223 



iiig to our list many species new to Kansas, and oxliibitin^ very strik- 

 ingly the transition from the eastern to tlie western plains flora. Prof. 

 W. A. Kellerman and Mr. B. B. Smyth have preceded me in making 

 coHections of the plants of this district, and reported qnite a number 

 of the species that I shall mention in these notes. 



Here we find species that would be wholly out of place in eastern 

 Kansas, but which become very faiuiiiar to tlie collector in the "Pan- 

 handle" or i!^eutral Strip, and wliich are invariably characteristic of 

 sandy barren regions. 



But, going westward, before we reach the more barren portions of the 

 district we first find in Kingman, Pratt, Barber, and Comanche coun- 

 ties an extension from the Territory of the outcropping "red beds." 

 Here tliere is not such a continuity of the fiora as iu the sandy regions, 

 but tliere are certain unusual forms quite local and broken iu their 

 range, such as the foUowing species: 0,vi/tropi,s monticola Gray, found 

 so far only at Kingman, Gaillardia simplex Sclieele., Astragalus hisnlcatus 

 Gray, Sentcio Douglasli DC. and Aster oblonfiifolius Nutt., var, rigUltdus 

 Gray. Gypsum hills, too, are numerous here, and are accompanied by 

 their peculiar fiora. Juniperus Virglniana L. aud CeltiH occldentali.s h. 

 occur among these liills, the former probably as an extension of its 

 range from the Territory, rather tlian from eastern or northern Kansas. 



Aside from the plants of the "red beds" and sandy regions, there 

 are a few others that become familiar forms in western Kansas, distrib- 

 uted quite generally over the high prairies. Of these, besides various 

 cacti, buff'alo-grasses, and the grama grasses [HouteUnia raccmosa Lag., 

 B. oUgostachya Torr. and B. hirsuta Lag., tliere are tln^ following 

 species: Lepachys Tagetes Gray (both purple aud yellow-rayed forms), 

 Gailhtrdia pulchella Foug., Engelmannia pmnatifida Torr. and Gray, 

 Brysimum asperum DC, Astragalus lotiflorus Hook., A, mollissimus 

 Torr., Tpomma leptophylla Torr., (Enothera llartwcgl Jioiith, etc. 



The prevailing sunflower for all this district, and in fact for the entire 

 Arkansas Valley of the Great Plains, is lleJianthus petiolaris Nutt., al- 

 though ff. anniniH L. is <piite couunon. 



Throughout this district, as in western Indian Territory, the most 

 important forage grasses are the buflalo-grass, blue-stems, switch grass 

 {Panicum virgatum L.), and the grama glasses. Along the Cimarron 

 Kiver Spombolus asperi/olins Thurb. and Mahlcnbergia gracillima Torr. 

 are also rather common, ot'curring in dense i)atches. One of the worst 

 weeds anu>ng the grasses is Schedonnardus Texanus Steudel, which 

 grows so thickly from Gray County westward as to become <]nite an 

 annoyance in the fields, ]>articular]y in those not constantly cultivated, 

 and is very provoking to tlie teamsters, by gathering mud on the wlnA.'l8 

 of the wagon after a rain. 



In Seward County, the comnnm "tumble weed" is CycJohma phity- 

 phyllum Moq. I saw S])ecimens of this species on exhibition at Aikalon 

 wiiicli measured as much as 3 feet across. It is common in sandy 

 wastes. 



