BOTANICAL NOTES AND NEWS 251 



of the leaves, form of leaflets, shape and direction of teeth and of 

 prickles, and forms of fruits. The degrees of serration and presence 

 or absence of hairs on sepals and peduncles he uses only as 

 distinguishing sub-varieties denoted by prefixes as follows : without 

 prefix denotes that the leaflets are simply serrate, or nearly so ; per- 

 denotes that they are biserrate ; prae- that they are biserrate with 

 very glandular margins ; ob- that there are glands on the margins 

 of the sepals ; stib- that the sepals have dorsal glands, while the 

 serration is simple ; super- differs from sub- only in biserrate margins ; 

 hirtelli- indicates a transition from a glabrous to a hairy series ; 

 tersi- denotes that hairs are on the nerves only ; hirti- that they 

 occur over the surfaces. 



Only experience can show the value of such a scheme ; but if it 

 stands that test it should be a boon to students of the roses of the 

 British Islands. 



The Summer of 1911. The most noteworthy features of the 

 summer have been, in north-east Scotland at least, the very small 

 rainfall and exceptionally high temperature. In the valley of the 

 Dee the want of rain has led to the drying up of swamps and of 

 not a few streams, while the amount of water has been largely 

 reduced in all. The margins of the Dee yielded a very poor 

 contingent of plants, reduced still more by the attacks of multitudes 

 of rabbits, whose usual food was much reduced or almost destroyed 

 by the drought. Many swamps, hardly accessible in most years, 

 could be crossed almost dry shod. The effects have been severe 

 on numerous species of wild plants ; and the yield of cultivated 

 plants has been much reduced in most places. The older people 

 state that so dry a season is not remembered since 1868. Even 

 early in September the discoloration and fading of the leaves 

 denotes the early oncoming of winter. JAMES W. H. TRAIL. 



Montia verna, Nt-cker. This more southern form of Montia 

 lacks a precise record for Scotland ; but I am now able to supply it. 

 When exploring the vicinity of Dunkeld, East Perth, with the 

 members of the Phytogeographical Excursion I noticed this plant 

 in some quantity near Butterstone Loch. In the Herbarium of 

 the Royal Botanic Garden at Edinburgh I also saw a specimen 

 labelled M, fontana, from the shore between Queensferry and 

 Burntisland, Fife, collected by A. C. Maingay in 1857. The true 

 M. fontana, L. (M. lamprosperma, Cham.), is in the same herbarium, 

 from Loch Skene in Dumfries, Maxwelton in Kirkcudbright, King's 

 Park, Edinburgh, Pentlands, Lindores and Inverkeithing Bay in 

 Fife, Arran, Isle of Bute, Glen fa rg, Loch Brandy in Forfar, Durris 

 in Kincardine, Blair-Atholl in E. Perth, and St. Kilda, A. H. 

 Gibson, 1859. Most of these belong to the variety boreo-rivularis. 

 G. CLARIDGE DRUCE. 



