Golden Club.Orontium aquaticum.
Found in ponds, or standing water, in early May.
The flower-spike and leaves lie upon the water, or hold themselves just above its surface, springing on long stems from the submerged root.
The oblong, narrow leaf is thick and juicy, with an entire margin, that is conspicuously folded together and joined at the base, and a smooth surface. In color it is a rich-toned green with a bloom above, the under surface being shining and pale and much colored by fine speckles of bronze. The leaf-stem is round, porous, smooth, and bronzy.
The small, flat, indefinite flowers are inset closely upon a round club, in a smooth, curiously patterned mosaic-work of a bright golden-yellow color. This club terminates a smooth porous stem, which becomes large and is flattened on one side beneath the flowers; it is streaked with bronze beneath the water, but clear white above its surface.
“I don’t feel as if I should search for it!” said the farmer when he saw this plant for the first time.