THE GREATER WHITE STOCK

A detailed botanical woodcut illustration shows a flowering plant, likely a species of Stock Matthiola|a genus of fragrant flowering plants in the mustard family. The plant is depicted with a single, thick, ribbed stem growing from a fibrous root system. At the top of the main stem, a dense cluster of long, spear-shaped leaves radiates outward. Several flowering stalks emerge from this central foliage. These stalks bear four-petaled flowers in various stages of bloom alongside long, slender seed pods known as siliques silique|a long, dry fruit or seed pod typical of the Brassicaceae or mustard family.