guished by any botanist until the account of them from the
pen of Fries, in his Herb. Normale and Mantissa, removed
the obscurity in which they were previously enveloped.
Sometimes it is not very easy to distinguish them when only
in flower; but, even then, the rather soft, because pithy, ascending
stem, and the nearly constant presence of some dark
flowers amongst the dark-striped yellow ones, is sufficient to
show that it is this plant, and not the M. falcata, which is
before us. Here the pods form nearly one turn, making a
quite flat ring. In M. falcata no ring is formed, for the pod,
although slightly curved, is much twisted; the stem also of
that plant is rounder, much harder (being more solid and
woody), and more prostrate than that of M. sylvestris.
In the M. sativa, or Lucerne of the farmers, the stem is
hollow and upright, the pods form a spiral of two or three
turns. The corolla is not bright yellow like that of M.falcata,
nor yellow with purple bands or blackish, as is that of M.
sylvestris; but violet-blue, becoming yellowish or rusty as it
fades.
M. sativa is probably well known; it is rarely found in the
state of even a doubtful native in England. M. falcata and
M. sylvestris are very local plants. They seem to be almost
confined to the remarkable district which extends from near
Newmarket across Suffolk to Thetford, and thence far into
Norfolk. There they are frequently found on the sides of
banks and at the edges of the plantations of fir, which are
used as shelter in a tract of loose and sometimes shifting
sand.
Our drawing was made from specimens sent by the present
writer from Chippenham, Cambridgeshire, in July 1852.
The flowers are produced from the middle of June until the
commencement of August, and the root is perennial.
On one side of the plate, two of the darker flowers are represented
separately; on the other, the dissections of one of
the yellow flowers will be found.—C. C. B.