IRbobora 



JOURNAL OF 



THE NEW ENGLAND BOTANICAL CLUB 



Vol. 6 July, 1904 No. 67 



SOME INTERESTING RHODE ISLAND BOGS. 

 J. Franklin Collins. 



In January, 1904, the Rev. Mr. Cheney of Pascoag, Rhode Island, 

 visited a pond several miles from his home for the double purpose of 

 fishing through the ice and of obtaining a winter outing. During 

 the day his botanical interest, which is always very great, over- 

 balanced for a time his piscatorial enthusiasm and he left the fishing 

 holes to investigate the winter remnants of plants projecting above 

 the ice and snow on one of the so-called floating bogs in the pond. 

 One plant having evergreen leaves with revolute margins interested 

 and puzzled him. He took home several twigs and a few days later 

 showed them to the writer who confirmed his suspicions that the 

 plant was what has long passed as Andromgda polifoUa, L. (really 

 A. glaucophylla, Link) — new to the flora of Rhode Island. 



On the 19th of May, Messrs. Cheney, H. W. Preston and the 

 writer visited the locality for the purpose of obtaining flowering 

 specimens of the plant. We could not have timed our visit better 

 for flowering specimens as the plants were in their prime — both 

 buds and fully open flowers being found on almost every plant. Not 

 one of the party ever dreamed of such a sight of Andromeda as was 

 there revealed, for the plants could be counted by the thousands, 

 partially covering and fringing all the floating bogs, each with scores 

 of the beautiful pink or white corollas and similarly colored pedicels. 

 It is safe to say that none of the party will ever forget the sight. 

 Mixed with, or between, the patches of Andromeda were hundreds of 

 plants of Kabnia glauca, Ait., another plant new to the state. Here 

 also was found Eriophorum vaginatum, L., a third plant unrecorded 

 for Rhode Island. Upon the bogs grew many Black Spruces, in fact 

 many more than all the others that the writer has seen anywhere 



