948 



if water does not lie all the year round. On the slopes of the 

 dornes the heather nioor occurs, and crowning the summits there 

 is frequently a meagre rocky-tloor vegetation with the bare rock or 

 soil showing up. Besides occurring in these hollows, the boggy- 

 moor association is met with throughout the lower parts of the 

 Valleys, if water is abundant and its movement is retarded or 

 blocked. The removal of peat^ for fuel and the formation of tur- 

 banes in almost every valley have resulted in a great increase of 

 this formation. The floors of the valleys are very irregular, the 

 rock being quite exposed or just below the surface at one place, 

 while not far off there may be peat to the depth of a metre; peat- 

 cutting is therefore only possible in pockets where there is suf- 

 ficient depth. 



The surface of a Færoese valley-bottom is thus very uneven, 

 constantly changing between low knoils or hillocks and the inter- 

 vening hollows. The boggy-moor association appears in natural 

 depressions and turbaries when water is present in sufficient 

 quantity to provide the necessary conditions. As time goes on the 

 accumulation of vegetable matter raises the surface-level and re- 

 duces the water-content, so that the vegetation assumes a somewhat 

 less boggy character. Eriophoriim and the Care.r-species become 

 replaced by Scirpiis caespitosiis , Jiinciis squarrosus, and Nardiis, 

 while Sphagnum and Campijlopns atrovirens give place to Hylocomia, 

 Isolhecium teniiinerve and Grimmia hypuoides. In this way the 

 plant-association, which I have named grass-moor (Hedekær) comes 

 into existence. This change afTects the landscape, in that the sur- 

 face of a valley-bottom becomcs more uniformly level, and brings 

 a greater homogcneity into the plant-covering. So long as the de- 

 pressions remain distinctly lower than the heights, the vegetation 

 on the latter remains rather dry, often heath-like. Laler as de- 

 pression and height become effaced, the difference in the vegetation 

 also disappears, and ultimately there may result a gently undulating 

 surface covered by a grass-moor vegetation. 



The plant-covering has probably developed in this way in the 



1 Lise of the terms »Tiirf« and »Peat« (Note by Dr. W. G. Smith): 

 »Turf« is used in two common wa3's 1) Grass-turf or sod, 2) Turf for burning. 

 The latter is in some parts the surface layer (about 5 cm.) from Calluna 

 moor or heath; certain local names e. g. »flad« are distinctly Scandinavian, allied 

 to Germanxplaggc. »Peat« is dug from below the surface in more or less brick- 

 shaped pieces; it occurs chiefly in bog-formations. In Ireland and other piaces 

 this is also called »turf«. »Turbary« the place from which peat is taken. 



