ALOPEOUnUo HYBRIDUS IN BRITAIN 



283 



A. pratensis, but the characters of our plant do not favour this 

 supposition, the soft ciliated glumes being against the hybrid 

 theory. I am more inclined to consider it a form of A. nigricans 

 Hornem., but neither the description in Fries nor the original 

 specimens — in which the glumes are shaggy and have no awns, 

 and the culms are upright — agree with A. nigricans. I have in 

 the meantime therefore placed this form under a new name." 



Dr. Heidenreich, in Oesterr. Bot. Zeitschr. xvi. 277 (1866), 

 discusses Wichura's A. pratensis x (jenicidatus at considerable 

 length. He gives comparative descriptions of the plant and its 

 assumed parents, and contrasts them as follows : — 



A. irratensis. 



Culmi validi, erecti, 

 pedales et ultra. 



Folia 6-9 unciales longa, 

 summum 2-6 unc. 

 longum. 



Ligula brevis, lineam 

 longa, truncata. 



Panicula crassa, '^-4 un- 

 cias longa, 3-4 lineas 

 lata, ramis 1-7 spiculas 

 gerentibus. 



Spiculte 2 lineas longte, 

 ovato-lanceolatiK. 



Glumse acutae, tertia ima 

 parte connatfe, carina 

 villoso-ciliata. 



Palea acutiuscula, 



A. pratensis x geniculatus. 



Culmi subgraciles, basi 

 procumbentes, genicu- 

 lato-adscendentes ; ela- 

 tiores quam in A. geni- 

 culato ; l§-2 pedales. 



Folia 4-6 uncias longa, 

 summum 1 rarissimo 

 3 uncias longum. 



Ligula oblonga, 2 lineas 

 longa, obtusiuscula, 



Panicula subgracilis, If- 

 2| unc. longa, 2| raris- 

 simo 4 lineas lata ; ra- 

 mis 1-4 spiculas geren- 

 tibus. 



Spicule If lin. longae, ob- 

 longo-lanceolatae, sub- 

 ovatae. 



Glumte obtusiusculffi, 

 quinta v. quarta ima 

 parte connate ; carina 

 piloso-ciliata. 



Palea obtusiuscula. 



A. geniculatus. 



Culmi graciles, basi pro- 

 cumbentes geniculato- 

 adscendentes ; 1-2 pe- 

 dales. 



Folia 2-4 uncias longa, 

 summum ^-1 unc. 

 longum. 



Ligula elongata, 2-3 

 lineas longa. 



Panicula gracilis, 1^-2 

 uncias longa, 2-3 lineas 

 lata ; ramis 1-2 spiculas 

 gerentibus. 



Spiculfe lineam longfe, 

 ovato-oblongcG. 



Gluma3 apice subtruncato- 

 obtusse, basi ima con- 

 nataB ; carina ciliata. 



Palea obtusissima. 



On examination I find that the Warwickshire plant exhibits all 

 the characters ascribed to A. hgbridus by the above authors. As 

 will be seen from the accompanying descriptions, the flowering 

 glumes and pale afford an important distinguishing character. 

 They differ markedly from A. pratensis in being considerably smaller 

 and blunter, but not so obtuse as in A. gejiicidatus. The ciliation 

 of the glumes is also very conspicuous, the hairs being apparently 

 stiffer and coarser than in the allied plants. I am inclined to think 

 that this Foxtail is a cross resulting from the association of the 

 above mentioned species. In support of the hybrid theory I must 

 point out that we found both the alleged parents occurring almost 

 within a stone's-throw of the meadow which yields A. hgbridus. Mr. 

 Bromwich suggests that both A. geniciihitiis and A. pratensis may 

 have originally occurred in the field, and that the resiilting hybrid 

 may have survived its parents there. In no description of this 

 plant can I find any mention of the glaucous sheaths. This 



Journal of Botany. Vol. 39. [July, 1901.] s 



