1911] Blanchard,— Lycopodium flabelliforme 169 
among our club mosses. It is as distinct from L. complanatum L. as 
is L. tristachyum Pursh, and it would do no more violence to a 
natural classification to make the latter a variety of L. complanatum 
as has been done though perhaps unwittingly as L. complanatum, var. 
Chamaecyparissus Milde., than to continue L. flabelliforme a variety 
of L. complanatum. The two plants L. complanatum and L. tris- 
tachyum have several distinctive characters in common — they have 
underground rootstocks, ripen their fruit early in the season, have 
slender peduncles growing from nearly similar points, and enlarge by 
growth from the ends of all branches, while L. flabelliforme has 
different or just the opposite characters. 
L. complanatum is a skeleton-like, unattractive plant with root- 
stocks usually well down in the leaf-mould or soil, and the stems arise 
like distinct plants rather than like those of a trailer. In order to 
secure a specimen with its rootstock vigorous digging is necessary. 
One would hardly think of gathering it for decorative purposes. The 
early maturing strobiles are hardly an inch (2 cm.) long, from one to 
three in number, more commonly one, borne on a slender peduncle 
from 1{ to 2 inches (3 to 5 cm.) long. The pedicels are very short, 
often apparently wanting, and the two strobiles when there are two 
arise side by side nearly or quite touching. The strobiles are some- 
times forked being single at the base and the forking at any place 
above. The fruiting part appears to be a very insignificant portion 
of the plant and during the fall season is hardly noticeable, but it 
remains like that on L. flabelliforme though somewhat battered 
through several years. 
L. flabelliforme has a regular, stocky, very attractive appearance; 
the rootstock is usually almost on the surface of the ground and the 
plant is used like a vine for decorative purposes and can well be com- 
pared with L. clavatum L. for such uses, while L. complanatum can 
only be used like L. obscurum L. The four (sometimes five) strobiles 
averaging about an inch (2.5 cm.) long, but varying much and often 
having a long point, maturing very late in the season, mark very 
distinctly the outline of a square prism, and are immediately sup- 
ported by prominent two-forked pedicels borne on a stout, erect 
peduncle about 3 in. (7 cm.) in length. The fruiting part is thus 
very prominent. 
But L. flabelliforme is also distinguished from L. complanatum by its 
method of growth which I think is unique in this genus and is of 
