905 



of rain throughout the whole year. Perennial species are thus en- 

 abled to conlinue their growth nearly all the year, the winter 

 rarely causing a complete cessation; yet growth as a whole is a 

 slow^ process because of the constant low temperature, and the fre- 

 quent interruptions. 



(II). The other hapaxanthic species (column II in the table) in- 

 clude: (a) wintering-annual herbs — i. e. piants which ger- 

 minate in autumn, but do not flower until next summer; (hj true 

 biennial or pleiocyclic piants. 



The list comprises 8 species (all dicotyledons): 



Cardamine hirsuta (n) Linum catharticum (n) 



Cirsium palustre (n) Myosotis arvensis (c) 



Cochlearia officinalis (n, h) Pedicularis palustris (p) 



Gentiana campestris (n) Plantago coronopus (h) 



The letters in brackets indicate the habitat as in the case of 

 annuals. The difference betw^een the habitat of the two categories of 

 hapaxanthic herbs is a striking one. Whereas the majority of the 

 summer-annuals (I) inhabit cultivated land and the sea-shore, 5 of the 

 species (II) given above have their home in natural inland forma- 

 tions of the lowlands, such as mountain-crags with a good exposure, 

 rock-ledges and slopes; only one species, Myosotis arvensis, occurs 

 in the »Bo« (the cultivated meadow); one is a parasite, and one a 

 true shore-plant; Cochlearia officinalis is both a shore-plant and a 

 mountain-plant, being most frequent on bare gravelly piaces on the 

 hill-plateaux. Thus, most of the small number of Færoese 

 hapaxanthic species which are not summer-annuals, live 

 in the more luxuriant habitats of the lowland. It looks 

 as if they were not quite happy in their surroundings, and must 

 resort to these piaces which receive most sunshine and w^here the 

 soil is a well-drained mould. 



(III). The perennial piants of the Færoes are herbaceous. 

 Trees and larger shrubs do not occur growing wild, but there is a 

 certain number of d e c u m b e n t or d \v a r fy s h r u b s : Juniperus com- 

 nuinis (rare and mostly decumbent), Salix phylicifolia (rare), S. glauca 

 (rare and always decumbent), S. herbacea, Rosa mollis (very rare), 

 Vaccinium myrtillus, V. uliginosum, V. vitis idaea, Loiseleuria pro- 

 cumbens, Erica cinerea, Calluna vulgaris, Dryas octopetala (rare), 

 Empetrum and Thymus serpyllum. In all 14 species, half of which 

 have evergreen and more or less ericoid leaves. 



