844 Botanical Notices from Spain, 



chum spinosum, Boiss., here constantly with white flowers ; Anthyllis 

 Erinacea, L., Vella spinosa, Boiss., Genista aspalathoides, DC, var. 

 confer tior, Boiss., and Juniperus phcenicea, L. On loose rocky soil 

 and fields at the foot of the mountain-chain I remarked Minuartia 

 campestris, Loffl., in plenty, Lagcecia cuminoides, L., Polygonum Con- 

 volvulus, L., and various grasses. Almost the same, but a much 

 poorer vegetation is found on the lower Sierra de Oria. 



Between Maria and the lofty Sagra de Huescar, which I ascended 

 on the 15th of June, is a wide, undulating, high table-land, destitute 

 of water and trees, which presents only a few plants. I however 

 gathered some rather scarce plants here in plenty, as the pretty 

 Jurinea pinnata, DC. (Stahelina, Lag.), Thymus membranaceus, Boiss., 

 Allium sphcerocephalum, L., a pretty Onobrychis and a beautiful large- 

 blossomed Lavatera, Some low mountain-ridges, almost wholly co- 

 vered with Lavandula Spica, have to be traversed before reaching 

 the foot of the Sagra, on which lies the large hamlet of La Puebla 

 de Don Fabrique, in whose neighbourhood occurs Santolina pectinata 

 in plenty, and distant several miles from the Sagra, on which some 

 fields of snow were still visible. This colossal mountain is on its 

 southern and western acclivity up to half its height thickly wooded 

 with firs, in whose shade I met with a pretty little Campanula on 

 the loose vegetable soil. The whole of the upper portion of the 

 mountain is entirely barren, and covered on almost all sides with 

 loose limestone debris. The summit is formed of a narrow, grassy 

 level, on which the remarkable rose-red Senecio Boissieri, DC, 

 flowers in company with a Paronychia, Anthyllis Webbiana, Hook., 

 and Galium pyrenaicum, Gou. On the rocks of the northern accli- 

 vity below the summit I gathered a small Saxifraga with Valeriana 

 tuberosa, DC ; and upon barren limestone debris, almost wholly 

 concealed among the loose stones, here and on the western acclivity, 

 two peculiar plants in great profusion, namely a Platycapnos with 

 nearly round heads of small flesh-coloured flowers and finely divided, 

 grayish-green leaves, and a pretty stemless Cichoriaceous plant with 

 almost spathulate long petiolated leaves, covered on both sides with 

 a white wool, and a long stalked head of large blossoms of yellow 

 flowers, on the underside of a carmine colour. On the debris of the 

 southern acclivity occur the pretty Scutellaria orientalis, L., more 

 frequent Ptilotrichum spinosum, Vella spinosa, Anthyllis Erinacea, and 

 Andryala Agardhii. 



About six miles east of Maria and a mile from Velez-Blanco rises 

 a remarkable rugged mountain somewhat of the form of the Lilien- 

 stein in the Saxon S^^itzerland, which has the name of Muela de 

 Montalbiche, and may be about 5000 feet high. This immense 

 limestone rock forms the highest point and the most western abut- 

 ment of a chain, the greatest part of which belongs to the kingdom 

 of Murcia, and is only accessible from the western side. I ascended 

 it on the 19th of July, and found here in the rocky clefts from the 

 foot to the summit the elegant Hypericum ericoides, L., in great 

 plenty ; and moreover on the shady rocky walls of the upper part a 

 small, half-shrubby, fragile, whitish-gray Teucrium forming patches. 



