The Scottish Naturalist. 267 



Phleum Michelii All. 



" One of Don's reputed discoveries." Stud. Fl.\ Plants of 

 Forfar, p. 9. 



Prov. 15, Forfar; G. Don, sole authority. 



Error, Cyb. iii. 157. Very summit of the highest mountains. 

 Comp. Cyb. Br. 592. 



" No one has verified it. The specimens given by him were 

 cultivated ones." Arnott Br. Ft. 



" Discovered by Mr. G. Don on rocky parts of the high moun- 

 tains of Angus-shire. The specimens agree with authentic speci- 

 mens, except in being less luxuriant, owing probably to its more 

 northern locality or more barren piece of ground." Sm. Eng. 

 Flora, vol. 32, 2265. 



" Said to have been found on the highest mountains of Forfar 

 by Don, but by no one else. Mr. H. C. Waison suggests that 

 possibly the long awned form of Alopecurus alplnus, to which I 

 have given the name JVatsoui, may have been mistaken for it." 

 Eng. Bot. 



Cyb. Br. says : — " Incognita. Don, in HendricKs Forfarshire^ 

 says, ' Lately I found three other grasses new to the British flora — 

 Avena planicuhnis {A. alpina), Aira laevigata (A. alpind) and 

 Phleum Michelii. These grasses grow on the very summit of the 

 highest mountains.' Can the Phleum Michelii be the Alopecurus 

 alpestris (A. JVatsoni)? True, the figure in English Botany does 

 not represent an Alopecurus technically, but it bears that first-glance 

 resemblance to my supposed alpestris, which may suggest the 

 possibility of Don having seen that one, and somehow substituting 

 the other for it. 



In Don's Collection of grasses, etc., is a specimen of P. Michelii 

 (not an Alopecurus) labelled — "1 discovered this in 1808 on rocks 

 on the Clova mountains, but rare." In this same collection are 

 Aira alpina and Avena alpiua both labelled " Clova mountains, 

 1808." 



Nyman gives its distribution, Delph. Juras. Alpes. Ital., etc. 



In Miss Palmer's collection is a specimen labelled " Phleum 

 Michelii" from the Clova mountains, in the Countess of Ayles- 

 ford's writing ; but the specimen is Alopecurus alpinus, an inter- 

 mediate form between typical alpinus and the long-awned form 

 Watsoni. Here, again, Lady Aylesford may have mislabelled the 

 plant ; but the probability seems strong that Don himself made the 

 error. If so, it lessons the chance of Phleum Michelii being a 

 native of Britain. 



