146 The Irish Naturalist. April, 



NOTES ON A BOTANICAL EXPEDITION IN IRELAND 



IN SEPTEMBER, 1906. 



BY G. CLARIDGE DRUCE, M.A., F.I,.S,, 



Fielding Curator in the University of Oxford. 



The beautiful autumn ot last year tempted me to make a 

 botanical journey to Ireland, where I thought, despite the 

 lateness of the season, which had been unusually sunny in 

 England, and where, therefore, many plants were quite gone 

 over, I might be able to see some Irish plants in situ. 

 Among these I wanted to observe Polygonum sagittatum and 

 Sisyrinchium californicum in order to assist me in making up 

 my mind on their status, and more especially to find the 

 eleven Irish species which I had not seen growing in their 

 native place, these being Spiranthes Romanzoffiana t Pota- 

 mogcton Kirkii, Arabis cilia ta, E?ica MackaiU E. mediterranean 

 A?'e?iaria ciliata, Inicla salicina, Saxifraga Stcrnbcrgii, Chara 

 ca?iesccus, and Sisyrinchium angustifolium. Of these I saw all 

 but the Sisyrinchium and the Spiranthes. I was favoured 

 with delightful weather, and the beauty of some parts 

 of the scenery it would be difficult to overpraise. The 

 two species additional to the Irish flora which I noticed 

 are Rtibus thyrsoidcus and Rhinanthus monticola, while 

 the most interesting plant was the new variety of 

 Agrostis canina, L- (var. hevis). The grasses w T ere over 

 for the most part, so far as critical study was con- 

 cerned, and the remark holds good with regard to many 

 species, the Carices being hopelessly late, while the Rubi, 

 too, were almost entirely out of condition. My route was 

 from Waterford to Cork, thence to Bantry ; by boat to Bere- 

 haven and Glengariff; drive to Kenmare, thence by Parkna- 

 silla to Sneem, Derrynane, Castle Cove, and back to Kenmare ; 

 rail to Tralee and Diugle ; climb Brandon Mountain and 

 Connor Hill ; rail to Limerick and Killaloe ; by the steamer 

 to Portumna ; boat on Lough Derg ; drive from Portumua to 

 Woodford and Lough rea ; rail to Gal way and Maam Cross ; 

 drive to Roundstone, and thence to Clifden, Leenane, and 

 Westport ; rail to Sligo ; drive to Ben Bulben and Glencar ; 

 rail to Dublin and Wexford. 



