1005 



Archangelica in bloom, a luxuriant growth of Urtica dioica, and 

 some Stellaria media and Poa anniia; this little plant-society, exactly 

 the same as might be met with in a »Kvan-yard« in the village, 

 was here on this elevated ledge side by side with the piants usual 

 to siich ledges, Sediim rhodiola, Armeria, Oxyria, etc. 



My notes from Bord 6 include an unusually rich vegetation of 

 flowering piants on Holgafjæld, just below the sumniit, on the side 

 towards south-west (about 475 m. above the sea); this in all prob- 

 ability owed its existence to the excrements of the sea-fowl. Among 

 others, we observed vigorous specimens of Pyrola minor in bloom, 

 a plant which elsewhere we ahvays found in a dwarled and sterile 

 condition (cfr. Ostenfeld 1907, p. 843). 



While sailing amongst the islands, we frequently observed 

 glaucous-green patches on the Urs and grass-slopes, and thus we 

 became quite convinced that this form of Festuca rubra, manured 

 by the sea-fowl, was the cause of this colour. This was very evi- 

 dent, for example, on the northern point of Kuno (Nakken). 



The cliff-frequenting sea-fowl are not the only birds which 

 affect plant growth, for the eider-ducks ( Somateria mollissimaj, which 

 nest in colonies on certain islets, have also an infUience on the 

 composition of the vegetation. Thus on the islets near Kirkebo 

 on Stromo, there is a great abundance of Melandrium rubrum along 

 with luxuriant specimens of Cochlearia officinalis, and other piants. 



B. FORMATIONS IN THE CULTIVATED AREA. 



J. Bernatsky (1904, p. 5) delines culture-formations as: »for- 

 mations whose elements have not come in by natural agencies, 

 but have been artificially introduced.« Thus a cornfield, a planta- 

 tion, and such like are culture-formations. My own conception of 

 a culture-formation is somewhat wider, in that I would include 

 formations which may have appeared naturally within an area en- 

 closed for cultivation, and are kept, through the agency of man, 

 in a state different from that which they would be in if left to 

 themselves. The Færoese home-field, the so-called »Bo« which 

 will be described later, is an example of this kind of culture- 

 formations. We should also include the w^eed-vegetation in the 

 gardens and around the houses. 



The study of the culture-formations has this advantage over 

 that of the natural formations, that our knowledge of their deve- 



