PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY 337 



are often met with, but upon the knolls there are Elyna Bellardi 

 and Jnncus trifidus: sometimes these are intermixed with mosses 

 and lichens. In some places Jnncus balticus predominates, in others 

 Luznla or Agrostis, Aira ccespitosa, Trisetum subspicatum and other 

 grasses. 



The dry uncultivated grassland without knolls (hardvelli, vall- 

 lendi) usually has for a substratum coarse sand, river-gravel, pebbles, 

 etc., with a thin covering of humus, and a low and rather open vege- 

 tation which chiefly consists of Gramineae (Festnca, Aira, Poa and 

 Agrostis), but these are abundantly intermixed with Jnncus balticns, 

 Luznla multiflora and L. spicata and Elyna Bellardi; Festnca r libra is 

 sometimes a dominant species. Of dicotyledonous plants the fol- 

 lowing are common: Leontodon antnmnalis, Thalictrnm alpinnm, Draba 

 verna, Galinm verum, Euphrasia officinalis, Viola tricolor, Gentiana 

 campestris, Achillea mille folium, Rhinanthns minor, and others. 



The ho me- fie Id (tun) is the manured grassland round the farm- 

 buildings. It is usually enclosed and generally abounds in large 

 knolls. In 1909 the area of the home-fields throughout the island 

 was estimated at 188 square kilometres. The hay (tada) from these 

 home-fields is kept chiefly for winter-fodder for cows. The culti- 

 vation of the home-fields differs greatly, which again influences the 

 vegetation, other plant-associations occurring in patches in the grass- 

 covered area of the home-field; these are especially dependent upon 

 the degree of moisture contained in the different parts of the field. 

 In really well-cultivated home-fields throughout the country the vege- 

 tation is everywhere homogeneous. The Graminea? are dominant, 

 especially Aira ccespitosa, Poa pratensis and Festnca rnbra; moreover 

 Festnca ouina, Poa trivialis, P. annua, Agrostis vulgaris, Alopecurus 

 genicnlatns and Anthoxanthnm odoratiim are very common, and inter- 

 mixed abundantly with these occur Ranunculus acer, Taraxacum of/ici- 

 nale, Rumex acetosa and Polygonum viuiparnm. The home-fields are 

 often quite yellow with Ranunculi (R. acer and R. repens); in many 

 places Trifolium repens and Rhinanthus minor also occur abundantly. 

 In some places Viola tricolor is abundant in home-fields, especially 

 in Eyjafjordur, and Geranium siluaticum in some places in Myrdalur, 

 and in other places Vicia cracca, etc. In addition, many other plants 

 are found in patches, according to the dampness of the soil and 

 the care given to the cultivation of the home-fields; in dry and 

 sandy grassland there often occur an abundance of Galinm verum, 

 G. siluestre, G. boreale, Achillea mille folium , Leontodon antnmnalis, 



