FOUND AT HAMPSTEAD. 97 



year it was easy to find a sufficiency of berries. The plant at 

 present grows only on one spot, but it covers almost the whole of 

 the area of about twenty square yards, on an eminence under the 

 shade of a very large beech-tree, near the south-east angle of the 

 grounds. It is known to have existed there for nearly a century, 

 and it has certainly come to have all the appearance of being a 

 native. It is a species which is generally dispersed over Europe, 

 Russian Asia, and North America. But its only recognised habi- 

 tat as a truly indigenous British plant is on the west side of Forge 

 Valley, near Hackness, in Yorkshire, six miles from Scarborough, 

 where it occurs in abundance. It has also been reported from 

 Lancashire and Bedfordshire, but on insufficient evidence. 



As the name of the plant is rather a puzzle, I should mention 

 that it is also often called Smilacina bifolia ; and that it appears as 

 Maianfhem7i??i Convallaria in the last edition of the standard 

 " London Catalogue of British Plants." It has no true English 

 name ; that of May-Lily is more often applied to the Lily-of-the- 

 Valley. Maianthenmni means " May-flower." 



The only other botanical feature of our afternoon's walk which 

 seems worth recording is the luxuriant growth of the Blue-leaved 

 Spleenwort [Asplenium Ruta-muraria) on the kitchen-garden wall 

 of Caen Wood. This wall extends for a furlong or so along the 

 road-side, and along the upper rows of bricks this little fern seems 

 to have found a more congenial house than it has anywhere else 

 so near London. It is worth a walk of many miles to see its 

 almost unparallelled fertility there. 



As the result of our excursion, Mr. Charles Emery, of Crouch 

 End, an enthusiastic botanist, has sent me the following list of 

 plants, representing eleven natural orders, collected on that 

 occasion : — 



Upright and Creeping Buttercup {Rantinculus acris and R. 

 repens). 



Shepherd's Purse {Capsella hirsapastoris). 



Greater Stitchwort {Stellaria Holostca), 



Dwarf Mallow {Malva rohmdifoUa). 



Ymxzq {Ulex Eiiropcea ). 



Dutch Clover (Trifolium repens). 



Bramble {Ruhus friiticosus ). 

 Vol. VI. H 



