TRIANDRIA— DIGYNIA. Elymus. 177 



Large, rigid, or coarse, mostly perennial, grasses ; various 

 in aspect ; some foreign species are conspicuous for their 

 long aii-?/s. 



1 . E. arc?iarius. Upright Sea Lyme-grass. 



Spike upright, close ; main stalk not winged. Calyx lan- 

 ceolate, the lengtli of the spikelets. Leaves spinous- 

 pointed. 



E. arenarius. Linn. Sp. PL 122. Willd. v. 1.467. Fl. Br. 152. 

 Engl. Bof. V. 24. t. 1672. Knapp t. 108. Mart. Rust. ^ 31. 

 Hook. Scot. 46. Schrad. Genu. v. 1. 401. Schreb. Gram. v. 2. 

 85.^.40. FLDan.t.S47. 



Triticum n. 56. Gmel. Sib. v. 1. 119. t. 25. 



Spartimi herba 4 Batavicum. CUis. Hist. v. 2. 221./. 



On the sandv sea shore. 



In the isle of Bute, and in Devonshire, Huds. In various parts of 

 Scotland. Hooker. Abundant on the north coast of Norfolk. 



Perennial. Juhj, but rarelv. 



Root widely creeping. Stems 3 or 4 feet high, erect, firm, reed- 

 like, hollow, round, striated, leaf;/ chiefly at the base. Leaves 

 hard and rigid, very glaucous, spinous-pointed, one or two feet 

 long, involute ; their upper surface marked with strong rough 

 furrows j the under side quite smooth. Sheaths long, close, 

 furrowed, smooth. Stipula very short. Spike erect, close, glau- 

 cous, G — 14 inches long. Glumes finely downy. Florets about 

 3 in each s pikelet, rarely 4 ; the uppermost, in either case, usu- 

 ally wanting the germen. 



As this plant rarely flowers on our coasts, it is often overlooked for 

 j^rundo arenaria, p. 171 ; but the short stipula essentially di- 

 .stinguishes this Elymus, which is perhaps the very best of all 

 plants to resist the force of the sea. 



2. E. genicidatus. Pendulous Sea Lyine-grass. 



Spike bent perpendicularly downward, lax; main stalk 

 winged. Calyx awl-shaped, longer than the spikelets. 

 Leaves spinous-pointed. 



E. geniculatus. Curt. Brit. Gr. 46. Fl. Br. 153. Etigl. Bot. v. 23. 



t. 1;kSG. Knapp t. 109. Sincl. 2G9. 

 Elymus. Linn. Am. Acad. v. /. 1 92. /. 2./. 5. IVith. v. 1 . 134. /. 2. 



/. 2G. 

 In marshes near the coast, rare. 

 Near Gravesend. Mr. Dickson. 

 Perennial. JiUij. 

 Root of several downy fibres, scarcely creeping. Whole plant 



glaucous, larger than the foregoing, but more slender in habit. 



