Eushyphrates rivers the cn-dle of mul ancient civilizations Through the rise and fall of the Sumeri~n and Babylonian empires and until bib shylical times the cultiation of wheat continued to expand over much of the eastern and southern areas of the iVIediterranean region

Just how and when wheat was first introduced into Europe no one knows Suffice it to sav that once introduced it quickly became one of the basic food crops

The New World did not become acquainted with wheat until the early 1500s when the Spaniards introduced it into Mexico Someshywhat later the first English colonshyists brought wheat with them when the settled in Virginia As man moved westward across the Appashylachians wheat moved with him And so as civilization gradually pushed back the frontiers beyond the state of Kansas wheat came with the early settlers who soon found that our verdant prairies were ideally suited for this crop Today Kansas is one of the leading wheat producing states in the counshytry with approximately 200 million bushels produced annually From Persia to Kansas Its been a long journey but certainly from our point of viev very worth while

WHATS YOUR FOOD IQ

The following is a list of common plants that are regularly eaten as fruits or vegetables Do you know exactly what part of the plant you are eating when it is prepared for

consumption For example -hat does lettuce represent If ou ansered middotleaesmiddot oui-e correct 0 tIT our luck on those b elow _-nsels ~ill be lound on page 16

l Lirna beans Broccoli ) Irish Potato -1 Seet Potato J Caulifloer 6 Celen 7 Peas 8 Carrots 9 Brussel sprouts

10 Tomato

THE METHUSELAHS OF THE PLANT WORLD

What are the oldest living things on earth Most people would probshyably answer the giant sequoias of California Until a year or so ago this answer would have been acshycepted as correct But within reshycent months the discovery of even older trees has been announced by dendrochronologists (people who count and study the annual rings of trees )

Strange as it may seem these trees were found growing within 100 miles or so of Sequoia National Park the home of the former chamshypions of longevity White Mounshytains of California are the home of the new champions and their name is bristlecone pine More strangely still the grove of trees with the most ancient members is found growing on the most inhospitable site of the forest The trees are gnarled and weatherbeaten and seldom exceed 25 or 50 feet in height Perhaps only a narrow strip

6

of the trunk and one or two branches will be alive on any given tree They seem to survive because of rather than in spite of adversity for on more favorable sites the trees do not attain anywhere near the age of these old timers

How old is the oldest of these bristlecone pines As of the momshyent the oldest one studied is over 4600 years old In contrast the General Sherman tree of Sequoia National Park is estimated to be 3500 years old a mere youngster by comparison

You may well ask how it is posshysible for a tree to be almost 50 censhyturies old and yet be less than 50 feet in height Growth of these pashytrimchs is exceedingly slow so slow in fact that over 100 annual rings can be counted in an inch of wood In many cases the tops and uppershymost branches die from starvation and onlv a few of the lower limbs survive Thus if you think a turtle or snail is slow remember the bristlecone pine

In terms of living in the future however the sequoias appear to have the best chance since most of the oldest bristlecones appear to be dying back It is estimated that within 5 centuries these ancient dwarfs will have perished The oldest sequoias on the other hand give no indication of slowing down with old age With continued proshytection they could still be living 3000 years from now Unfortunateshyly for you and me with our puny life span we will not be around to find out

FUTURE ISSUES OF KSN Plans are still rather nebulous as

to what subjects will appear in next years issues of The Kansas School Naturalist Issues for which some work has been done are Fossils (or perhaps Rocks and Fossils) How to do it for Elementary Science Snakes in Kansas Lizshyards in Kansas Nature Hobbies Watersheds in Kansas Wildlife Refuges and an issue on birds Every attempt is being made to cover subjects in which readers of The Kansas School N atumlist are interested so send your suggestions to the editor Among the many suggestions which have been made but upon which no work has been done as yet are Galls or Insect Homes and an issue dealing with the nature study of The Sunflower State

SUMMER WILDFLOWERS The October 1955 issue of The

Kansas School Naturalist was deshyvoted to fall wildflowers and the February 1956 issue to spring vildflowers Now well fill in the gap The plants described and picshytured are those that bloom during the months of June July and Augshyust

1 SCARLET GLOBEMALLOW

Here is one of the most familiar roadside plants of western Kansas These drought-resistant pubescent plants frequently form a solid carshypet along right-of-ways during early summer The leaves are 3-lobed with each lobe being divided furshyther If you have a hand lens or magnifying glass examine the hairs on the leaves more closely Note how each hair has a star-like apshy

7

pearance being flat-topped with many radiating branches Like all members of the mallow familv the flower of the scarlet globenlallow has a central column of united stashymens The color of the 5 petals has been variously calleel vellowish-red or scarlet but orange or salmon would seem to be more appropriate adjectives It is one of the few natshyive plants in Kansas that has this flower color

2 SHOWY EVENING PRIMROSE

We have many different species of evening primroses in Kansas but this one is easily recognized by its white-petaled flowers All the others have yellow flowers The showy evening primrose is a common roadside and prairie perennial in central and eastern Kansas The 4 white petals 4 sepals and inferior ovary are distinctive floral characshyteristics Upon fading the petals turn a delicate shade of pink Like most of the evening primroses the flowers usually close during the heat of the afternoon The showy evenshying primrose is easily grown from seed

Another handsome evening primshyrose is the Missouri evening primshyrose or Ozark sundrops with its huge yellow flowers The fourmiddotshywinged seed pods green at first turn vello- and ma be seen on the grou~d all -inter shy

3 RUELLL

This lo--yoing perennial is found in pastures -n - -rairies in the eastern half of 1 1 Beci1llse of its rather dogt III la c-e to the common pduni- i i often l1b shynamed vild pet 1 Till _ litary purplish flowfs are bome in th

8

leaf axil forming a funnel much like that of the petunia They are exshytremely short-lived with the corolla falling off within 24 hours Hence this is hardlv a flower for the wild flower boug~et Leave it in nature where it belongs The leaves have a very short petiole and are pubshyescent

4 SCURFPEA

As the name suggests this plant belongs to the pea or legume family The leaves are palmately divided into 3 or 5 leaflets and are usually pubescent In its general growth form and habit and its cluster of tiny blue or lavender pea-like flowers scurfpea closely resembles the cultivated alfalfa Because of this it is often called wild alfalfa The silvery or grayish pubescence of the leaves however usually disshytinguish it from alfalfa A familiar prairie and roadside plant the scurfpea adorns most every landshyscape throughout the state being especially common north and east

5 SENSITIVE BRIER

This shrubby low-growing pershymiddotennial is easily recognized by its spherical heads of attractive roseshycolored flowers its compound leaves divided into many tiny leafshylets and its long linear and spineshycovered pods following the bloomshying period The lovely flowers inshyvite picking but watch out for the many sharp spines covering the stems Like other members of the Mimosa family the leaflets have the peculiar ability to fold together at night or in stormy weather or when the plant is handled roughly The sensitive brier is found nearly throughout the state and makes a

handsome addition to he roadside and prairie eg ta tiOll

6 PHAIRIE cLo middotn~

Also a member of tJie pea or leshygume bmit- the prairie clover is one of our most handsome prairie plants Tlle compact spike or sphershyical head of tin- purple or white flowers makes the prairie clover readih- identifiable We have at least 6 different species in Kansas 4 with white flowers and 2 with purple All are perennial and have a long taproot They grow in prairies and meadows throughout the state and are very attractive to insects

7 QUEEN ANNES LACE

This plant is also called wild carshyrot and our domesticated carrot was derived from this plant Queen Annes Lace is not native to our country having been brought here from the Mediterranean region It is easily recognized by the finely divided fern-like leaves and thc loose cluster or umbels of tiny white flowers After flowering the flower stalks turn inward into a compact ball somewhat resembling a birds nest As the fruits ripen however the stalks bend outward again to form a flat-topped cluster Queen Annes lace is a biennial and is found along roadsides and waste places chiefl in the eastern half of the state

8 WOOLY cnOTOc(

A familiar roadside allnual throughout central and eastern Kansas this plant is eltisi- identified bv its oate lelt1e5 a11d ft yook p~besctllce Lik the s arlet globeshymallo mentioned efore the leaves are co-ered ith tho e UJlshy

9

usual stellate hairs which show up so nicely under magnification The flowers are tiny and very inconshyspicuous and are either staminate (male) or pistillate (female) Both flower types however are borne in the same cluster Vhen crushed the plant gives off a very strong odor Other species of Croton are also quite common in Kansas

9 FOUR 0 CLOCK

The four 0 clock is found in waste places roadsides and other disturbed areas throughout the state Though sometimes called a weed it nevertheless is an atshytractive one The upright man~shybranched stems grow to a height of 2-3 feet and bear opposite more or less heart-shaped leaves The floshyering habit is rather unique for 2-3 flowers are borne in a cluster enshyclosed by a 5-10bed involucre or bract Each flower has a bell-shaped calyx colored purplish-pink but no corolla

Following pollination and fertilishyza tion the calyx tube drops off lea vshying the expanded involucre to surshyround and protect the developing fruits and seeds This plant is someshytimes called umbrellawort beshycause of this unusual feature It is closely related to our common garshyden four 0 clock and the exotic tropical vine often seen in our southenl states Bougainvillea

10 CONEFLOWER

The many species of this group all have one thing in common the type of floral structure Each head has a central cone either elongated or rounded of disk flowers and drooping ray flowers around the

base of the cone l o- t t ~ ) cie have vello 1lt1 flomiddoter~ The (0 Ullshy

nar pairie conefiower picturedh re is one of the mo t common p j

and is found ne r ~ hroll ~hou the entire state

11 TO-DFLX

The bright e11o and orange 0

flowers of this attmctin perennial gives rise to its other common name butter-and-eggs The flowers look very much like miniature snapdragshyons except for a rather prominent spur which extends from the lower portion of the corolla Its leaves are long and very narrow growing on a stem about 2 feet tall It is found scattered throughout the state in waste places along roadsides and in cultivated areas

12 BLACK SAMPSON

This rather sinister-sounding name is applied to one of our more attractive composites The long linear leaves are chiefly basal in position and are covered with coarse rough hairs The terminal head of flowers consists of a central cone or mound of brownish-colored disk flowers and a marginal array of purplish-colored ray flowers This stately perennial is found in prairies and meadows nearly throughout the state The Indians used the roots of this plant for medicinal purposes and even today certain tinctures are still prepared from the black Sampson

13 DAYFLOEH

l The chl-flo-er belonps to the 0

same famil - as the familiar spider-wort of earh- spring and the comshymon house plarlL ZCbriila or wandshy

12

ering Jew It is found in waste places along roadsides and alleyshyways and seems to prefer partial shade The small rather inconspicshyuous flowers are actually quite atshytractive upon close examination Of the 3 petals the 2 upper ones are colored blue and the lower white Not a native of the United States since its home is in Asia the dayshyflower is found scattered throughshyout the eastern third of Kansas

14 PRICKLY POppy

An attractive yet formidable species the prickly POPP) is found throughout central and western Kansas in pastures and waste places Its flower is large and showy bearshying 5 rather flimsy white petals The center bears a conspicuous cone of bright yellow stamens Alshythough one may be tempted to gather the flowers for a bouquet this thought is quickly discouraged by the very sharp prickles which cover both leaves and stem Like other members of the poppy family it has a sticky juice or latex

15 ERIOGONUM

This plant is found throughout central and western Kansas and is very drought resistant a characmiddotmiddot teristic imparted by its deep tapshyroot system sparse foliage and whitish pubescence on both stems and leaves In one species the flowshyers are greenish-yellow in another they are white In either case howshyeve thev are very small and unshyattractiv~ The spieading infloresshycences at the top of the plant give it a somewhat flat-topped appearmiddotmiddot ance hence the sometimes-used common name of umbrella plant

16 WILD ROSE

Certainly here we have a plant that could scarcely be mistaken for any other kind Although we have a number of different species in Kansas everyone can recognize them as roses The thorny stems the compound leaves the pink 5shypetaled flower with many stamens and the bright red fruit are all disshytinctive characteristics The fruits or hips as they are called are edshyible and are readily eaten by birds and mammals Wild roses are found throughout the entire state and cershytain of the species are amazingly drough t -resistan t

17 PITCHER CLEMATIS

Of the many different kinds of vines that one is likely to encounter growing on and along roadside fences in eastern Kansas the pitcher clematis is one of the most common It is readily identified by its comshypound leaves (3 to 9 leaflets) and urn-shaped brownish-purple flowshyers borne singly on the ends of long flower stalks This vine might very ell make a handsome addition to the garden and is readily propashygated by seed It does require howshyever a deep rich soil Incidentally this flower has no petals the deep brovnish-purple color being imshyparted by the sepals alone

18 JIMSON WEED

A familiar weed around barnshyyards and feed lots in the eastern half of Kansas the Jimson weed is one of our largest annual species attaining a height of up to 5 feet by the end of the growing season It is eaSily recognized by its thick greenish or purp1ish stems coarsely

14

toothed leaves and large trumpetshylike flowers The white or violet colored flowers open in the evening and emit a rather sweet odor which attracts night-flying moths The enshytire plant is poisonous to animals including man

19 PUNCTURE VINE

The puncture vine is one of our most familiar and occasionallv painful weeds A prostrate pLut which creeps along the surface of the ground it will frequently form a very dense mat in waste places and along roadsides Its fruit is its most conspicuous feature as many a barefoot boy can testify being sharply angled and armed with short pointed spines The flowers borne from July through September are small with 5 separate yellow petals Puncture vine has opposite compound leaves consisting of 10 to 14 leaflets Unfortunately this plant is disseminated rather eaSily and is rapidly becoming a pest in many parts of our country

20 YUCCA

This is a plant familiar to pracshytically everyone in central and western Kansas The large rosette Of bayonet-like evergreen leaves is a very distinctive feature In late May and June the inflorescence bearing large white cup-shaped flowers is produced The life hisshytory of Yucca or soapweed as it is sometimes called is very unusual since pollination and resiIltant proshyduction of seeds is dependent enshytirely upon one species of moth (see page 5 of the October 1955 issue of The Kansas School Natumlshymiddotist) Did you know that the Spanshy

ish bayonet and Joshua tree of southwestern United States were also species of Yucca

2l CINQUEFOIL

We have 11 different species of this plant growing in Kansas but most of them can be recognized by their yellow strawberry-like flower and palmately foliate leaves the number of leaflets usually being 5 Because of this characteristic cinquefOil is sometimes called fiveshyfinger They are found chiefly in the eastern half of Kansas growing in meadows and open woods

22 PRICKLY PEAR (cover picture) Almost everyone knows this

plant our most familiar representashytive of the cactus family A perenshynial and extremely drought-resistshyant the prickly pear is found nearly throughout Kansas though more common in the western half The large yellow flowers are very atshytractive a saving characteristic of most cacti The reddish cIubshyshaped fruits are edible and are occasionally made into candy or ielly The large succulent so-called leaves are in actualitv modified stems specially adapted for water storage The true leaves which are seen only on young shoots are small and narrow During periods of exshytreme drought when nothing else is available ranchers in western Kansas will sometimes singe off the spines of growing prickly pears thus making the plants edible for their cattle The next time vou visit a dry pasture look for a close relative of the prickly pear the smaller and rarer pin cushion Or ball cactus with reddish or yellOWish flowers

15

PRESERVING FLOiVERS School will be out before the

flowers listed in this issue are in bloom Nevertheless ye hope that this issue will aid the teacher and student alike in learning to identify some of our common summer wildshyflowers Dming these vacation months the teacher does many things in preparing for school A good project would be to identify collect press and mount some of the summer flOers for use during the school year

In collecting plants for pressing and mounting one must remember to get as much of the plant as posshysible Of course if the plant is large it is not practical to coHect all of it In that case get enough of the root to show its type enough of the stem and leaves to show their charshyacteristics and of course be sure to get the flower

To press these plants place them in a folded sheet of newspaper and evenly apply pressure It is possible to press more than one plant at the same time but several sheets of papers should be placed between speciments to absorb the moisture These papers must be changed daily in order to dry the plants quickly and large roots should be split lengthwise to facilitate drying Too much heat will brown the plants so do not place them in an oven

The pressure necessary for pressshying these plants can be supplied in a number of ways such as using books rocks or any other heavy obshyject A good plant press can easily be constructed from the sides of an apple or orange crate The plants and their newspapers are placed on

one of the boards and then the other board is placed on top By using a strap at each end of the press the boards can be drawn tightly toshygether and the plants will be evenshyly and neatly pressed

The dried plants should be mounted on good stiff white paper Notebook size is fine but a larger size is better if it is available The plants may be glued to the paper or attached with small strips of transparent tape Mice and insects will eat these dried plants so they should be kept in boxes containing moth balls It is a good idea to spray the pressed specimens occasionally with a bug bomb Students will enshyjoy building a collection of pressed plants and projects such as this will add interest to the school science table

ABOUT THIS ISSUE Most of this issue of The Kansas

School Natumlist was prepared by Dr G A Leisman of the E-State Biology Department The article on preserving flowers was written by Mr Homer Stephens of the Forshyestry Fish and Game Commission This is the third issue of a series dealing with some of the wildshyflowers of Kansas Fall Wildshyflowers (Oct 1955) and Spring Wildflowers (Feb 1956) the other two issues of this series are now out of print and therefore are no longer available

AUDUBON SCREEN TOURS The Biology Department of the

Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia will present another Screen Tour Series next year

16

ANSWERS TO FOOD QUIZ (page 5)

1 Lima beans are large seeds 2 Broccoli actuallv com bines two

two parts of tbe plant the stem and many unexpanded flower buds

middot3 The Irish potao is a tuber or special kind of underground stem

4 Sweet potatoes are true roots 5 Three cheers if you get this

one A head of cauliflower is nothing more than a large mass of undeveloped flowers

6 A celery stalk is a large and fleshv petiole or leaf stalk

7 Peas like beans are nothing more than seeds

8 This is easy A carrot is of course a root

9 Each head of brussel sprouts represents a miniature strucshyture like a cabbage bead In either case they are nothing more than leafy buds

10 One of our familiar vegeshytables the tomato is actually a fruit

If you got more than 7 right you know vour onions ( these are bulbs) Congratulations

LIGHT AND TIME Everyone has noticed that light comes

through a window but you may not realshyize that this light can be used to tell the time of day Select a window on the sunny side of the building and paste on the glass a piece of paper abou t the size of a half dollar See where the shadow of this spot is on the fiool or perhaps on the opposite wall Mark the place where the shadow is at say 830 A M Mark it again at 900 A M and at intervals for several hOUlmiddotS Notice next day whether the shadows are a t the same places at the same times Does this provide you with a clock Does this sun clock keep pace with the room clock A record kept through the school year will provide the answers to these and many other questions

THE 1958 WORKSHOP IN CONSERVATION

First Section - Three Weeks June 2 to June 20 1958

Credit - three semester hours Graduate or Undergraduate

vVater soil grassland and vvildlife conservation with emphasis throughout on conservation education Such topics as geography and climate of Kansas wltlter resources soil erosion problems and control grass as a resource bird banding wildflowers of Kansas conservation cJubs and conservation teaching at various levels Lectures demonstrations disshycussion groups films slides models field trips projects and individual and group reports Open to any interested person

Second Session - Three Weeks June 23 to July 11 1958

Credit - 1 2 or 3 hours for 1 2 or 3 weeks

Graduate or Undergraduate This section will be devoted to the

production of teaching aids for conshyservation and to other subjects dependshying upon the needs interests and exshyperiences of the participants Topics covered last year were lizzards wildlife refuges roadside nature study and a suggested guide to teaching conservashytion in the elementary schools Some of the materials developed by the 1958 workshop will probably be used in fushyture issues of The Kansa~ School Nafumlr ist

Several scholarships awarded by varishyous Soil Conservation Districts and other interested onranizations are available to people enrolled in the Workshop Pershysons interested in apniyinQ for a scholarshyhip are ur~ed to contact their local Soil Conservation Service Office There will also be a limited number of scholarships awarded bv the Emporia State Teachers College For additional infOlmation and anplication blanks write C F Gladfelter Kansas State Teachers ColIltgtge Emnoria

Vorkshops in Conservation will also be conducted at Fort Hays State and Sterling College Persons attending these workshops are also eligible for the Soil Conservation District Scholarships

6

of the trunk and one or two branches will be alive on any given tree They seem to survive because of rather than in spite of adversity for on more favorable sites the trees do not attain anywhere near the age of these old timers

How old is the oldest of these bristlecone pines As of the momshyent the oldest one studied is over 4600 years old In contrast the General Sherman tree of Sequoia National Park is estimated to be 3500 years old a mere youngster by comparison

You may well ask how it is posshysible for a tree to be almost 50 censhyturies old and yet be less than 50 feet in height Growth of these pashytrimchs is exceedingly slow so slow in fact that over 100 annual rings can be counted in an inch of wood In many cases the tops and uppershymost branches die from starvation and onlv a few of the lower limbs survive Thus if you think a turtle or snail is slow remember the bristlecone pine

In terms of living in the future however the sequoias appear to have the best chance since most of the oldest bristlecones appear to be dying back It is estimated that within 5 centuries these ancient dwarfs will have perished The oldest sequoias on the other hand give no indication of slowing down with old age With continued proshytection they could still be living 3000 years from now Unfortunateshyly for you and me with our puny life span we will not be around to find out

FUTURE ISSUES OF KSN Plans are still rather nebulous as

to what subjects will appear in next years issues of The Kansas School Naturalist Issues for which some work has been done are Fossils (or perhaps Rocks and Fossils) How to do it for Elementary Science Snakes in Kansas Lizshyards in Kansas Nature Hobbies Watersheds in Kansas Wildlife Refuges and an issue on birds Every attempt is being made to cover subjects in which readers of The Kansas School N atumlist are interested so send your suggestions to the editor Among the many suggestions which have been made but upon which no work has been done as yet are Galls or Insect Homes and an issue dealing with the nature study of The Sunflower State

SUMMER WILDFLOWERS The October 1955 issue of The

Kansas School Naturalist was deshyvoted to fall wildflowers and the February 1956 issue to spring vildflowers Now well fill in the gap The plants described and picshytured are those that bloom during the months of June July and Augshyust

1 SCARLET GLOBEMALLOW

Here is one of the most familiar roadside plants of western Kansas These drought-resistant pubescent plants frequently form a solid carshypet along right-of-ways during early summer The leaves are 3-lobed with each lobe being divided furshyther If you have a hand lens or magnifying glass examine the hairs on the leaves more closely Note how each hair has a star-like apshy

7

pearance being flat-topped with many radiating branches Like all members of the mallow familv the flower of the scarlet globenlallow has a central column of united stashymens The color of the 5 petals has been variously calleel vellowish-red or scarlet but orange or salmon would seem to be more appropriate adjectives It is one of the few natshyive plants in Kansas that has this flower color

2 SHOWY EVENING PRIMROSE

We have many different species of evening primroses in Kansas but this one is easily recognized by its white-petaled flowers All the others have yellow flowers The showy evening primrose is a common roadside and prairie perennial in central and eastern Kansas The 4 white petals 4 sepals and inferior ovary are distinctive floral characshyteristics Upon fading the petals turn a delicate shade of pink Like most of the evening primroses the flowers usually close during the heat of the afternoon The showy evenshying primrose is easily grown from seed

Another handsome evening primshyrose is the Missouri evening primshyrose or Ozark sundrops with its huge yellow flowers The fourmiddotshywinged seed pods green at first turn vello- and ma be seen on the grou~d all -inter shy

3 RUELLL

This lo--yoing perennial is found in pastures -n - -rairies in the eastern half of 1 1 Beci1llse of its rather dogt III la c-e to the common pduni- i i often l1b shynamed vild pet 1 Till _ litary purplish flowfs are bome in th

8

leaf axil forming a funnel much like that of the petunia They are exshytremely short-lived with the corolla falling off within 24 hours Hence this is hardlv a flower for the wild flower boug~et Leave it in nature where it belongs The leaves have a very short petiole and are pubshyescent

4 SCURFPEA

As the name suggests this plant belongs to the pea or legume family The leaves are palmately divided into 3 or 5 leaflets and are usually pubescent In its general growth form and habit and its cluster of tiny blue or lavender pea-like flowers scurfpea closely resembles the cultivated alfalfa Because of this it is often called wild alfalfa The silvery or grayish pubescence of the leaves however usually disshytinguish it from alfalfa A familiar prairie and roadside plant the scurfpea adorns most every landshyscape throughout the state being especially common north and east

5 SENSITIVE BRIER

This shrubby low-growing pershymiddotennial is easily recognized by its spherical heads of attractive roseshycolored flowers its compound leaves divided into many tiny leafshylets and its long linear and spineshycovered pods following the bloomshying period The lovely flowers inshyvite picking but watch out for the many sharp spines covering the stems Like other members of the Mimosa family the leaflets have the peculiar ability to fold together at night or in stormy weather or when the plant is handled roughly The sensitive brier is found nearly throughout the state and makes a

handsome addition to he roadside and prairie eg ta tiOll

6 PHAIRIE cLo middotn~

Also a member of tJie pea or leshygume bmit- the prairie clover is one of our most handsome prairie plants Tlle compact spike or sphershyical head of tin- purple or white flowers makes the prairie clover readih- identifiable We have at least 6 different species in Kansas 4 with white flowers and 2 with purple All are perennial and have a long taproot They grow in prairies and meadows throughout the state and are very attractive to insects

7 QUEEN ANNES LACE

This plant is also called wild carshyrot and our domesticated carrot was derived from this plant Queen Annes Lace is not native to our country having been brought here from the Mediterranean region It is easily recognized by the finely divided fern-like leaves and thc loose cluster or umbels of tiny white flowers After flowering the flower stalks turn inward into a compact ball somewhat resembling a birds nest As the fruits ripen however the stalks bend outward again to form a flat-topped cluster Queen Annes lace is a biennial and is found along roadsides and waste places chiefl in the eastern half of the state

8 WOOLY cnOTOc(

A familiar roadside allnual throughout central and eastern Kansas this plant is eltisi- identified bv its oate lelt1e5 a11d ft yook p~besctllce Lik the s arlet globeshymallo mentioned efore the leaves are co-ered ith tho e UJlshy

9

usual stellate hairs which show up so nicely under magnification The flowers are tiny and very inconshyspicuous and are either staminate (male) or pistillate (female) Both flower types however are borne in the same cluster Vhen crushed the plant gives off a very strong odor Other species of Croton are also quite common in Kansas

9 FOUR 0 CLOCK

The four 0 clock is found in waste places roadsides and other disturbed areas throughout the state Though sometimes called a weed it nevertheless is an atshytractive one The upright man~shybranched stems grow to a height of 2-3 feet and bear opposite more or less heart-shaped leaves The floshyering habit is rather unique for 2-3 flowers are borne in a cluster enshyclosed by a 5-10bed involucre or bract Each flower has a bell-shaped calyx colored purplish-pink but no corolla

Following pollination and fertilishyza tion the calyx tube drops off lea vshying the expanded involucre to surshyround and protect the developing fruits and seeds This plant is someshytimes called umbrellawort beshycause of this unusual feature It is closely related to our common garshyden four 0 clock and the exotic tropical vine often seen in our southenl states Bougainvillea

10 CONEFLOWER

The many species of this group all have one thing in common the type of floral structure Each head has a central cone either elongated or rounded of disk flowers and drooping ray flowers around the

base of the cone l o- t t ~ ) cie have vello 1lt1 flomiddoter~ The (0 Ullshy

nar pairie conefiower picturedh re is one of the mo t common p j

and is found ne r ~ hroll ~hou the entire state

11 TO-DFLX

The bright e11o and orange 0

flowers of this attmctin perennial gives rise to its other common name butter-and-eggs The flowers look very much like miniature snapdragshyons except for a rather prominent spur which extends from the lower portion of the corolla Its leaves are long and very narrow growing on a stem about 2 feet tall It is found scattered throughout the state in waste places along roadsides and in cultivated areas

12 BLACK SAMPSON

This rather sinister-sounding name is applied to one of our more attractive composites The long linear leaves are chiefly basal in position and are covered with coarse rough hairs The terminal head of flowers consists of a central cone or mound of brownish-colored disk flowers and a marginal array of purplish-colored ray flowers This stately perennial is found in prairies and meadows nearly throughout the state The Indians used the roots of this plant for medicinal purposes and even today certain tinctures are still prepared from the black Sampson

13 DAYFLOEH

l The chl-flo-er belonps to the 0

same famil - as the familiar spider-wort of earh- spring and the comshymon house plarlL ZCbriila or wandshy

12

ering Jew It is found in waste places along roadsides and alleyshyways and seems to prefer partial shade The small rather inconspicshyuous flowers are actually quite atshytractive upon close examination Of the 3 petals the 2 upper ones are colored blue and the lower white Not a native of the United States since its home is in Asia the dayshyflower is found scattered throughshyout the eastern third of Kansas

14 PRICKLY POppy

An attractive yet formidable species the prickly POPP) is found throughout central and western Kansas in pastures and waste places Its flower is large and showy bearshying 5 rather flimsy white petals The center bears a conspicuous cone of bright yellow stamens Alshythough one may be tempted to gather the flowers for a bouquet this thought is quickly discouraged by the very sharp prickles which cover both leaves and stem Like other members of the poppy family it has a sticky juice or latex

15 ERIOGONUM

This plant is found throughout central and western Kansas and is very drought resistant a characmiddotmiddot teristic imparted by its deep tapshyroot system sparse foliage and whitish pubescence on both stems and leaves In one species the flowshyers are greenish-yellow in another they are white In either case howshyeve thev are very small and unshyattractiv~ The spieading infloresshycences at the top of the plant give it a somewhat flat-topped appearmiddotmiddot ance hence the sometimes-used common name of umbrella plant

16 WILD ROSE

Certainly here we have a plant that could scarcely be mistaken for any other kind Although we have a number of different species in Kansas everyone can recognize them as roses The thorny stems the compound leaves the pink 5shypetaled flower with many stamens and the bright red fruit are all disshytinctive characteristics The fruits or hips as they are called are edshyible and are readily eaten by birds and mammals Wild roses are found throughout the entire state and cershytain of the species are amazingly drough t -resistan t

17 PITCHER CLEMATIS

Of the many different kinds of vines that one is likely to encounter growing on and along roadside fences in eastern Kansas the pitcher clematis is one of the most common It is readily identified by its comshypound leaves (3 to 9 leaflets) and urn-shaped brownish-purple flowshyers borne singly on the ends of long flower stalks This vine might very ell make a handsome addition to the garden and is readily propashygated by seed It does require howshyever a deep rich soil Incidentally this flower has no petals the deep brovnish-purple color being imshyparted by the sepals alone

18 JIMSON WEED

A familiar weed around barnshyyards and feed lots in the eastern half of Kansas the Jimson weed is one of our largest annual species attaining a height of up to 5 feet by the end of the growing season It is eaSily recognized by its thick greenish or purp1ish stems coarsely

14

toothed leaves and large trumpetshylike flowers The white or violet colored flowers open in the evening and emit a rather sweet odor which attracts night-flying moths The enshytire plant is poisonous to animals including man

19 PUNCTURE VINE

The puncture vine is one of our most familiar and occasionallv painful weeds A prostrate pLut which creeps along the surface of the ground it will frequently form a very dense mat in waste places and along roadsides Its fruit is its most conspicuous feature as many a barefoot boy can testify being sharply angled and armed with short pointed spines The flowers borne from July through September are small with 5 separate yellow petals Puncture vine has opposite compound leaves consisting of 10 to 14 leaflets Unfortunately this plant is disseminated rather eaSily and is rapidly becoming a pest in many parts of our country

20 YUCCA

This is a plant familiar to pracshytically everyone in central and western Kansas The large rosette Of bayonet-like evergreen leaves is a very distinctive feature In late May and June the inflorescence bearing large white cup-shaped flowers is produced The life hisshytory of Yucca or soapweed as it is sometimes called is very unusual since pollination and resiIltant proshyduction of seeds is dependent enshytirely upon one species of moth (see page 5 of the October 1955 issue of The Kansas School Natumlshymiddotist) Did you know that the Spanshy

ish bayonet and Joshua tree of southwestern United States were also species of Yucca

2l CINQUEFOIL

We have 11 different species of this plant growing in Kansas but most of them can be recognized by their yellow strawberry-like flower and palmately foliate leaves the number of leaflets usually being 5 Because of this characteristic cinquefOil is sometimes called fiveshyfinger They are found chiefly in the eastern half of Kansas growing in meadows and open woods

22 PRICKLY PEAR (cover picture) Almost everyone knows this

plant our most familiar representashytive of the cactus family A perenshynial and extremely drought-resistshyant the prickly pear is found nearly throughout Kansas though more common in the western half The large yellow flowers are very atshytractive a saving characteristic of most cacti The reddish cIubshyshaped fruits are edible and are occasionally made into candy or ielly The large succulent so-called leaves are in actualitv modified stems specially adapted for water storage The true leaves which are seen only on young shoots are small and narrow During periods of exshytreme drought when nothing else is available ranchers in western Kansas will sometimes singe off the spines of growing prickly pears thus making the plants edible for their cattle The next time vou visit a dry pasture look for a close relative of the prickly pear the smaller and rarer pin cushion Or ball cactus with reddish or yellOWish flowers

15

PRESERVING FLOiVERS School will be out before the

flowers listed in this issue are in bloom Nevertheless ye hope that this issue will aid the teacher and student alike in learning to identify some of our common summer wildshyflowers Dming these vacation months the teacher does many things in preparing for school A good project would be to identify collect press and mount some of the summer flOers for use during the school year

In collecting plants for pressing and mounting one must remember to get as much of the plant as posshysible Of course if the plant is large it is not practical to coHect all of it In that case get enough of the root to show its type enough of the stem and leaves to show their charshyacteristics and of course be sure to get the flower

To press these plants place them in a folded sheet of newspaper and evenly apply pressure It is possible to press more than one plant at the same time but several sheets of papers should be placed between speciments to absorb the moisture These papers must be changed daily in order to dry the plants quickly and large roots should be split lengthwise to facilitate drying Too much heat will brown the plants so do not place them in an oven

The pressure necessary for pressshying these plants can be supplied in a number of ways such as using books rocks or any other heavy obshyject A good plant press can easily be constructed from the sides of an apple or orange crate The plants and their newspapers are placed on

one of the boards and then the other board is placed on top By using a strap at each end of the press the boards can be drawn tightly toshygether and the plants will be evenshyly and neatly pressed

The dried plants should be mounted on good stiff white paper Notebook size is fine but a larger size is better if it is available The plants may be glued to the paper or attached with small strips of transparent tape Mice and insects will eat these dried plants so they should be kept in boxes containing moth balls It is a good idea to spray the pressed specimens occasionally with a bug bomb Students will enshyjoy building a collection of pressed plants and projects such as this will add interest to the school science table

ABOUT THIS ISSUE Most of this issue of The Kansas

School Natumlist was prepared by Dr G A Leisman of the E-State Biology Department The article on preserving flowers was written by Mr Homer Stephens of the Forshyestry Fish and Game Commission This is the third issue of a series dealing with some of the wildshyflowers of Kansas Fall Wildshyflowers (Oct 1955) and Spring Wildflowers (Feb 1956) the other two issues of this series are now out of print and therefore are no longer available

AUDUBON SCREEN TOURS The Biology Department of the

Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia will present another Screen Tour Series next year

16

ANSWERS TO FOOD QUIZ (page 5)

1 Lima beans are large seeds 2 Broccoli actuallv com bines two

two parts of tbe plant the stem and many unexpanded flower buds

middot3 The Irish potao is a tuber or special kind of underground stem

4 Sweet potatoes are true roots 5 Three cheers if you get this

one A head of cauliflower is nothing more than a large mass of undeveloped flowers

6 A celery stalk is a large and fleshv petiole or leaf stalk

7 Peas like beans are nothing more than seeds

8 This is easy A carrot is of course a root

9 Each head of brussel sprouts represents a miniature strucshyture like a cabbage bead In either case they are nothing more than leafy buds

10 One of our familiar vegeshytables the tomato is actually a fruit

If you got more than 7 right you know vour onions ( these are bulbs) Congratulations

LIGHT AND TIME Everyone has noticed that light comes

through a window but you may not realshyize that this light can be used to tell the time of day Select a window on the sunny side of the building and paste on the glass a piece of paper abou t the size of a half dollar See where the shadow of this spot is on the fiool or perhaps on the opposite wall Mark the place where the shadow is at say 830 A M Mark it again at 900 A M and at intervals for several hOUlmiddotS Notice next day whether the shadows are a t the same places at the same times Does this provide you with a clock Does this sun clock keep pace with the room clock A record kept through the school year will provide the answers to these and many other questions

THE 1958 WORKSHOP IN CONSERVATION

First Section - Three Weeks June 2 to June 20 1958

Credit - three semester hours Graduate or Undergraduate

vVater soil grassland and vvildlife conservation with emphasis throughout on conservation education Such topics as geography and climate of Kansas wltlter resources soil erosion problems and control grass as a resource bird banding wildflowers of Kansas conservation cJubs and conservation teaching at various levels Lectures demonstrations disshycussion groups films slides models field trips projects and individual and group reports Open to any interested person

Second Session - Three Weeks June 23 to July 11 1958

Credit - 1 2 or 3 hours for 1 2 or 3 weeks

Graduate or Undergraduate This section will be devoted to the

production of teaching aids for conshyservation and to other subjects dependshying upon the needs interests and exshyperiences of the participants Topics covered last year were lizzards wildlife refuges roadside nature study and a suggested guide to teaching conservashytion in the elementary schools Some of the materials developed by the 1958 workshop will probably be used in fushyture issues of The Kansa~ School Nafumlr ist

Several scholarships awarded by varishyous Soil Conservation Districts and other interested onranizations are available to people enrolled in the Workshop Pershysons interested in apniyinQ for a scholarshyhip are ur~ed to contact their local Soil Conservation Service Office There will also be a limited number of scholarships awarded bv the Emporia State Teachers College For additional infOlmation and anplication blanks write C F Gladfelter Kansas State Teachers ColIltgtge Emnoria

Vorkshops in Conservation will also be conducted at Fort Hays State and Sterling College Persons attending these workshops are also eligible for the Soil Conservation District Scholarships

7

pearance being flat-topped with many radiating branches Like all members of the mallow familv the flower of the scarlet globenlallow has a central column of united stashymens The color of the 5 petals has been variously calleel vellowish-red or scarlet but orange or salmon would seem to be more appropriate adjectives It is one of the few natshyive plants in Kansas that has this flower color

2 SHOWY EVENING PRIMROSE

We have many different species of evening primroses in Kansas but this one is easily recognized by its white-petaled flowers All the others have yellow flowers The showy evening primrose is a common roadside and prairie perennial in central and eastern Kansas The 4 white petals 4 sepals and inferior ovary are distinctive floral characshyteristics Upon fading the petals turn a delicate shade of pink Like most of the evening primroses the flowers usually close during the heat of the afternoon The showy evenshying primrose is easily grown from seed

Another handsome evening primshyrose is the Missouri evening primshyrose or Ozark sundrops with its huge yellow flowers The fourmiddotshywinged seed pods green at first turn vello- and ma be seen on the grou~d all -inter shy

3 RUELLL

This lo--yoing perennial is found in pastures -n - -rairies in the eastern half of 1 1 Beci1llse of its rather dogt III la c-e to the common pduni- i i often l1b shynamed vild pet 1 Till _ litary purplish flowfs are bome in th

8

leaf axil forming a funnel much like that of the petunia They are exshytremely short-lived with the corolla falling off within 24 hours Hence this is hardlv a flower for the wild flower boug~et Leave it in nature where it belongs The leaves have a very short petiole and are pubshyescent

4 SCURFPEA

As the name suggests this plant belongs to the pea or legume family The leaves are palmately divided into 3 or 5 leaflets and are usually pubescent In its general growth form and habit and its cluster of tiny blue or lavender pea-like flowers scurfpea closely resembles the cultivated alfalfa Because of this it is often called wild alfalfa The silvery or grayish pubescence of the leaves however usually disshytinguish it from alfalfa A familiar prairie and roadside plant the scurfpea adorns most every landshyscape throughout the state being especially common north and east

5 SENSITIVE BRIER

This shrubby low-growing pershymiddotennial is easily recognized by its spherical heads of attractive roseshycolored flowers its compound leaves divided into many tiny leafshylets and its long linear and spineshycovered pods following the bloomshying period The lovely flowers inshyvite picking but watch out for the many sharp spines covering the stems Like other members of the Mimosa family the leaflets have the peculiar ability to fold together at night or in stormy weather or when the plant is handled roughly The sensitive brier is found nearly throughout the state and makes a

handsome addition to he roadside and prairie eg ta tiOll

6 PHAIRIE cLo middotn~

Also a member of tJie pea or leshygume bmit- the prairie clover is one of our most handsome prairie plants Tlle compact spike or sphershyical head of tin- purple or white flowers makes the prairie clover readih- identifiable We have at least 6 different species in Kansas 4 with white flowers and 2 with purple All are perennial and have a long taproot They grow in prairies and meadows throughout the state and are very attractive to insects

7 QUEEN ANNES LACE

This plant is also called wild carshyrot and our domesticated carrot was derived from this plant Queen Annes Lace is not native to our country having been brought here from the Mediterranean region It is easily recognized by the finely divided fern-like leaves and thc loose cluster or umbels of tiny white flowers After flowering the flower stalks turn inward into a compact ball somewhat resembling a birds nest As the fruits ripen however the stalks bend outward again to form a flat-topped cluster Queen Annes lace is a biennial and is found along roadsides and waste places chiefl in the eastern half of the state

8 WOOLY cnOTOc(

A familiar roadside allnual throughout central and eastern Kansas this plant is eltisi- identified bv its oate lelt1e5 a11d ft yook p~besctllce Lik the s arlet globeshymallo mentioned efore the leaves are co-ered ith tho e UJlshy

9

usual stellate hairs which show up so nicely under magnification The flowers are tiny and very inconshyspicuous and are either staminate (male) or pistillate (female) Both flower types however are borne in the same cluster Vhen crushed the plant gives off a very strong odor Other species of Croton are also quite common in Kansas

9 FOUR 0 CLOCK

The four 0 clock is found in waste places roadsides and other disturbed areas throughout the state Though sometimes called a weed it nevertheless is an atshytractive one The upright man~shybranched stems grow to a height of 2-3 feet and bear opposite more or less heart-shaped leaves The floshyering habit is rather unique for 2-3 flowers are borne in a cluster enshyclosed by a 5-10bed involucre or bract Each flower has a bell-shaped calyx colored purplish-pink but no corolla

Following pollination and fertilishyza tion the calyx tube drops off lea vshying the expanded involucre to surshyround and protect the developing fruits and seeds This plant is someshytimes called umbrellawort beshycause of this unusual feature It is closely related to our common garshyden four 0 clock and the exotic tropical vine often seen in our southenl states Bougainvillea

10 CONEFLOWER

The many species of this group all have one thing in common the type of floral structure Each head has a central cone either elongated or rounded of disk flowers and drooping ray flowers around the

base of the cone l o- t t ~ ) cie have vello 1lt1 flomiddoter~ The (0 Ullshy

nar pairie conefiower picturedh re is one of the mo t common p j

and is found ne r ~ hroll ~hou the entire state

11 TO-DFLX

The bright e11o and orange 0

flowers of this attmctin perennial gives rise to its other common name butter-and-eggs The flowers look very much like miniature snapdragshyons except for a rather prominent spur which extends from the lower portion of the corolla Its leaves are long and very narrow growing on a stem about 2 feet tall It is found scattered throughout the state in waste places along roadsides and in cultivated areas

12 BLACK SAMPSON

This rather sinister-sounding name is applied to one of our more attractive composites The long linear leaves are chiefly basal in position and are covered with coarse rough hairs The terminal head of flowers consists of a central cone or mound of brownish-colored disk flowers and a marginal array of purplish-colored ray flowers This stately perennial is found in prairies and meadows nearly throughout the state The Indians used the roots of this plant for medicinal purposes and even today certain tinctures are still prepared from the black Sampson

13 DAYFLOEH

l The chl-flo-er belonps to the 0

same famil - as the familiar spider-wort of earh- spring and the comshymon house plarlL ZCbriila or wandshy

12

ering Jew It is found in waste places along roadsides and alleyshyways and seems to prefer partial shade The small rather inconspicshyuous flowers are actually quite atshytractive upon close examination Of the 3 petals the 2 upper ones are colored blue and the lower white Not a native of the United States since its home is in Asia the dayshyflower is found scattered throughshyout the eastern third of Kansas

14 PRICKLY POppy

An attractive yet formidable species the prickly POPP) is found throughout central and western Kansas in pastures and waste places Its flower is large and showy bearshying 5 rather flimsy white petals The center bears a conspicuous cone of bright yellow stamens Alshythough one may be tempted to gather the flowers for a bouquet this thought is quickly discouraged by the very sharp prickles which cover both leaves and stem Like other members of the poppy family it has a sticky juice or latex

15 ERIOGONUM

This plant is found throughout central and western Kansas and is very drought resistant a characmiddotmiddot teristic imparted by its deep tapshyroot system sparse foliage and whitish pubescence on both stems and leaves In one species the flowshyers are greenish-yellow in another they are white In either case howshyeve thev are very small and unshyattractiv~ The spieading infloresshycences at the top of the plant give it a somewhat flat-topped appearmiddotmiddot ance hence the sometimes-used common name of umbrella plant

16 WILD ROSE

Certainly here we have a plant that could scarcely be mistaken for any other kind Although we have a number of different species in Kansas everyone can recognize them as roses The thorny stems the compound leaves the pink 5shypetaled flower with many stamens and the bright red fruit are all disshytinctive characteristics The fruits or hips as they are called are edshyible and are readily eaten by birds and mammals Wild roses are found throughout the entire state and cershytain of the species are amazingly drough t -resistan t

17 PITCHER CLEMATIS

Of the many different kinds of vines that one is likely to encounter growing on and along roadside fences in eastern Kansas the pitcher clematis is one of the most common It is readily identified by its comshypound leaves (3 to 9 leaflets) and urn-shaped brownish-purple flowshyers borne singly on the ends of long flower stalks This vine might very ell make a handsome addition to the garden and is readily propashygated by seed It does require howshyever a deep rich soil Incidentally this flower has no petals the deep brovnish-purple color being imshyparted by the sepals alone

18 JIMSON WEED

A familiar weed around barnshyyards and feed lots in the eastern half of Kansas the Jimson weed is one of our largest annual species attaining a height of up to 5 feet by the end of the growing season It is eaSily recognized by its thick greenish or purp1ish stems coarsely

14

toothed leaves and large trumpetshylike flowers The white or violet colored flowers open in the evening and emit a rather sweet odor which attracts night-flying moths The enshytire plant is poisonous to animals including man

19 PUNCTURE VINE

The puncture vine is one of our most familiar and occasionallv painful weeds A prostrate pLut which creeps along the surface of the ground it will frequently form a very dense mat in waste places and along roadsides Its fruit is its most conspicuous feature as many a barefoot boy can testify being sharply angled and armed with short pointed spines The flowers borne from July through September are small with 5 separate yellow petals Puncture vine has opposite compound leaves consisting of 10 to 14 leaflets Unfortunately this plant is disseminated rather eaSily and is rapidly becoming a pest in many parts of our country

20 YUCCA

This is a plant familiar to pracshytically everyone in central and western Kansas The large rosette Of bayonet-like evergreen leaves is a very distinctive feature In late May and June the inflorescence bearing large white cup-shaped flowers is produced The life hisshytory of Yucca or soapweed as it is sometimes called is very unusual since pollination and resiIltant proshyduction of seeds is dependent enshytirely upon one species of moth (see page 5 of the October 1955 issue of The Kansas School Natumlshymiddotist) Did you know that the Spanshy

ish bayonet and Joshua tree of southwestern United States were also species of Yucca

2l CINQUEFOIL

We have 11 different species of this plant growing in Kansas but most of them can be recognized by their yellow strawberry-like flower and palmately foliate leaves the number of leaflets usually being 5 Because of this characteristic cinquefOil is sometimes called fiveshyfinger They are found chiefly in the eastern half of Kansas growing in meadows and open woods

22 PRICKLY PEAR (cover picture) Almost everyone knows this

plant our most familiar representashytive of the cactus family A perenshynial and extremely drought-resistshyant the prickly pear is found nearly throughout Kansas though more common in the western half The large yellow flowers are very atshytractive a saving characteristic of most cacti The reddish cIubshyshaped fruits are edible and are occasionally made into candy or ielly The large succulent so-called leaves are in actualitv modified stems specially adapted for water storage The true leaves which are seen only on young shoots are small and narrow During periods of exshytreme drought when nothing else is available ranchers in western Kansas will sometimes singe off the spines of growing prickly pears thus making the plants edible for their cattle The next time vou visit a dry pasture look for a close relative of the prickly pear the smaller and rarer pin cushion Or ball cactus with reddish or yellOWish flowers

15

PRESERVING FLOiVERS School will be out before the

flowers listed in this issue are in bloom Nevertheless ye hope that this issue will aid the teacher and student alike in learning to identify some of our common summer wildshyflowers Dming these vacation months the teacher does many things in preparing for school A good project would be to identify collect press and mount some of the summer flOers for use during the school year

In collecting plants for pressing and mounting one must remember to get as much of the plant as posshysible Of course if the plant is large it is not practical to coHect all of it In that case get enough of the root to show its type enough of the stem and leaves to show their charshyacteristics and of course be sure to get the flower

To press these plants place them in a folded sheet of newspaper and evenly apply pressure It is possible to press more than one plant at the same time but several sheets of papers should be placed between speciments to absorb the moisture These papers must be changed daily in order to dry the plants quickly and large roots should be split lengthwise to facilitate drying Too much heat will brown the plants so do not place them in an oven

The pressure necessary for pressshying these plants can be supplied in a number of ways such as using books rocks or any other heavy obshyject A good plant press can easily be constructed from the sides of an apple or orange crate The plants and their newspapers are placed on

one of the boards and then the other board is placed on top By using a strap at each end of the press the boards can be drawn tightly toshygether and the plants will be evenshyly and neatly pressed

The dried plants should be mounted on good stiff white paper Notebook size is fine but a larger size is better if it is available The plants may be glued to the paper or attached with small strips of transparent tape Mice and insects will eat these dried plants so they should be kept in boxes containing moth balls It is a good idea to spray the pressed specimens occasionally with a bug bomb Students will enshyjoy building a collection of pressed plants and projects such as this will add interest to the school science table

ABOUT THIS ISSUE Most of this issue of The Kansas

School Natumlist was prepared by Dr G A Leisman of the E-State Biology Department The article on preserving flowers was written by Mr Homer Stephens of the Forshyestry Fish and Game Commission This is the third issue of a series dealing with some of the wildshyflowers of Kansas Fall Wildshyflowers (Oct 1955) and Spring Wildflowers (Feb 1956) the other two issues of this series are now out of print and therefore are no longer available

AUDUBON SCREEN TOURS The Biology Department of the

Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia will present another Screen Tour Series next year

16

ANSWERS TO FOOD QUIZ (page 5)

1 Lima beans are large seeds 2 Broccoli actuallv com bines two

two parts of tbe plant the stem and many unexpanded flower buds

middot3 The Irish potao is a tuber or special kind of underground stem

4 Sweet potatoes are true roots 5 Three cheers if you get this

one A head of cauliflower is nothing more than a large mass of undeveloped flowers

6 A celery stalk is a large and fleshv petiole or leaf stalk

7 Peas like beans are nothing more than seeds

8 This is easy A carrot is of course a root

9 Each head of brussel sprouts represents a miniature strucshyture like a cabbage bead In either case they are nothing more than leafy buds

10 One of our familiar vegeshytables the tomato is actually a fruit

If you got more than 7 right you know vour onions ( these are bulbs) Congratulations

LIGHT AND TIME Everyone has noticed that light comes

through a window but you may not realshyize that this light can be used to tell the time of day Select a window on the sunny side of the building and paste on the glass a piece of paper abou t the size of a half dollar See where the shadow of this spot is on the fiool or perhaps on the opposite wall Mark the place where the shadow is at say 830 A M Mark it again at 900 A M and at intervals for several hOUlmiddotS Notice next day whether the shadows are a t the same places at the same times Does this provide you with a clock Does this sun clock keep pace with the room clock A record kept through the school year will provide the answers to these and many other questions

THE 1958 WORKSHOP IN CONSERVATION

First Section - Three Weeks June 2 to June 20 1958

Credit - three semester hours Graduate or Undergraduate

vVater soil grassland and vvildlife conservation with emphasis throughout on conservation education Such topics as geography and climate of Kansas wltlter resources soil erosion problems and control grass as a resource bird banding wildflowers of Kansas conservation cJubs and conservation teaching at various levels Lectures demonstrations disshycussion groups films slides models field trips projects and individual and group reports Open to any interested person

Second Session - Three Weeks June 23 to July 11 1958

Credit - 1 2 or 3 hours for 1 2 or 3 weeks

Graduate or Undergraduate This section will be devoted to the

production of teaching aids for conshyservation and to other subjects dependshying upon the needs interests and exshyperiences of the participants Topics covered last year were lizzards wildlife refuges roadside nature study and a suggested guide to teaching conservashytion in the elementary schools Some of the materials developed by the 1958 workshop will probably be used in fushyture issues of The Kansa~ School Nafumlr ist

Several scholarships awarded by varishyous Soil Conservation Districts and other interested onranizations are available to people enrolled in the Workshop Pershysons interested in apniyinQ for a scholarshyhip are ur~ed to contact their local Soil Conservation Service Office There will also be a limited number of scholarships awarded bv the Emporia State Teachers College For additional infOlmation and anplication blanks write C F Gladfelter Kansas State Teachers ColIltgtge Emnoria

Vorkshops in Conservation will also be conducted at Fort Hays State and Sterling College Persons attending these workshops are also eligible for the Soil Conservation District Scholarships

8

leaf axil forming a funnel much like that of the petunia They are exshytremely short-lived with the corolla falling off within 24 hours Hence this is hardlv a flower for the wild flower boug~et Leave it in nature where it belongs The leaves have a very short petiole and are pubshyescent

4 SCURFPEA

As the name suggests this plant belongs to the pea or legume family The leaves are palmately divided into 3 or 5 leaflets and are usually pubescent In its general growth form and habit and its cluster of tiny blue or lavender pea-like flowers scurfpea closely resembles the cultivated alfalfa Because of this it is often called wild alfalfa The silvery or grayish pubescence of the leaves however usually disshytinguish it from alfalfa A familiar prairie and roadside plant the scurfpea adorns most every landshyscape throughout the state being especially common north and east

5 SENSITIVE BRIER

This shrubby low-growing pershymiddotennial is easily recognized by its spherical heads of attractive roseshycolored flowers its compound leaves divided into many tiny leafshylets and its long linear and spineshycovered pods following the bloomshying period The lovely flowers inshyvite picking but watch out for the many sharp spines covering the stems Like other members of the Mimosa family the leaflets have the peculiar ability to fold together at night or in stormy weather or when the plant is handled roughly The sensitive brier is found nearly throughout the state and makes a

handsome addition to he roadside and prairie eg ta tiOll

6 PHAIRIE cLo middotn~

Also a member of tJie pea or leshygume bmit- the prairie clover is one of our most handsome prairie plants Tlle compact spike or sphershyical head of tin- purple or white flowers makes the prairie clover readih- identifiable We have at least 6 different species in Kansas 4 with white flowers and 2 with purple All are perennial and have a long taproot They grow in prairies and meadows throughout the state and are very attractive to insects

7 QUEEN ANNES LACE

This plant is also called wild carshyrot and our domesticated carrot was derived from this plant Queen Annes Lace is not native to our country having been brought here from the Mediterranean region It is easily recognized by the finely divided fern-like leaves and thc loose cluster or umbels of tiny white flowers After flowering the flower stalks turn inward into a compact ball somewhat resembling a birds nest As the fruits ripen however the stalks bend outward again to form a flat-topped cluster Queen Annes lace is a biennial and is found along roadsides and waste places chiefl in the eastern half of the state

8 WOOLY cnOTOc(

A familiar roadside allnual throughout central and eastern Kansas this plant is eltisi- identified bv its oate lelt1e5 a11d ft yook p~besctllce Lik the s arlet globeshymallo mentioned efore the leaves are co-ered ith tho e UJlshy

9

usual stellate hairs which show up so nicely under magnification The flowers are tiny and very inconshyspicuous and are either staminate (male) or pistillate (female) Both flower types however are borne in the same cluster Vhen crushed the plant gives off a very strong odor Other species of Croton are also quite common in Kansas

9 FOUR 0 CLOCK

The four 0 clock is found in waste places roadsides and other disturbed areas throughout the state Though sometimes called a weed it nevertheless is an atshytractive one The upright man~shybranched stems grow to a height of 2-3 feet and bear opposite more or less heart-shaped leaves The floshyering habit is rather unique for 2-3 flowers are borne in a cluster enshyclosed by a 5-10bed involucre or bract Each flower has a bell-shaped calyx colored purplish-pink but no corolla

Following pollination and fertilishyza tion the calyx tube drops off lea vshying the expanded involucre to surshyround and protect the developing fruits and seeds This plant is someshytimes called umbrellawort beshycause of this unusual feature It is closely related to our common garshyden four 0 clock and the exotic tropical vine often seen in our southenl states Bougainvillea

10 CONEFLOWER

The many species of this group all have one thing in common the type of floral structure Each head has a central cone either elongated or rounded of disk flowers and drooping ray flowers around the

base of the cone l o- t t ~ ) cie have vello 1lt1 flomiddoter~ The (0 Ullshy

nar pairie conefiower picturedh re is one of the mo t common p j

and is found ne r ~ hroll ~hou the entire state

11 TO-DFLX

The bright e11o and orange 0

flowers of this attmctin perennial gives rise to its other common name butter-and-eggs The flowers look very much like miniature snapdragshyons except for a rather prominent spur which extends from the lower portion of the corolla Its leaves are long and very narrow growing on a stem about 2 feet tall It is found scattered throughout the state in waste places along roadsides and in cultivated areas

12 BLACK SAMPSON

This rather sinister-sounding name is applied to one of our more attractive composites The long linear leaves are chiefly basal in position and are covered with coarse rough hairs The terminal head of flowers consists of a central cone or mound of brownish-colored disk flowers and a marginal array of purplish-colored ray flowers This stately perennial is found in prairies and meadows nearly throughout the state The Indians used the roots of this plant for medicinal purposes and even today certain tinctures are still prepared from the black Sampson

13 DAYFLOEH

l The chl-flo-er belonps to the 0

same famil - as the familiar spider-wort of earh- spring and the comshymon house plarlL ZCbriila or wandshy

12

ering Jew It is found in waste places along roadsides and alleyshyways and seems to prefer partial shade The small rather inconspicshyuous flowers are actually quite atshytractive upon close examination Of the 3 petals the 2 upper ones are colored blue and the lower white Not a native of the United States since its home is in Asia the dayshyflower is found scattered throughshyout the eastern third of Kansas

14 PRICKLY POppy

An attractive yet formidable species the prickly POPP) is found throughout central and western Kansas in pastures and waste places Its flower is large and showy bearshying 5 rather flimsy white petals The center bears a conspicuous cone of bright yellow stamens Alshythough one may be tempted to gather the flowers for a bouquet this thought is quickly discouraged by the very sharp prickles which cover both leaves and stem Like other members of the poppy family it has a sticky juice or latex

15 ERIOGONUM

This plant is found throughout central and western Kansas and is very drought resistant a characmiddotmiddot teristic imparted by its deep tapshyroot system sparse foliage and whitish pubescence on both stems and leaves In one species the flowshyers are greenish-yellow in another they are white In either case howshyeve thev are very small and unshyattractiv~ The spieading infloresshycences at the top of the plant give it a somewhat flat-topped appearmiddotmiddot ance hence the sometimes-used common name of umbrella plant

16 WILD ROSE

Certainly here we have a plant that could scarcely be mistaken for any other kind Although we have a number of different species in Kansas everyone can recognize them as roses The thorny stems the compound leaves the pink 5shypetaled flower with many stamens and the bright red fruit are all disshytinctive characteristics The fruits or hips as they are called are edshyible and are readily eaten by birds and mammals Wild roses are found throughout the entire state and cershytain of the species are amazingly drough t -resistan t

17 PITCHER CLEMATIS

Of the many different kinds of vines that one is likely to encounter growing on and along roadside fences in eastern Kansas the pitcher clematis is one of the most common It is readily identified by its comshypound leaves (3 to 9 leaflets) and urn-shaped brownish-purple flowshyers borne singly on the ends of long flower stalks This vine might very ell make a handsome addition to the garden and is readily propashygated by seed It does require howshyever a deep rich soil Incidentally this flower has no petals the deep brovnish-purple color being imshyparted by the sepals alone

18 JIMSON WEED

A familiar weed around barnshyyards and feed lots in the eastern half of Kansas the Jimson weed is one of our largest annual species attaining a height of up to 5 feet by the end of the growing season It is eaSily recognized by its thick greenish or purp1ish stems coarsely

14

toothed leaves and large trumpetshylike flowers The white or violet colored flowers open in the evening and emit a rather sweet odor which attracts night-flying moths The enshytire plant is poisonous to animals including man

19 PUNCTURE VINE

The puncture vine is one of our most familiar and occasionallv painful weeds A prostrate pLut which creeps along the surface of the ground it will frequently form a very dense mat in waste places and along roadsides Its fruit is its most conspicuous feature as many a barefoot boy can testify being sharply angled and armed with short pointed spines The flowers borne from July through September are small with 5 separate yellow petals Puncture vine has opposite compound leaves consisting of 10 to 14 leaflets Unfortunately this plant is disseminated rather eaSily and is rapidly becoming a pest in many parts of our country

20 YUCCA

This is a plant familiar to pracshytically everyone in central and western Kansas The large rosette Of bayonet-like evergreen leaves is a very distinctive feature In late May and June the inflorescence bearing large white cup-shaped flowers is produced The life hisshytory of Yucca or soapweed as it is sometimes called is very unusual since pollination and resiIltant proshyduction of seeds is dependent enshytirely upon one species of moth (see page 5 of the October 1955 issue of The Kansas School Natumlshymiddotist) Did you know that the Spanshy

ish bayonet and Joshua tree of southwestern United States were also species of Yucca

2l CINQUEFOIL

We have 11 different species of this plant growing in Kansas but most of them can be recognized by their yellow strawberry-like flower and palmately foliate leaves the number of leaflets usually being 5 Because of this characteristic cinquefOil is sometimes called fiveshyfinger They are found chiefly in the eastern half of Kansas growing in meadows and open woods

22 PRICKLY PEAR (cover picture) Almost everyone knows this

plant our most familiar representashytive of the cactus family A perenshynial and extremely drought-resistshyant the prickly pear is found nearly throughout Kansas though more common in the western half The large yellow flowers are very atshytractive a saving characteristic of most cacti The reddish cIubshyshaped fruits are edible and are occasionally made into candy or ielly The large succulent so-called leaves are in actualitv modified stems specially adapted for water storage The true leaves which are seen only on young shoots are small and narrow During periods of exshytreme drought when nothing else is available ranchers in western Kansas will sometimes singe off the spines of growing prickly pears thus making the plants edible for their cattle The next time vou visit a dry pasture look for a close relative of the prickly pear the smaller and rarer pin cushion Or ball cactus with reddish or yellOWish flowers

15

PRESERVING FLOiVERS School will be out before the

flowers listed in this issue are in bloom Nevertheless ye hope that this issue will aid the teacher and student alike in learning to identify some of our common summer wildshyflowers Dming these vacation months the teacher does many things in preparing for school A good project would be to identify collect press and mount some of the summer flOers for use during the school year

In collecting plants for pressing and mounting one must remember to get as much of the plant as posshysible Of course if the plant is large it is not practical to coHect all of it In that case get enough of the root to show its type enough of the stem and leaves to show their charshyacteristics and of course be sure to get the flower

To press these plants place them in a folded sheet of newspaper and evenly apply pressure It is possible to press more than one plant at the same time but several sheets of papers should be placed between speciments to absorb the moisture These papers must be changed daily in order to dry the plants quickly and large roots should be split lengthwise to facilitate drying Too much heat will brown the plants so do not place them in an oven

The pressure necessary for pressshying these plants can be supplied in a number of ways such as using books rocks or any other heavy obshyject A good plant press can easily be constructed from the sides of an apple or orange crate The plants and their newspapers are placed on

one of the boards and then the other board is placed on top By using a strap at each end of the press the boards can be drawn tightly toshygether and the plants will be evenshyly and neatly pressed

The dried plants should be mounted on good stiff white paper Notebook size is fine but a larger size is better if it is available The plants may be glued to the paper or attached with small strips of transparent tape Mice and insects will eat these dried plants so they should be kept in boxes containing moth balls It is a good idea to spray the pressed specimens occasionally with a bug bomb Students will enshyjoy building a collection of pressed plants and projects such as this will add interest to the school science table

ABOUT THIS ISSUE Most of this issue of The Kansas

School Natumlist was prepared by Dr G A Leisman of the E-State Biology Department The article on preserving flowers was written by Mr Homer Stephens of the Forshyestry Fish and Game Commission This is the third issue of a series dealing with some of the wildshyflowers of Kansas Fall Wildshyflowers (Oct 1955) and Spring Wildflowers (Feb 1956) the other two issues of this series are now out of print and therefore are no longer available

AUDUBON SCREEN TOURS The Biology Department of the

Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia will present another Screen Tour Series next year

16

ANSWERS TO FOOD QUIZ (page 5)

1 Lima beans are large seeds 2 Broccoli actuallv com bines two

two parts of tbe plant the stem and many unexpanded flower buds

middot3 The Irish potao is a tuber or special kind of underground stem

4 Sweet potatoes are true roots 5 Three cheers if you get this

one A head of cauliflower is nothing more than a large mass of undeveloped flowers

6 A celery stalk is a large and fleshv petiole or leaf stalk

7 Peas like beans are nothing more than seeds

8 This is easy A carrot is of course a root

9 Each head of brussel sprouts represents a miniature strucshyture like a cabbage bead In either case they are nothing more than leafy buds

10 One of our familiar vegeshytables the tomato is actually a fruit

If you got more than 7 right you know vour onions ( these are bulbs) Congratulations

LIGHT AND TIME Everyone has noticed that light comes

through a window but you may not realshyize that this light can be used to tell the time of day Select a window on the sunny side of the building and paste on the glass a piece of paper abou t the size of a half dollar See where the shadow of this spot is on the fiool or perhaps on the opposite wall Mark the place where the shadow is at say 830 A M Mark it again at 900 A M and at intervals for several hOUlmiddotS Notice next day whether the shadows are a t the same places at the same times Does this provide you with a clock Does this sun clock keep pace with the room clock A record kept through the school year will provide the answers to these and many other questions

THE 1958 WORKSHOP IN CONSERVATION

First Section - Three Weeks June 2 to June 20 1958

Credit - three semester hours Graduate or Undergraduate

vVater soil grassland and vvildlife conservation with emphasis throughout on conservation education Such topics as geography and climate of Kansas wltlter resources soil erosion problems and control grass as a resource bird banding wildflowers of Kansas conservation cJubs and conservation teaching at various levels Lectures demonstrations disshycussion groups films slides models field trips projects and individual and group reports Open to any interested person

Second Session - Three Weeks June 23 to July 11 1958

Credit - 1 2 or 3 hours for 1 2 or 3 weeks

Graduate or Undergraduate This section will be devoted to the

production of teaching aids for conshyservation and to other subjects dependshying upon the needs interests and exshyperiences of the participants Topics covered last year were lizzards wildlife refuges roadside nature study and a suggested guide to teaching conservashytion in the elementary schools Some of the materials developed by the 1958 workshop will probably be used in fushyture issues of The Kansa~ School Nafumlr ist

Several scholarships awarded by varishyous Soil Conservation Districts and other interested onranizations are available to people enrolled in the Workshop Pershysons interested in apniyinQ for a scholarshyhip are ur~ed to contact their local Soil Conservation Service Office There will also be a limited number of scholarships awarded bv the Emporia State Teachers College For additional infOlmation and anplication blanks write C F Gladfelter Kansas State Teachers ColIltgtge Emnoria

Vorkshops in Conservation will also be conducted at Fort Hays State and Sterling College Persons attending these workshops are also eligible for the Soil Conservation District Scholarships

handsome addition to he roadside and prairie eg ta tiOll

6 PHAIRIE cLo middotn~

Also a member of tJie pea or leshygume bmit- the prairie clover is one of our most handsome prairie plants Tlle compact spike or sphershyical head of tin- purple or white flowers makes the prairie clover readih- identifiable We have at least 6 different species in Kansas 4 with white flowers and 2 with purple All are perennial and have a long taproot They grow in prairies and meadows throughout the state and are very attractive to insects

7 QUEEN ANNES LACE

This plant is also called wild carshyrot and our domesticated carrot was derived from this plant Queen Annes Lace is not native to our country having been brought here from the Mediterranean region It is easily recognized by the finely divided fern-like leaves and thc loose cluster or umbels of tiny white flowers After flowering the flower stalks turn inward into a compact ball somewhat resembling a birds nest As the fruits ripen however the stalks bend outward again to form a flat-topped cluster Queen Annes lace is a biennial and is found along roadsides and waste places chiefl in the eastern half of the state

8 WOOLY cnOTOc(

A familiar roadside allnual throughout central and eastern Kansas this plant is eltisi- identified bv its oate lelt1e5 a11d ft yook p~besctllce Lik the s arlet globeshymallo mentioned efore the leaves are co-ered ith tho e UJlshy

9

usual stellate hairs which show up so nicely under magnification The flowers are tiny and very inconshyspicuous and are either staminate (male) or pistillate (female) Both flower types however are borne in the same cluster Vhen crushed the plant gives off a very strong odor Other species of Croton are also quite common in Kansas

9 FOUR 0 CLOCK

The four 0 clock is found in waste places roadsides and other disturbed areas throughout the state Though sometimes called a weed it nevertheless is an atshytractive one The upright man~shybranched stems grow to a height of 2-3 feet and bear opposite more or less heart-shaped leaves The floshyering habit is rather unique for 2-3 flowers are borne in a cluster enshyclosed by a 5-10bed involucre or bract Each flower has a bell-shaped calyx colored purplish-pink but no corolla

Following pollination and fertilishyza tion the calyx tube drops off lea vshying the expanded involucre to surshyround and protect the developing fruits and seeds This plant is someshytimes called umbrellawort beshycause of this unusual feature It is closely related to our common garshyden four 0 clock and the exotic tropical vine often seen in our southenl states Bougainvillea

10 CONEFLOWER

The many species of this group all have one thing in common the type of floral structure Each head has a central cone either elongated or rounded of disk flowers and drooping ray flowers around the

base of the cone l o- t t ~ ) cie have vello 1lt1 flomiddoter~ The (0 Ullshy

nar pairie conefiower picturedh re is one of the mo t common p j

and is found ne r ~ hroll ~hou the entire state

11 TO-DFLX

The bright e11o and orange 0

flowers of this attmctin perennial gives rise to its other common name butter-and-eggs The flowers look very much like miniature snapdragshyons except for a rather prominent spur which extends from the lower portion of the corolla Its leaves are long and very narrow growing on a stem about 2 feet tall It is found scattered throughout the state in waste places along roadsides and in cultivated areas

12 BLACK SAMPSON

This rather sinister-sounding name is applied to one of our more attractive composites The long linear leaves are chiefly basal in position and are covered with coarse rough hairs The terminal head of flowers consists of a central cone or mound of brownish-colored disk flowers and a marginal array of purplish-colored ray flowers This stately perennial is found in prairies and meadows nearly throughout the state The Indians used the roots of this plant for medicinal purposes and even today certain tinctures are still prepared from the black Sampson

13 DAYFLOEH

l The chl-flo-er belonps to the 0

same famil - as the familiar spider-wort of earh- spring and the comshymon house plarlL ZCbriila or wandshy

12

ering Jew It is found in waste places along roadsides and alleyshyways and seems to prefer partial shade The small rather inconspicshyuous flowers are actually quite atshytractive upon close examination Of the 3 petals the 2 upper ones are colored blue and the lower white Not a native of the United States since its home is in Asia the dayshyflower is found scattered throughshyout the eastern third of Kansas

14 PRICKLY POppy

An attractive yet formidable species the prickly POPP) is found throughout central and western Kansas in pastures and waste places Its flower is large and showy bearshying 5 rather flimsy white petals The center bears a conspicuous cone of bright yellow stamens Alshythough one may be tempted to gather the flowers for a bouquet this thought is quickly discouraged by the very sharp prickles which cover both leaves and stem Like other members of the poppy family it has a sticky juice or latex

15 ERIOGONUM

This plant is found throughout central and western Kansas and is very drought resistant a characmiddotmiddot teristic imparted by its deep tapshyroot system sparse foliage and whitish pubescence on both stems and leaves In one species the flowshyers are greenish-yellow in another they are white In either case howshyeve thev are very small and unshyattractiv~ The spieading infloresshycences at the top of the plant give it a somewhat flat-topped appearmiddotmiddot ance hence the sometimes-used common name of umbrella plant

16 WILD ROSE

Certainly here we have a plant that could scarcely be mistaken for any other kind Although we have a number of different species in Kansas everyone can recognize them as roses The thorny stems the compound leaves the pink 5shypetaled flower with many stamens and the bright red fruit are all disshytinctive characteristics The fruits or hips as they are called are edshyible and are readily eaten by birds and mammals Wild roses are found throughout the entire state and cershytain of the species are amazingly drough t -resistan t

17 PITCHER CLEMATIS

Of the many different kinds of vines that one is likely to encounter growing on and along roadside fences in eastern Kansas the pitcher clematis is one of the most common It is readily identified by its comshypound leaves (3 to 9 leaflets) and urn-shaped brownish-purple flowshyers borne singly on the ends of long flower stalks This vine might very ell make a handsome addition to the garden and is readily propashygated by seed It does require howshyever a deep rich soil Incidentally this flower has no petals the deep brovnish-purple color being imshyparted by the sepals alone

18 JIMSON WEED

A familiar weed around barnshyyards and feed lots in the eastern half of Kansas the Jimson weed is one of our largest annual species attaining a height of up to 5 feet by the end of the growing season It is eaSily recognized by its thick greenish or purp1ish stems coarsely

14

toothed leaves and large trumpetshylike flowers The white or violet colored flowers open in the evening and emit a rather sweet odor which attracts night-flying moths The enshytire plant is poisonous to animals including man

19 PUNCTURE VINE

The puncture vine is one of our most familiar and occasionallv painful weeds A prostrate pLut which creeps along the surface of the ground it will frequently form a very dense mat in waste places and along roadsides Its fruit is its most conspicuous feature as many a barefoot boy can testify being sharply angled and armed with short pointed spines The flowers borne from July through September are small with 5 separate yellow petals Puncture vine has opposite compound leaves consisting of 10 to 14 leaflets Unfortunately this plant is disseminated rather eaSily and is rapidly becoming a pest in many parts of our country

20 YUCCA

This is a plant familiar to pracshytically everyone in central and western Kansas The large rosette Of bayonet-like evergreen leaves is a very distinctive feature In late May and June the inflorescence bearing large white cup-shaped flowers is produced The life hisshytory of Yucca or soapweed as it is sometimes called is very unusual since pollination and resiIltant proshyduction of seeds is dependent enshytirely upon one species of moth (see page 5 of the October 1955 issue of The Kansas School Natumlshymiddotist) Did you know that the Spanshy

ish bayonet and Joshua tree of southwestern United States were also species of Yucca

2l CINQUEFOIL

We have 11 different species of this plant growing in Kansas but most of them can be recognized by their yellow strawberry-like flower and palmately foliate leaves the number of leaflets usually being 5 Because of this characteristic cinquefOil is sometimes called fiveshyfinger They are found chiefly in the eastern half of Kansas growing in meadows and open woods

22 PRICKLY PEAR (cover picture) Almost everyone knows this

plant our most familiar representashytive of the cactus family A perenshynial and extremely drought-resistshyant the prickly pear is found nearly throughout Kansas though more common in the western half The large yellow flowers are very atshytractive a saving characteristic of most cacti The reddish cIubshyshaped fruits are edible and are occasionally made into candy or ielly The large succulent so-called leaves are in actualitv modified stems specially adapted for water storage The true leaves which are seen only on young shoots are small and narrow During periods of exshytreme drought when nothing else is available ranchers in western Kansas will sometimes singe off the spines of growing prickly pears thus making the plants edible for their cattle The next time vou visit a dry pasture look for a close relative of the prickly pear the smaller and rarer pin cushion Or ball cactus with reddish or yellOWish flowers

15

PRESERVING FLOiVERS School will be out before the

flowers listed in this issue are in bloom Nevertheless ye hope that this issue will aid the teacher and student alike in learning to identify some of our common summer wildshyflowers Dming these vacation months the teacher does many things in preparing for school A good project would be to identify collect press and mount some of the summer flOers for use during the school year

In collecting plants for pressing and mounting one must remember to get as much of the plant as posshysible Of course if the plant is large it is not practical to coHect all of it In that case get enough of the root to show its type enough of the stem and leaves to show their charshyacteristics and of course be sure to get the flower

To press these plants place them in a folded sheet of newspaper and evenly apply pressure It is possible to press more than one plant at the same time but several sheets of papers should be placed between speciments to absorb the moisture These papers must be changed daily in order to dry the plants quickly and large roots should be split lengthwise to facilitate drying Too much heat will brown the plants so do not place them in an oven

The pressure necessary for pressshying these plants can be supplied in a number of ways such as using books rocks or any other heavy obshyject A good plant press can easily be constructed from the sides of an apple or orange crate The plants and their newspapers are placed on

one of the boards and then the other board is placed on top By using a strap at each end of the press the boards can be drawn tightly toshygether and the plants will be evenshyly and neatly pressed

The dried plants should be mounted on good stiff white paper Notebook size is fine but a larger size is better if it is available The plants may be glued to the paper or attached with small strips of transparent tape Mice and insects will eat these dried plants so they should be kept in boxes containing moth balls It is a good idea to spray the pressed specimens occasionally with a bug bomb Students will enshyjoy building a collection of pressed plants and projects such as this will add interest to the school science table

ABOUT THIS ISSUE Most of this issue of The Kansas

School Natumlist was prepared by Dr G A Leisman of the E-State Biology Department The article on preserving flowers was written by Mr Homer Stephens of the Forshyestry Fish and Game Commission This is the third issue of a series dealing with some of the wildshyflowers of Kansas Fall Wildshyflowers (Oct 1955) and Spring Wildflowers (Feb 1956) the other two issues of this series are now out of print and therefore are no longer available

AUDUBON SCREEN TOURS The Biology Department of the

Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia will present another Screen Tour Series next year

16

ANSWERS TO FOOD QUIZ (page 5)

1 Lima beans are large seeds 2 Broccoli actuallv com bines two

two parts of tbe plant the stem and many unexpanded flower buds

middot3 The Irish potao is a tuber or special kind of underground stem

4 Sweet potatoes are true roots 5 Three cheers if you get this

one A head of cauliflower is nothing more than a large mass of undeveloped flowers

6 A celery stalk is a large and fleshv petiole or leaf stalk

7 Peas like beans are nothing more than seeds

8 This is easy A carrot is of course a root

9 Each head of brussel sprouts represents a miniature strucshyture like a cabbage bead In either case they are nothing more than leafy buds

10 One of our familiar vegeshytables the tomato is actually a fruit

If you got more than 7 right you know vour onions ( these are bulbs) Congratulations

LIGHT AND TIME Everyone has noticed that light comes

through a window but you may not realshyize that this light can be used to tell the time of day Select a window on the sunny side of the building and paste on the glass a piece of paper abou t the size of a half dollar See where the shadow of this spot is on the fiool or perhaps on the opposite wall Mark the place where the shadow is at say 830 A M Mark it again at 900 A M and at intervals for several hOUlmiddotS Notice next day whether the shadows are a t the same places at the same times Does this provide you with a clock Does this sun clock keep pace with the room clock A record kept through the school year will provide the answers to these and many other questions

THE 1958 WORKSHOP IN CONSERVATION

First Section - Three Weeks June 2 to June 20 1958

Credit - three semester hours Graduate or Undergraduate

vVater soil grassland and vvildlife conservation with emphasis throughout on conservation education Such topics as geography and climate of Kansas wltlter resources soil erosion problems and control grass as a resource bird banding wildflowers of Kansas conservation cJubs and conservation teaching at various levels Lectures demonstrations disshycussion groups films slides models field trips projects and individual and group reports Open to any interested person

Second Session - Three Weeks June 23 to July 11 1958

Credit - 1 2 or 3 hours for 1 2 or 3 weeks

Graduate or Undergraduate This section will be devoted to the

production of teaching aids for conshyservation and to other subjects dependshying upon the needs interests and exshyperiences of the participants Topics covered last year were lizzards wildlife refuges roadside nature study and a suggested guide to teaching conservashytion in the elementary schools Some of the materials developed by the 1958 workshop will probably be used in fushyture issues of The Kansa~ School Nafumlr ist

Several scholarships awarded by varishyous Soil Conservation Districts and other interested onranizations are available to people enrolled in the Workshop Pershysons interested in apniyinQ for a scholarshyhip are ur~ed to contact their local Soil Conservation Service Office There will also be a limited number of scholarships awarded bv the Emporia State Teachers College For additional infOlmation and anplication blanks write C F Gladfelter Kansas State Teachers ColIltgtge Emnoria

Vorkshops in Conservation will also be conducted at Fort Hays State and Sterling College Persons attending these workshops are also eligible for the Soil Conservation District Scholarships

usual stellate hairs which show up so nicely under magnification The flowers are tiny and very inconshyspicuous and are either staminate (male) or pistillate (female) Both flower types however are borne in the same cluster Vhen crushed the plant gives off a very strong odor Other species of Croton are also quite common in Kansas

9 FOUR 0 CLOCK

The four 0 clock is found in waste places roadsides and other disturbed areas throughout the state Though sometimes called a weed it nevertheless is an atshytractive one The upright man~shybranched stems grow to a height of 2-3 feet and bear opposite more or less heart-shaped leaves The floshyering habit is rather unique for 2-3 flowers are borne in a cluster enshyclosed by a 5-10bed involucre or bract Each flower has a bell-shaped calyx colored purplish-pink but no corolla

Following pollination and fertilishyza tion the calyx tube drops off lea vshying the expanded involucre to surshyround and protect the developing fruits and seeds This plant is someshytimes called umbrellawort beshycause of this unusual feature It is closely related to our common garshyden four 0 clock and the exotic tropical vine often seen in our southenl states Bougainvillea

10 CONEFLOWER

The many species of this group all have one thing in common the type of floral structure Each head has a central cone either elongated or rounded of disk flowers and drooping ray flowers around the

base of the cone l o- t t ~ ) cie have vello 1lt1 flomiddoter~ The (0 Ullshy

nar pairie conefiower picturedh re is one of the mo t common p j

and is found ne r ~ hroll ~hou the entire state

11 TO-DFLX

The bright e11o and orange 0

flowers of this attmctin perennial gives rise to its other common name butter-and-eggs The flowers look very much like miniature snapdragshyons except for a rather prominent spur which extends from the lower portion of the corolla Its leaves are long and very narrow growing on a stem about 2 feet tall It is found scattered throughout the state in waste places along roadsides and in cultivated areas

12 BLACK SAMPSON

This rather sinister-sounding name is applied to one of our more attractive composites The long linear leaves are chiefly basal in position and are covered with coarse rough hairs The terminal head of flowers consists of a central cone or mound of brownish-colored disk flowers and a marginal array of purplish-colored ray flowers This stately perennial is found in prairies and meadows nearly throughout the state The Indians used the roots of this plant for medicinal purposes and even today certain tinctures are still prepared from the black Sampson

13 DAYFLOEH

l The chl-flo-er belonps to the 0

same famil - as the familiar spider-wort of earh- spring and the comshymon house plarlL ZCbriila or wandshy

12

ering Jew It is found in waste places along roadsides and alleyshyways and seems to prefer partial shade The small rather inconspicshyuous flowers are actually quite atshytractive upon close examination Of the 3 petals the 2 upper ones are colored blue and the lower white Not a native of the United States since its home is in Asia the dayshyflower is found scattered throughshyout the eastern third of Kansas

14 PRICKLY POppy

An attractive yet formidable species the prickly POPP) is found throughout central and western Kansas in pastures and waste places Its flower is large and showy bearshying 5 rather flimsy white petals The center bears a conspicuous cone of bright yellow stamens Alshythough one may be tempted to gather the flowers for a bouquet this thought is quickly discouraged by the very sharp prickles which cover both leaves and stem Like other members of the poppy family it has a sticky juice or latex

15 ERIOGONUM

This plant is found throughout central and western Kansas and is very drought resistant a characmiddotmiddot teristic imparted by its deep tapshyroot system sparse foliage and whitish pubescence on both stems and leaves In one species the flowshyers are greenish-yellow in another they are white In either case howshyeve thev are very small and unshyattractiv~ The spieading infloresshycences at the top of the plant give it a somewhat flat-topped appearmiddotmiddot ance hence the sometimes-used common name of umbrella plant

16 WILD ROSE

Certainly here we have a plant that could scarcely be mistaken for any other kind Although we have a number of different species in Kansas everyone can recognize them as roses The thorny stems the compound leaves the pink 5shypetaled flower with many stamens and the bright red fruit are all disshytinctive characteristics The fruits or hips as they are called are edshyible and are readily eaten by birds and mammals Wild roses are found throughout the entire state and cershytain of the species are amazingly drough t -resistan t

17 PITCHER CLEMATIS

Of the many different kinds of vines that one is likely to encounter growing on and along roadside fences in eastern Kansas the pitcher clematis is one of the most common It is readily identified by its comshypound leaves (3 to 9 leaflets) and urn-shaped brownish-purple flowshyers borne singly on the ends of long flower stalks This vine might very ell make a handsome addition to the garden and is readily propashygated by seed It does require howshyever a deep rich soil Incidentally this flower has no petals the deep brovnish-purple color being imshyparted by the sepals alone

18 JIMSON WEED

A familiar weed around barnshyyards and feed lots in the eastern half of Kansas the Jimson weed is one of our largest annual species attaining a height of up to 5 feet by the end of the growing season It is eaSily recognized by its thick greenish or purp1ish stems coarsely

14

toothed leaves and large trumpetshylike flowers The white or violet colored flowers open in the evening and emit a rather sweet odor which attracts night-flying moths The enshytire plant is poisonous to animals including man

19 PUNCTURE VINE

The puncture vine is one of our most familiar and occasionallv painful weeds A prostrate pLut which creeps along the surface of the ground it will frequently form a very dense mat in waste places and along roadsides Its fruit is its most conspicuous feature as many a barefoot boy can testify being sharply angled and armed with short pointed spines The flowers borne from July through September are small with 5 separate yellow petals Puncture vine has opposite compound leaves consisting of 10 to 14 leaflets Unfortunately this plant is disseminated rather eaSily and is rapidly becoming a pest in many parts of our country

20 YUCCA

This is a plant familiar to pracshytically everyone in central and western Kansas The large rosette Of bayonet-like evergreen leaves is a very distinctive feature In late May and June the inflorescence bearing large white cup-shaped flowers is produced The life hisshytory of Yucca or soapweed as it is sometimes called is very unusual since pollination and resiIltant proshyduction of seeds is dependent enshytirely upon one species of moth (see page 5 of the October 1955 issue of The Kansas School Natumlshymiddotist) Did you know that the Spanshy

ish bayonet and Joshua tree of southwestern United States were also species of Yucca

2l CINQUEFOIL

We have 11 different species of this plant growing in Kansas but most of them can be recognized by their yellow strawberry-like flower and palmately foliate leaves the number of leaflets usually being 5 Because of this characteristic cinquefOil is sometimes called fiveshyfinger They are found chiefly in the eastern half of Kansas growing in meadows and open woods

22 PRICKLY PEAR (cover picture) Almost everyone knows this

plant our most familiar representashytive of the cactus family A perenshynial and extremely drought-resistshyant the prickly pear is found nearly throughout Kansas though more common in the western half The large yellow flowers are very atshytractive a saving characteristic of most cacti The reddish cIubshyshaped fruits are edible and are occasionally made into candy or ielly The large succulent so-called leaves are in actualitv modified stems specially adapted for water storage The true leaves which are seen only on young shoots are small and narrow During periods of exshytreme drought when nothing else is available ranchers in western Kansas will sometimes singe off the spines of growing prickly pears thus making the plants edible for their cattle The next time vou visit a dry pasture look for a close relative of the prickly pear the smaller and rarer pin cushion Or ball cactus with reddish or yellOWish flowers

15

PRESERVING FLOiVERS School will be out before the

flowers listed in this issue are in bloom Nevertheless ye hope that this issue will aid the teacher and student alike in learning to identify some of our common summer wildshyflowers Dming these vacation months the teacher does many things in preparing for school A good project would be to identify collect press and mount some of the summer flOers for use during the school year

In collecting plants for pressing and mounting one must remember to get as much of the plant as posshysible Of course if the plant is large it is not practical to coHect all of it In that case get enough of the root to show its type enough of the stem and leaves to show their charshyacteristics and of course be sure to get the flower

To press these plants place them in a folded sheet of newspaper and evenly apply pressure It is possible to press more than one plant at the same time but several sheets of papers should be placed between speciments to absorb the moisture These papers must be changed daily in order to dry the plants quickly and large roots should be split lengthwise to facilitate drying Too much heat will brown the plants so do not place them in an oven

The pressure necessary for pressshying these plants can be supplied in a number of ways such as using books rocks or any other heavy obshyject A good plant press can easily be constructed from the sides of an apple or orange crate The plants and their newspapers are placed on

one of the boards and then the other board is placed on top By using a strap at each end of the press the boards can be drawn tightly toshygether and the plants will be evenshyly and neatly pressed

The dried plants should be mounted on good stiff white paper Notebook size is fine but a larger size is better if it is available The plants may be glued to the paper or attached with small strips of transparent tape Mice and insects will eat these dried plants so they should be kept in boxes containing moth balls It is a good idea to spray the pressed specimens occasionally with a bug bomb Students will enshyjoy building a collection of pressed plants and projects such as this will add interest to the school science table

ABOUT THIS ISSUE Most of this issue of The Kansas

School Natumlist was prepared by Dr G A Leisman of the E-State Biology Department The article on preserving flowers was written by Mr Homer Stephens of the Forshyestry Fish and Game Commission This is the third issue of a series dealing with some of the wildshyflowers of Kansas Fall Wildshyflowers (Oct 1955) and Spring Wildflowers (Feb 1956) the other two issues of this series are now out of print and therefore are no longer available

AUDUBON SCREEN TOURS The Biology Department of the

Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia will present another Screen Tour Series next year

16

ANSWERS TO FOOD QUIZ (page 5)

1 Lima beans are large seeds 2 Broccoli actuallv com bines two

two parts of tbe plant the stem and many unexpanded flower buds

middot3 The Irish potao is a tuber or special kind of underground stem

4 Sweet potatoes are true roots 5 Three cheers if you get this

one A head of cauliflower is nothing more than a large mass of undeveloped flowers

6 A celery stalk is a large and fleshv petiole or leaf stalk

7 Peas like beans are nothing more than seeds

8 This is easy A carrot is of course a root

9 Each head of brussel sprouts represents a miniature strucshyture like a cabbage bead In either case they are nothing more than leafy buds

10 One of our familiar vegeshytables the tomato is actually a fruit

If you got more than 7 right you know vour onions ( these are bulbs) Congratulations

LIGHT AND TIME Everyone has noticed that light comes

through a window but you may not realshyize that this light can be used to tell the time of day Select a window on the sunny side of the building and paste on the glass a piece of paper abou t the size of a half dollar See where the shadow of this spot is on the fiool or perhaps on the opposite wall Mark the place where the shadow is at say 830 A M Mark it again at 900 A M and at intervals for several hOUlmiddotS Notice next day whether the shadows are a t the same places at the same times Does this provide you with a clock Does this sun clock keep pace with the room clock A record kept through the school year will provide the answers to these and many other questions

THE 1958 WORKSHOP IN CONSERVATION

First Section - Three Weeks June 2 to June 20 1958

Credit - three semester hours Graduate or Undergraduate

vVater soil grassland and vvildlife conservation with emphasis throughout on conservation education Such topics as geography and climate of Kansas wltlter resources soil erosion problems and control grass as a resource bird banding wildflowers of Kansas conservation cJubs and conservation teaching at various levels Lectures demonstrations disshycussion groups films slides models field trips projects and individual and group reports Open to any interested person

Second Session - Three Weeks June 23 to July 11 1958

Credit - 1 2 or 3 hours for 1 2 or 3 weeks

Graduate or Undergraduate This section will be devoted to the

production of teaching aids for conshyservation and to other subjects dependshying upon the needs interests and exshyperiences of the participants Topics covered last year were lizzards wildlife refuges roadside nature study and a suggested guide to teaching conservashytion in the elementary schools Some of the materials developed by the 1958 workshop will probably be used in fushyture issues of The Kansa~ School Nafumlr ist

Several scholarships awarded by varishyous Soil Conservation Districts and other interested onranizations are available to people enrolled in the Workshop Pershysons interested in apniyinQ for a scholarshyhip are ur~ed to contact their local Soil Conservation Service Office There will also be a limited number of scholarships awarded bv the Emporia State Teachers College For additional infOlmation and anplication blanks write C F Gladfelter Kansas State Teachers ColIltgtge Emnoria

Vorkshops in Conservation will also be conducted at Fort Hays State and Sterling College Persons attending these workshops are also eligible for the Soil Conservation District Scholarships

base of the cone l o- t t ~ ) cie have vello 1lt1 flomiddoter~ The (0 Ullshy

nar pairie conefiower picturedh re is one of the mo t common p j

and is found ne r ~ hroll ~hou the entire state

11 TO-DFLX

The bright e11o and orange 0

flowers of this attmctin perennial gives rise to its other common name butter-and-eggs The flowers look very much like miniature snapdragshyons except for a rather prominent spur which extends from the lower portion of the corolla Its leaves are long and very narrow growing on a stem about 2 feet tall It is found scattered throughout the state in waste places along roadsides and in cultivated areas

12 BLACK SAMPSON

This rather sinister-sounding name is applied to one of our more attractive composites The long linear leaves are chiefly basal in position and are covered with coarse rough hairs The terminal head of flowers consists of a central cone or mound of brownish-colored disk flowers and a marginal array of purplish-colored ray flowers This stately perennial is found in prairies and meadows nearly throughout the state The Indians used the roots of this plant for medicinal purposes and even today certain tinctures are still prepared from the black Sampson

13 DAYFLOEH

l The chl-flo-er belonps to the 0

same famil - as the familiar spider-wort of earh- spring and the comshymon house plarlL ZCbriila or wandshy

12

ering Jew It is found in waste places along roadsides and alleyshyways and seems to prefer partial shade The small rather inconspicshyuous flowers are actually quite atshytractive upon close examination Of the 3 petals the 2 upper ones are colored blue and the lower white Not a native of the United States since its home is in Asia the dayshyflower is found scattered throughshyout the eastern third of Kansas

14 PRICKLY POppy

An attractive yet formidable species the prickly POPP) is found throughout central and western Kansas in pastures and waste places Its flower is large and showy bearshying 5 rather flimsy white petals The center bears a conspicuous cone of bright yellow stamens Alshythough one may be tempted to gather the flowers for a bouquet this thought is quickly discouraged by the very sharp prickles which cover both leaves and stem Like other members of the poppy family it has a sticky juice or latex

15 ERIOGONUM

This plant is found throughout central and western Kansas and is very drought resistant a characmiddotmiddot teristic imparted by its deep tapshyroot system sparse foliage and whitish pubescence on both stems and leaves In one species the flowshyers are greenish-yellow in another they are white In either case howshyeve thev are very small and unshyattractiv~ The spieading infloresshycences at the top of the plant give it a somewhat flat-topped appearmiddotmiddot ance hence the sometimes-used common name of umbrella plant

16 WILD ROSE

Certainly here we have a plant that could scarcely be mistaken for any other kind Although we have a number of different species in Kansas everyone can recognize them as roses The thorny stems the compound leaves the pink 5shypetaled flower with many stamens and the bright red fruit are all disshytinctive characteristics The fruits or hips as they are called are edshyible and are readily eaten by birds and mammals Wild roses are found throughout the entire state and cershytain of the species are amazingly drough t -resistan t

17 PITCHER CLEMATIS

Of the many different kinds of vines that one is likely to encounter growing on and along roadside fences in eastern Kansas the pitcher clematis is one of the most common It is readily identified by its comshypound leaves (3 to 9 leaflets) and urn-shaped brownish-purple flowshyers borne singly on the ends of long flower stalks This vine might very ell make a handsome addition to the garden and is readily propashygated by seed It does require howshyever a deep rich soil Incidentally this flower has no petals the deep brovnish-purple color being imshyparted by the sepals alone

18 JIMSON WEED

A familiar weed around barnshyyards and feed lots in the eastern half of Kansas the Jimson weed is one of our largest annual species attaining a height of up to 5 feet by the end of the growing season It is eaSily recognized by its thick greenish or purp1ish stems coarsely

14

toothed leaves and large trumpetshylike flowers The white or violet colored flowers open in the evening and emit a rather sweet odor which attracts night-flying moths The enshytire plant is poisonous to animals including man

19 PUNCTURE VINE

The puncture vine is one of our most familiar and occasionallv painful weeds A prostrate pLut which creeps along the surface of the ground it will frequently form a very dense mat in waste places and along roadsides Its fruit is its most conspicuous feature as many a barefoot boy can testify being sharply angled and armed with short pointed spines The flowers borne from July through September are small with 5 separate yellow petals Puncture vine has opposite compound leaves consisting of 10 to 14 leaflets Unfortunately this plant is disseminated rather eaSily and is rapidly becoming a pest in many parts of our country

20 YUCCA

This is a plant familiar to pracshytically everyone in central and western Kansas The large rosette Of bayonet-like evergreen leaves is a very distinctive feature In late May and June the inflorescence bearing large white cup-shaped flowers is produced The life hisshytory of Yucca or soapweed as it is sometimes called is very unusual since pollination and resiIltant proshyduction of seeds is dependent enshytirely upon one species of moth (see page 5 of the October 1955 issue of The Kansas School Natumlshymiddotist) Did you know that the Spanshy

ish bayonet and Joshua tree of southwestern United States were also species of Yucca

2l CINQUEFOIL

We have 11 different species of this plant growing in Kansas but most of them can be recognized by their yellow strawberry-like flower and palmately foliate leaves the number of leaflets usually being 5 Because of this characteristic cinquefOil is sometimes called fiveshyfinger They are found chiefly in the eastern half of Kansas growing in meadows and open woods

22 PRICKLY PEAR (cover picture) Almost everyone knows this

plant our most familiar representashytive of the cactus family A perenshynial and extremely drought-resistshyant the prickly pear is found nearly throughout Kansas though more common in the western half The large yellow flowers are very atshytractive a saving characteristic of most cacti The reddish cIubshyshaped fruits are edible and are occasionally made into candy or ielly The large succulent so-called leaves are in actualitv modified stems specially adapted for water storage The true leaves which are seen only on young shoots are small and narrow During periods of exshytreme drought when nothing else is available ranchers in western Kansas will sometimes singe off the spines of growing prickly pears thus making the plants edible for their cattle The next time vou visit a dry pasture look for a close relative of the prickly pear the smaller and rarer pin cushion Or ball cactus with reddish or yellOWish flowers

15

PRESERVING FLOiVERS School will be out before the

flowers listed in this issue are in bloom Nevertheless ye hope that this issue will aid the teacher and student alike in learning to identify some of our common summer wildshyflowers Dming these vacation months the teacher does many things in preparing for school A good project would be to identify collect press and mount some of the summer flOers for use during the school year

In collecting plants for pressing and mounting one must remember to get as much of the plant as posshysible Of course if the plant is large it is not practical to coHect all of it In that case get enough of the root to show its type enough of the stem and leaves to show their charshyacteristics and of course be sure to get the flower

To press these plants place them in a folded sheet of newspaper and evenly apply pressure It is possible to press more than one plant at the same time but several sheets of papers should be placed between speciments to absorb the moisture These papers must be changed daily in order to dry the plants quickly and large roots should be split lengthwise to facilitate drying Too much heat will brown the plants so do not place them in an oven

The pressure necessary for pressshying these plants can be supplied in a number of ways such as using books rocks or any other heavy obshyject A good plant press can easily be constructed from the sides of an apple or orange crate The plants and their newspapers are placed on

one of the boards and then the other board is placed on top By using a strap at each end of the press the boards can be drawn tightly toshygether and the plants will be evenshyly and neatly pressed

The dried plants should be mounted on good stiff white paper Notebook size is fine but a larger size is better if it is available The plants may be glued to the paper or attached with small strips of transparent tape Mice and insects will eat these dried plants so they should be kept in boxes containing moth balls It is a good idea to spray the pressed specimens occasionally with a bug bomb Students will enshyjoy building a collection of pressed plants and projects such as this will add interest to the school science table

ABOUT THIS ISSUE Most of this issue of The Kansas

School Natumlist was prepared by Dr G A Leisman of the E-State Biology Department The article on preserving flowers was written by Mr Homer Stephens of the Forshyestry Fish and Game Commission This is the third issue of a series dealing with some of the wildshyflowers of Kansas Fall Wildshyflowers (Oct 1955) and Spring Wildflowers (Feb 1956) the other two issues of this series are now out of print and therefore are no longer available

AUDUBON SCREEN TOURS The Biology Department of the

Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia will present another Screen Tour Series next year

16

ANSWERS TO FOOD QUIZ (page 5)

1 Lima beans are large seeds 2 Broccoli actuallv com bines two

two parts of tbe plant the stem and many unexpanded flower buds

middot3 The Irish potao is a tuber or special kind of underground stem

4 Sweet potatoes are true roots 5 Three cheers if you get this

one A head of cauliflower is nothing more than a large mass of undeveloped flowers

6 A celery stalk is a large and fleshv petiole or leaf stalk

7 Peas like beans are nothing more than seeds

8 This is easy A carrot is of course a root

9 Each head of brussel sprouts represents a miniature strucshyture like a cabbage bead In either case they are nothing more than leafy buds

10 One of our familiar vegeshytables the tomato is actually a fruit

If you got more than 7 right you know vour onions ( these are bulbs) Congratulations

LIGHT AND TIME Everyone has noticed that light comes

through a window but you may not realshyize that this light can be used to tell the time of day Select a window on the sunny side of the building and paste on the glass a piece of paper abou t the size of a half dollar See where the shadow of this spot is on the fiool or perhaps on the opposite wall Mark the place where the shadow is at say 830 A M Mark it again at 900 A M and at intervals for several hOUlmiddotS Notice next day whether the shadows are a t the same places at the same times Does this provide you with a clock Does this sun clock keep pace with the room clock A record kept through the school year will provide the answers to these and many other questions

THE 1958 WORKSHOP IN CONSERVATION

First Section - Three Weeks June 2 to June 20 1958

Credit - three semester hours Graduate or Undergraduate

vVater soil grassland and vvildlife conservation with emphasis throughout on conservation education Such topics as geography and climate of Kansas wltlter resources soil erosion problems and control grass as a resource bird banding wildflowers of Kansas conservation cJubs and conservation teaching at various levels Lectures demonstrations disshycussion groups films slides models field trips projects and individual and group reports Open to any interested person

Second Session - Three Weeks June 23 to July 11 1958

Credit - 1 2 or 3 hours for 1 2 or 3 weeks

Graduate or Undergraduate This section will be devoted to the

production of teaching aids for conshyservation and to other subjects dependshying upon the needs interests and exshyperiences of the participants Topics covered last year were lizzards wildlife refuges roadside nature study and a suggested guide to teaching conservashytion in the elementary schools Some of the materials developed by the 1958 workshop will probably be used in fushyture issues of The Kansa~ School Nafumlr ist

Several scholarships awarded by varishyous Soil Conservation Districts and other interested onranizations are available to people enrolled in the Workshop Pershysons interested in apniyinQ for a scholarshyhip are ur~ed to contact their local Soil Conservation Service Office There will also be a limited number of scholarships awarded bv the Emporia State Teachers College For additional infOlmation and anplication blanks write C F Gladfelter Kansas State Teachers ColIltgtge Emnoria

Vorkshops in Conservation will also be conducted at Fort Hays State and Sterling College Persons attending these workshops are also eligible for the Soil Conservation District Scholarships

12

ering Jew It is found in waste places along roadsides and alleyshyways and seems to prefer partial shade The small rather inconspicshyuous flowers are actually quite atshytractive upon close examination Of the 3 petals the 2 upper ones are colored blue and the lower white Not a native of the United States since its home is in Asia the dayshyflower is found scattered throughshyout the eastern third of Kansas

14 PRICKLY POppy

An attractive yet formidable species the prickly POPP) is found throughout central and western Kansas in pastures and waste places Its flower is large and showy bearshying 5 rather flimsy white petals The center bears a conspicuous cone of bright yellow stamens Alshythough one may be tempted to gather the flowers for a bouquet this thought is quickly discouraged by the very sharp prickles which cover both leaves and stem Like other members of the poppy family it has a sticky juice or latex

15 ERIOGONUM

This plant is found throughout central and western Kansas and is very drought resistant a characmiddotmiddot teristic imparted by its deep tapshyroot system sparse foliage and whitish pubescence on both stems and leaves In one species the flowshyers are greenish-yellow in another they are white In either case howshyeve thev are very small and unshyattractiv~ The spieading infloresshycences at the top of the plant give it a somewhat flat-topped appearmiddotmiddot ance hence the sometimes-used common name of umbrella plant

16 WILD ROSE

Certainly here we have a plant that could scarcely be mistaken for any other kind Although we have a number of different species in Kansas everyone can recognize them as roses The thorny stems the compound leaves the pink 5shypetaled flower with many stamens and the bright red fruit are all disshytinctive characteristics The fruits or hips as they are called are edshyible and are readily eaten by birds and mammals Wild roses are found throughout the entire state and cershytain of the species are amazingly drough t -resistan t

17 PITCHER CLEMATIS

Of the many different kinds of vines that one is likely to encounter growing on and along roadside fences in eastern Kansas the pitcher clematis is one of the most common It is readily identified by its comshypound leaves (3 to 9 leaflets) and urn-shaped brownish-purple flowshyers borne singly on the ends of long flower stalks This vine might very ell make a handsome addition to the garden and is readily propashygated by seed It does require howshyever a deep rich soil Incidentally this flower has no petals the deep brovnish-purple color being imshyparted by the sepals alone

18 JIMSON WEED

A familiar weed around barnshyyards and feed lots in the eastern half of Kansas the Jimson weed is one of our largest annual species attaining a height of up to 5 feet by the end of the growing season It is eaSily recognized by its thick greenish or purp1ish stems coarsely

14

toothed leaves and large trumpetshylike flowers The white or violet colored flowers open in the evening and emit a rather sweet odor which attracts night-flying moths The enshytire plant is poisonous to animals including man

19 PUNCTURE VINE

The puncture vine is one of our most familiar and occasionallv painful weeds A prostrate pLut which creeps along the surface of the ground it will frequently form a very dense mat in waste places and along roadsides Its fruit is its most conspicuous feature as many a barefoot boy can testify being sharply angled and armed with short pointed spines The flowers borne from July through September are small with 5 separate yellow petals Puncture vine has opposite compound leaves consisting of 10 to 14 leaflets Unfortunately this plant is disseminated rather eaSily and is rapidly becoming a pest in many parts of our country

20 YUCCA

This is a plant familiar to pracshytically everyone in central and western Kansas The large rosette Of bayonet-like evergreen leaves is a very distinctive feature In late May and June the inflorescence bearing large white cup-shaped flowers is produced The life hisshytory of Yucca or soapweed as it is sometimes called is very unusual since pollination and resiIltant proshyduction of seeds is dependent enshytirely upon one species of moth (see page 5 of the October 1955 issue of The Kansas School Natumlshymiddotist) Did you know that the Spanshy

ish bayonet and Joshua tree of southwestern United States were also species of Yucca

2l CINQUEFOIL

We have 11 different species of this plant growing in Kansas but most of them can be recognized by their yellow strawberry-like flower and palmately foliate leaves the number of leaflets usually being 5 Because of this characteristic cinquefOil is sometimes called fiveshyfinger They are found chiefly in the eastern half of Kansas growing in meadows and open woods

22 PRICKLY PEAR (cover picture) Almost everyone knows this

plant our most familiar representashytive of the cactus family A perenshynial and extremely drought-resistshyant the prickly pear is found nearly throughout Kansas though more common in the western half The large yellow flowers are very atshytractive a saving characteristic of most cacti The reddish cIubshyshaped fruits are edible and are occasionally made into candy or ielly The large succulent so-called leaves are in actualitv modified stems specially adapted for water storage The true leaves which are seen only on young shoots are small and narrow During periods of exshytreme drought when nothing else is available ranchers in western Kansas will sometimes singe off the spines of growing prickly pears thus making the plants edible for their cattle The next time vou visit a dry pasture look for a close relative of the prickly pear the smaller and rarer pin cushion Or ball cactus with reddish or yellOWish flowers

15

PRESERVING FLOiVERS School will be out before the

flowers listed in this issue are in bloom Nevertheless ye hope that this issue will aid the teacher and student alike in learning to identify some of our common summer wildshyflowers Dming these vacation months the teacher does many things in preparing for school A good project would be to identify collect press and mount some of the summer flOers for use during the school year

In collecting plants for pressing and mounting one must remember to get as much of the plant as posshysible Of course if the plant is large it is not practical to coHect all of it In that case get enough of the root to show its type enough of the stem and leaves to show their charshyacteristics and of course be sure to get the flower

To press these plants place them in a folded sheet of newspaper and evenly apply pressure It is possible to press more than one plant at the same time but several sheets of papers should be placed between speciments to absorb the moisture These papers must be changed daily in order to dry the plants quickly and large roots should be split lengthwise to facilitate drying Too much heat will brown the plants so do not place them in an oven

The pressure necessary for pressshying these plants can be supplied in a number of ways such as using books rocks or any other heavy obshyject A good plant press can easily be constructed from the sides of an apple or orange crate The plants and their newspapers are placed on

one of the boards and then the other board is placed on top By using a strap at each end of the press the boards can be drawn tightly toshygether and the plants will be evenshyly and neatly pressed

The dried plants should be mounted on good stiff white paper Notebook size is fine but a larger size is better if it is available The plants may be glued to the paper or attached with small strips of transparent tape Mice and insects will eat these dried plants so they should be kept in boxes containing moth balls It is a good idea to spray the pressed specimens occasionally with a bug bomb Students will enshyjoy building a collection of pressed plants and projects such as this will add interest to the school science table

ABOUT THIS ISSUE Most of this issue of The Kansas

School Natumlist was prepared by Dr G A Leisman of the E-State Biology Department The article on preserving flowers was written by Mr Homer Stephens of the Forshyestry Fish and Game Commission This is the third issue of a series dealing with some of the wildshyflowers of Kansas Fall Wildshyflowers (Oct 1955) and Spring Wildflowers (Feb 1956) the other two issues of this series are now out of print and therefore are no longer available

AUDUBON SCREEN TOURS The Biology Department of the

Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia will present another Screen Tour Series next year

16

ANSWERS TO FOOD QUIZ (page 5)

1 Lima beans are large seeds 2 Broccoli actuallv com bines two

two parts of tbe plant the stem and many unexpanded flower buds

middot3 The Irish potao is a tuber or special kind of underground stem

4 Sweet potatoes are true roots 5 Three cheers if you get this

one A head of cauliflower is nothing more than a large mass of undeveloped flowers

6 A celery stalk is a large and fleshv petiole or leaf stalk

7 Peas like beans are nothing more than seeds

8 This is easy A carrot is of course a root

9 Each head of brussel sprouts represents a miniature strucshyture like a cabbage bead In either case they are nothing more than leafy buds

10 One of our familiar vegeshytables the tomato is actually a fruit

If you got more than 7 right you know vour onions ( these are bulbs) Congratulations

LIGHT AND TIME Everyone has noticed that light comes

through a window but you may not realshyize that this light can be used to tell the time of day Select a window on the sunny side of the building and paste on the glass a piece of paper abou t the size of a half dollar See where the shadow of this spot is on the fiool or perhaps on the opposite wall Mark the place where the shadow is at say 830 A M Mark it again at 900 A M and at intervals for several hOUlmiddotS Notice next day whether the shadows are a t the same places at the same times Does this provide you with a clock Does this sun clock keep pace with the room clock A record kept through the school year will provide the answers to these and many other questions

THE 1958 WORKSHOP IN CONSERVATION

First Section - Three Weeks June 2 to June 20 1958

Credit - three semester hours Graduate or Undergraduate

vVater soil grassland and vvildlife conservation with emphasis throughout on conservation education Such topics as geography and climate of Kansas wltlter resources soil erosion problems and control grass as a resource bird banding wildflowers of Kansas conservation cJubs and conservation teaching at various levels Lectures demonstrations disshycussion groups films slides models field trips projects and individual and group reports Open to any interested person

Second Session - Three Weeks June 23 to July 11 1958

Credit - 1 2 or 3 hours for 1 2 or 3 weeks

Graduate or Undergraduate This section will be devoted to the

production of teaching aids for conshyservation and to other subjects dependshying upon the needs interests and exshyperiences of the participants Topics covered last year were lizzards wildlife refuges roadside nature study and a suggested guide to teaching conservashytion in the elementary schools Some of the materials developed by the 1958 workshop will probably be used in fushyture issues of The Kansa~ School Nafumlr ist

Several scholarships awarded by varishyous Soil Conservation Districts and other interested onranizations are available to people enrolled in the Workshop Pershysons interested in apniyinQ for a scholarshyhip are ur~ed to contact their local Soil Conservation Service Office There will also be a limited number of scholarships awarded bv the Emporia State Teachers College For additional infOlmation and anplication blanks write C F Gladfelter Kansas State Teachers ColIltgtge Emnoria

Vorkshops in Conservation will also be conducted at Fort Hays State and Sterling College Persons attending these workshops are also eligible for the Soil Conservation District Scholarships

14

toothed leaves and large trumpetshylike flowers The white or violet colored flowers open in the evening and emit a rather sweet odor which attracts night-flying moths The enshytire plant is poisonous to animals including man

19 PUNCTURE VINE

The puncture vine is one of our most familiar and occasionallv painful weeds A prostrate pLut which creeps along the surface of the ground it will frequently form a very dense mat in waste places and along roadsides Its fruit is its most conspicuous feature as many a barefoot boy can testify being sharply angled and armed with short pointed spines The flowers borne from July through September are small with 5 separate yellow petals Puncture vine has opposite compound leaves consisting of 10 to 14 leaflets Unfortunately this plant is disseminated rather eaSily and is rapidly becoming a pest in many parts of our country

20 YUCCA

This is a plant familiar to pracshytically everyone in central and western Kansas The large rosette Of bayonet-like evergreen leaves is a very distinctive feature In late May and June the inflorescence bearing large white cup-shaped flowers is produced The life hisshytory of Yucca or soapweed as it is sometimes called is very unusual since pollination and resiIltant proshyduction of seeds is dependent enshytirely upon one species of moth (see page 5 of the October 1955 issue of The Kansas School Natumlshymiddotist) Did you know that the Spanshy

ish bayonet and Joshua tree of southwestern United States were also species of Yucca

2l CINQUEFOIL

We have 11 different species of this plant growing in Kansas but most of them can be recognized by their yellow strawberry-like flower and palmately foliate leaves the number of leaflets usually being 5 Because of this characteristic cinquefOil is sometimes called fiveshyfinger They are found chiefly in the eastern half of Kansas growing in meadows and open woods

22 PRICKLY PEAR (cover picture) Almost everyone knows this

plant our most familiar representashytive of the cactus family A perenshynial and extremely drought-resistshyant the prickly pear is found nearly throughout Kansas though more common in the western half The large yellow flowers are very atshytractive a saving characteristic of most cacti The reddish cIubshyshaped fruits are edible and are occasionally made into candy or ielly The large succulent so-called leaves are in actualitv modified stems specially adapted for water storage The true leaves which are seen only on young shoots are small and narrow During periods of exshytreme drought when nothing else is available ranchers in western Kansas will sometimes singe off the spines of growing prickly pears thus making the plants edible for their cattle The next time vou visit a dry pasture look for a close relative of the prickly pear the smaller and rarer pin cushion Or ball cactus with reddish or yellOWish flowers

15

PRESERVING FLOiVERS School will be out before the

flowers listed in this issue are in bloom Nevertheless ye hope that this issue will aid the teacher and student alike in learning to identify some of our common summer wildshyflowers Dming these vacation months the teacher does many things in preparing for school A good project would be to identify collect press and mount some of the summer flOers for use during the school year

In collecting plants for pressing and mounting one must remember to get as much of the plant as posshysible Of course if the plant is large it is not practical to coHect all of it In that case get enough of the root to show its type enough of the stem and leaves to show their charshyacteristics and of course be sure to get the flower

To press these plants place them in a folded sheet of newspaper and evenly apply pressure It is possible to press more than one plant at the same time but several sheets of papers should be placed between speciments to absorb the moisture These papers must be changed daily in order to dry the plants quickly and large roots should be split lengthwise to facilitate drying Too much heat will brown the plants so do not place them in an oven

The pressure necessary for pressshying these plants can be supplied in a number of ways such as using books rocks or any other heavy obshyject A good plant press can easily be constructed from the sides of an apple or orange crate The plants and their newspapers are placed on

one of the boards and then the other board is placed on top By using a strap at each end of the press the boards can be drawn tightly toshygether and the plants will be evenshyly and neatly pressed

The dried plants should be mounted on good stiff white paper Notebook size is fine but a larger size is better if it is available The plants may be glued to the paper or attached with small strips of transparent tape Mice and insects will eat these dried plants so they should be kept in boxes containing moth balls It is a good idea to spray the pressed specimens occasionally with a bug bomb Students will enshyjoy building a collection of pressed plants and projects such as this will add interest to the school science table

ABOUT THIS ISSUE Most of this issue of The Kansas

School Natumlist was prepared by Dr G A Leisman of the E-State Biology Department The article on preserving flowers was written by Mr Homer Stephens of the Forshyestry Fish and Game Commission This is the third issue of a series dealing with some of the wildshyflowers of Kansas Fall Wildshyflowers (Oct 1955) and Spring Wildflowers (Feb 1956) the other two issues of this series are now out of print and therefore are no longer available

AUDUBON SCREEN TOURS The Biology Department of the

Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia will present another Screen Tour Series next year

16

ANSWERS TO FOOD QUIZ (page 5)

1 Lima beans are large seeds 2 Broccoli actuallv com bines two

two parts of tbe plant the stem and many unexpanded flower buds

middot3 The Irish potao is a tuber or special kind of underground stem

4 Sweet potatoes are true roots 5 Three cheers if you get this

one A head of cauliflower is nothing more than a large mass of undeveloped flowers

6 A celery stalk is a large and fleshv petiole or leaf stalk

7 Peas like beans are nothing more than seeds

8 This is easy A carrot is of course a root

9 Each head of brussel sprouts represents a miniature strucshyture like a cabbage bead In either case they are nothing more than leafy buds

10 One of our familiar vegeshytables the tomato is actually a fruit

If you got more than 7 right you know vour onions ( these are bulbs) Congratulations

LIGHT AND TIME Everyone has noticed that light comes

through a window but you may not realshyize that this light can be used to tell the time of day Select a window on the sunny side of the building and paste on the glass a piece of paper abou t the size of a half dollar See where the shadow of this spot is on the fiool or perhaps on the opposite wall Mark the place where the shadow is at say 830 A M Mark it again at 900 A M and at intervals for several hOUlmiddotS Notice next day whether the shadows are a t the same places at the same times Does this provide you with a clock Does this sun clock keep pace with the room clock A record kept through the school year will provide the answers to these and many other questions

THE 1958 WORKSHOP IN CONSERVATION

First Section - Three Weeks June 2 to June 20 1958

Credit - three semester hours Graduate or Undergraduate

vVater soil grassland and vvildlife conservation with emphasis throughout on conservation education Such topics as geography and climate of Kansas wltlter resources soil erosion problems and control grass as a resource bird banding wildflowers of Kansas conservation cJubs and conservation teaching at various levels Lectures demonstrations disshycussion groups films slides models field trips projects and individual and group reports Open to any interested person

Second Session - Three Weeks June 23 to July 11 1958

Credit - 1 2 or 3 hours for 1 2 or 3 weeks

Graduate or Undergraduate This section will be devoted to the

production of teaching aids for conshyservation and to other subjects dependshying upon the needs interests and exshyperiences of the participants Topics covered last year were lizzards wildlife refuges roadside nature study and a suggested guide to teaching conservashytion in the elementary schools Some of the materials developed by the 1958 workshop will probably be used in fushyture issues of The Kansa~ School Nafumlr ist

Several scholarships awarded by varishyous Soil Conservation Districts and other interested onranizations are available to people enrolled in the Workshop Pershysons interested in apniyinQ for a scholarshyhip are ur~ed to contact their local Soil Conservation Service Office There will also be a limited number of scholarships awarded bv the Emporia State Teachers College For additional infOlmation and anplication blanks write C F Gladfelter Kansas State Teachers ColIltgtge Emnoria

Vorkshops in Conservation will also be conducted at Fort Hays State and Sterling College Persons attending these workshops are also eligible for the Soil Conservation District Scholarships

15

PRESERVING FLOiVERS School will be out before the

flowers listed in this issue are in bloom Nevertheless ye hope that this issue will aid the teacher and student alike in learning to identify some of our common summer wildshyflowers Dming these vacation months the teacher does many things in preparing for school A good project would be to identify collect press and mount some of the summer flOers for use during the school year

In collecting plants for pressing and mounting one must remember to get as much of the plant as posshysible Of course if the plant is large it is not practical to coHect all of it In that case get enough of the root to show its type enough of the stem and leaves to show their charshyacteristics and of course be sure to get the flower

To press these plants place them in a folded sheet of newspaper and evenly apply pressure It is possible to press more than one plant at the same time but several sheets of papers should be placed between speciments to absorb the moisture These papers must be changed daily in order to dry the plants quickly and large roots should be split lengthwise to facilitate drying Too much heat will brown the plants so do not place them in an oven

The pressure necessary for pressshying these plants can be supplied in a number of ways such as using books rocks or any other heavy obshyject A good plant press can easily be constructed from the sides of an apple or orange crate The plants and their newspapers are placed on

one of the boards and then the other board is placed on top By using a strap at each end of the press the boards can be drawn tightly toshygether and the plants will be evenshyly and neatly pressed

The dried plants should be mounted on good stiff white paper Notebook size is fine but a larger size is better if it is available The plants may be glued to the paper or attached with small strips of transparent tape Mice and insects will eat these dried plants so they should be kept in boxes containing moth balls It is a good idea to spray the pressed specimens occasionally with a bug bomb Students will enshyjoy building a collection of pressed plants and projects such as this will add interest to the school science table

ABOUT THIS ISSUE Most of this issue of The Kansas

School Natumlist was prepared by Dr G A Leisman of the E-State Biology Department The article on preserving flowers was written by Mr Homer Stephens of the Forshyestry Fish and Game Commission This is the third issue of a series dealing with some of the wildshyflowers of Kansas Fall Wildshyflowers (Oct 1955) and Spring Wildflowers (Feb 1956) the other two issues of this series are now out of print and therefore are no longer available

AUDUBON SCREEN TOURS The Biology Department of the

Kansas State Teachers College in Emporia will present another Screen Tour Series next year

16

ANSWERS TO FOOD QUIZ (page 5)

1 Lima beans are large seeds 2 Broccoli actuallv com bines two

two parts of tbe plant the stem and many unexpanded flower buds

middot3 The Irish potao is a tuber or special kind of underground stem

4 Sweet potatoes are true roots 5 Three cheers if you get this

one A head of cauliflower is nothing more than a large mass of undeveloped flowers

6 A celery stalk is a large and fleshv petiole or leaf stalk

7 Peas like beans are nothing more than seeds

8 This is easy A carrot is of course a root

9 Each head of brussel sprouts represents a miniature strucshyture like a cabbage bead In either case they are nothing more than leafy buds

10 One of our familiar vegeshytables the tomato is actually a fruit

If you got more than 7 right you know vour onions ( these are bulbs) Congratulations

LIGHT AND TIME Everyone has noticed that light comes

through a window but you may not realshyize that this light can be used to tell the time of day Select a window on the sunny side of the building and paste on the glass a piece of paper abou t the size of a half dollar See where the shadow of this spot is on the fiool or perhaps on the opposite wall Mark the place where the shadow is at say 830 A M Mark it again at 900 A M and at intervals for several hOUlmiddotS Notice next day whether the shadows are a t the same places at the same times Does this provide you with a clock Does this sun clock keep pace with the room clock A record kept through the school year will provide the answers to these and many other questions

THE 1958 WORKSHOP IN CONSERVATION

First Section - Three Weeks June 2 to June 20 1958

Credit - three semester hours Graduate or Undergraduate

vVater soil grassland and vvildlife conservation with emphasis throughout on conservation education Such topics as geography and climate of Kansas wltlter resources soil erosion problems and control grass as a resource bird banding wildflowers of Kansas conservation cJubs and conservation teaching at various levels Lectures demonstrations disshycussion groups films slides models field trips projects and individual and group reports Open to any interested person

Second Session - Three Weeks June 23 to July 11 1958

Credit - 1 2 or 3 hours for 1 2 or 3 weeks

Graduate or Undergraduate This section will be devoted to the

production of teaching aids for conshyservation and to other subjects dependshying upon the needs interests and exshyperiences of the participants Topics covered last year were lizzards wildlife refuges roadside nature study and a suggested guide to teaching conservashytion in the elementary schools Some of the materials developed by the 1958 workshop will probably be used in fushyture issues of The Kansa~ School Nafumlr ist

Several scholarships awarded by varishyous Soil Conservation Districts and other interested onranizations are available to people enrolled in the Workshop Pershysons interested in apniyinQ for a scholarshyhip are ur~ed to contact their local Soil Conservation Service Office There will also be a limited number of scholarships awarded bv the Emporia State Teachers College For additional infOlmation and anplication blanks write C F Gladfelter Kansas State Teachers ColIltgtge Emnoria

Vorkshops in Conservation will also be conducted at Fort Hays State and Sterling College Persons attending these workshops are also eligible for the Soil Conservation District Scholarships

16

ANSWERS TO FOOD QUIZ (page 5)

1 Lima beans are large seeds 2 Broccoli actuallv com bines two

two parts of tbe plant the stem and many unexpanded flower buds

middot3 The Irish potao is a tuber or special kind of underground stem

4 Sweet potatoes are true roots 5 Three cheers if you get this

one A head of cauliflower is nothing more than a large mass of undeveloped flowers

6 A celery stalk is a large and fleshv petiole or leaf stalk

7 Peas like beans are nothing more than seeds

8 This is easy A carrot is of course a root

9 Each head of brussel sprouts represents a miniature strucshyture like a cabbage bead In either case they are nothing more than leafy buds

10 One of our familiar vegeshytables the tomato is actually a fruit

If you got more than 7 right you know vour onions ( these are bulbs) Congratulations

LIGHT AND TIME Everyone has noticed that light comes

through a window but you may not realshyize that this light can be used to tell the time of day Select a window on the sunny side of the building and paste on the glass a piece of paper abou t the size of a half dollar See where the shadow of this spot is on the fiool or perhaps on the opposite wall Mark the place where the shadow is at say 830 A M Mark it again at 900 A M and at intervals for several hOUlmiddotS Notice next day whether the shadows are a t the same places at the same times Does this provide you with a clock Does this sun clock keep pace with the room clock A record kept through the school year will provide the answers to these and many other questions

THE 1958 WORKSHOP IN CONSERVATION

First Section - Three Weeks June 2 to June 20 1958

Credit - three semester hours Graduate or Undergraduate

vVater soil grassland and vvildlife conservation with emphasis throughout on conservation education Such topics as geography and climate of Kansas wltlter resources soil erosion problems and control grass as a resource bird banding wildflowers of Kansas conservation cJubs and conservation teaching at various levels Lectures demonstrations disshycussion groups films slides models field trips projects and individual and group reports Open to any interested person

Second Session - Three Weeks June 23 to July 11 1958

Credit - 1 2 or 3 hours for 1 2 or 3 weeks

Graduate or Undergraduate This section will be devoted to the

production of teaching aids for conshyservation and to other subjects dependshying upon the needs interests and exshyperiences of the participants Topics covered last year were lizzards wildlife refuges roadside nature study and a suggested guide to teaching conservashytion in the elementary schools Some of the materials developed by the 1958 workshop will probably be used in fushyture issues of The Kansa~ School Nafumlr ist

Several scholarships awarded by varishyous Soil Conservation Districts and other interested onranizations are available to people enrolled in the Workshop Pershysons interested in apniyinQ for a scholarshyhip are ur~ed to contact their local Soil Conservation Service Office There will also be a limited number of scholarships awarded bv the Emporia State Teachers College For additional infOlmation and anplication blanks write C F Gladfelter Kansas State Teachers ColIltgtge Emnoria

Vorkshops in Conservation will also be conducted at Fort Hays State and Sterling College Persons attending these workshops are also eligible for the Soil Conservation District Scholarships