John Robbins Jr., age 9, of McAllen, Texas, for his question:

HOW DID THE JACK IN THE PULPIT GET ITS NAME?

Jack in the pulpit is the name of an American wild flower that you'll find growing in the moist woodlands and thickets from Nova Scotia south to the Gulf States, and as far west as Minnesota. A relative of the marsh calla, it is also called Indian turnip.

If you just look at the wild flower you'll see how it received its name. The part that looks like the preacher is the slender stalk called the spandix. The tiny greenish yellow flowers grow in a club shaped spike on the upper part of this stalk.

The "pulpit" is a leaflike growth which encloses the spandix like a trumpet. This part, the spathe, has a broad flap that extends up and over the spandix. It resembles the sounding board behind and over a pulpit.

The spathe is pale green, striped with purple and brownish lines.

The odd shaped flowers of this plant bloom from April to June. They produce clusters of smooth, red berries. The plant grows from a turniplike root.