ENGELMANN — NORTH AM. SPECIES OF JUNCUS. 461 



water. It seems that about the period of maturing the seeds, 

 at the end of August, the long horizontal rhizoma, which at 

 its end is to bear the flowering stem of next season, begins to 

 shoot forth, and from the axils of its scales produces a number 

 of extremely short or rudimentary branchlets which are again 

 branching and form short knobs on the rootstock. These 

 branchlets bear a number of capillary leaves of the thickness 

 of horsehair, and knotted like the ordinary leaves of this 

 species, at this time, end of August, few in number, and only 

 a few inches long. Towards the close of the season they in- 

 crease in number and length, and seem to live through the 

 winter wherever they are immersed deep enough to escape 

 the frost. They attain their full development about May 

 and June, when they are 2-3 feet long, and carpet the bottom 

 of those streams, at the depth of 2-4 feet below the surface, 

 with their dark green undulating masses, most beautiful to 

 look at, but quite obnoxious to the proprietors of the mill- 

 streams, the sluices of which they are apt to obstruct. These 

 leaves decay about the period the plant begins to bloom. The 

 beautiful specimens collected by Dr. Bobbins for the Herba- 

 rium jSiormale (No. 53) exhibit them to perfection. The 

 twist and bend of the stem of many of Dr. Robbins' flow- 

 ering specimens is caused by the strong current in which 

 they grew. The only thing approaching such submerged 

 leaves, Mr. Parker has found in the Delaware above Philadel- 

 phia, where this plant grows "in shallow Avater, extending to 

 the border of deep running water, the finest specimens grow- 

 ing at a depth of 3 or 4 feet." How does this species grow 

 in stagnant ponds or swamps? It would be very desirable 

 that collectors of Junci should pay more attention to the 

 circumstances under which these plants occur, the process of 

 their vegetation, the time of flowering and of maturity, and, 

 of course, to the base of the stem and to the rootstock, which 

 is too often a vain desideratum in herbarium specimens. 



37. J. supinifokmis, n. sp. : foliis vernalibus e basi latiore 

 subulatis capillaceis longissimis teretibus pallide virentibus 

 natantibus evanescentibus ; caule florifero erecto humili 

 (digitali vel ultra) folia erecta teretia longiora gerente ;, 

 panicula simplici; capitulis sub-5-floris; sepalis ovato-lan- 

 ceolatis cuspidatis nervosis aequalibus seu externis paulo bre- 

 vioribus inter se inasqualibus stamina 3 stigmataque paulo 

 excedentibus; antheris oblongis tilamento multo brevioribus; 

 stylo per-brevi ; capsula prismatica obtusa mucronata unilo- 

 culari calycem fere excedente; setniuibus obovatis utrumque 

 apiculatis. 



Common in and around ponds near Mendocino City, Cali- 

 fornia; May and June,//. Bolander,Cix\. State Surv. 4767. — 

 Mr. Bolander informs me that in spring these ponds are com- 



