Botanical Notices from Spain. 181 



lica, L., in the neighbourhood of the sea, as well as of Agave ame- 

 ricana and Cactus Opuntia. The last is also cultivated in many gar- 

 dens for the sake of the cochenille, although it occurs everywhere 

 wild on stony, sunny places in the warm sea-region ; for instance, 

 the whole south and east slopes of the castle of Murviedro are co- 

 vered with impenetrable bushes of a man's height, in which stems of 

 4 or 5 inches diameter are frequently seen. Of herbaceous vege- 

 ta])les are grown in the Huerta very many strawberries, artichokes, 

 onions, garlic, beans, peas, ViciaFaba, L.,and especially theGarbanzos 

 (^Cicer arietinum, L.), so much loved by the Spaniards. The water- 

 courses are almost universally decked with Iris Pseudacorus, and 

 filled with our species of Lemna and Potamogeton. A pretty red- 

 flowered Silene is not uncommon, and on the walls Hyoscyamus alba 

 grows everywhere in luxuriant abundance, while the hedges are over- 

 run with Fumaria capreolata, L., and Rubiacea. All sandy places, 

 particularly the shore of the Rio Turia, are covered with Plantago 

 Coronopus, L., Calendula officinalis, Erodias and Euphorbias. 



As soon as the weather permitted, I made an excursion to the 

 lake of Albufera, which is situated about two leagues westward of 

 Valencia, and is connected with the sea by a narrow canal. Almost 

 the whole of its shores are covered with rice-fields, yet the strip of 

 land, about three-quarters of a mile broad, which separates it from 

 the sea and which is little else than a mound of sand, is occupied by 

 a wood of Pinus Halepensis, Mill. This little wood is one of the 

 spots richest in plants in the neighbourhood of Valencia, on which 

 account I have often visited it. The ground is covered with a low 

 underwood which is chiefly composed of Quercus cocci/era, Myrtus 

 communis and Chamcerops humilis ; beneath these frequently occur 

 bushes oi Juniperus Oxycedrus, L., Rhamnus Lycioides, L., Erica ar- 

 borca, L., Rosmarinus officinalis, L., Ruscus aculeatus, L. , Pistacia 

 lentiscus, L., &c. On the shore of the Albufera in loose quicksands 

 are pretty frequently found great bushes of Solanum SodomcEum, L., 

 with stems as thick as a man's arm, and Trixago Apula, Col., jS. versi- 

 color, Lagurus ovatus, L., &c. clothe the more grassy places. In the 

 interior of the wood occur many Helianthema, Coronilla juncea, L., 

 Urospermum picroides, Desf., and frequently Elceoselinuin fcetidum, 

 Boiss., which however was not yet in fruit. In the thick bush grows 

 very rarely Lonicera implewa, Ait., and in the neighbourhood of the 

 coast the beautiful Iris filifolia, Boiss., but also very sparingly. The 

 numerous shallow lagoons which occur between the Albufera and 

 the sea are filled with Charas and Potamogetons ; these also cover 

 the bottom of the Albufera, and Juncus acutus, L., the margin. The 

 grassy sand-hills in front of the pine- wood are covered over and over 

 with Cistus albidus, L., and C. salvifolius, L., while the bare sand- 

 downs near the sea are overgrown with Asphodelus fistulosus, L., 

 Euphorbias, and Passerina hirsuta, L. In the neighbourhood of the 

 sea Ononis Matrix is pretty well scattered, and a silky-haired Lotus. 

 In the Albufera also the Vallisneria spiralis presents itself, which 

 Cavanilles, and, quite lately, Blanco have found here ; I however have 



